The Football Factory

A documentary-style study on the male obsession with football and the violence spawned from it, The Football Factory is 90 minutes of pure adrenaline. Like its characters, this film is nothing short of brutal. The sheer excitement we feel as we follow young hooligan Tommy Johnson through the streets of middle-class England is amazing. The multiple fight sequences in the film are shot with great precision, giving each frame a visceral quality that works to great effect. The fast-paced script is expertly written, very reminiscent of Goodfellas with its diverse, quirky characters and snappy dialogue. As far as performances go, Danny Dyer's take on the conflicted Tommy Johnson is superb, turning a normally unlikable schlub into a character we can easily sympathize with and care about, and Frank Harper's powerhouse performance as the loud, vulgar, and psychopathic Billy Bright is especially exquisite. Billy is a ticking time bomb that could blow at any second, and Harper does a marvelous job at keeping us on edge. From beginning to startling end, The Football Factory is an excellent crime-drama that should please anyone, even those who hate the sport. A-

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