Green Street Hooligans
"Two Thumbs Up!" - Ebert & Roeper
Matt Buckner and the Green Street Elite roar and whoop in the packed stadium, cheering their beloved West Ham United football (never say soccer!) squad. The match is rough and rabid, but only the warmup for what comes next. When it does, don't run. Stand your ground. Fight. Just think of someone you hate.
Elijah Wood is Matt, a visiting American drawn into the violent, smash-mouth ways of London's toughest football "firm" of diehard fans... and discovering a side to himself he didn't know existed. Charlie Hunnam plays the hooligan leader who mentors Buckner in the firm's code of conflict. And Lexi Alexander directs with head-butting intensity, taking us inside a rarely seen world of honor among thugs. Boozing, brawling - what else is there to life? The hard lesson Matt learns is that there's so very, very much more.
Member Reviews
Fan or Fanatic? - movie_goer
Green street Hooligans is an underrated- gem!
Elijah Woods has this presence about him that's unforgettable. His Gorgeous Blue eyes just glow on screen, i remember him from Flipper it's obvious He's moved on and proved that it's possible to transform and reinvent oneself to adulthood. For a Indie and with a little to go on Lexi Alexander's vision to expose the undergrounds firm's was a thrilling ride. worth the watch for sports fans.Just fighting. Big deal. - cathyottawa
This film gave me a better understanding of why those brawls seem to break out at every major soccer match in England - it's all about "Firms" (gangs associated with each soccer team - "only we don't shoot out of car windows at little kids like crips and bloods"). For a "Firm" to maintain its reputation, you see, it has to fight other firms on a regular basis. And, well, that's the film in a nutshell.
This begins with Elijah Wood's character being kicked out of Harvard on a bogus charge, but telling us, the audience, that he was "about to learn more than he would ever learn at Harvard". Really? Learning to take a punch and beat people up? Methinks you exaggerate just a bit.
And maybe that's the problem with this film. It takes itself just a bit too seriously. And the third act, which leads to a silly ending with Elijah's character, just isn't very good at all. It falls into cliche, with the damsal in distress, and the heroic martyr.
I really didn't care about any of the thugs, who just came across as childish neanderthals.
I also thought Elijah was all wrong for this part. He's too small and geeky and effeminate to be believed as a tough guy.
This does make for a nice primer for "The Football Factory" - a no less violent, but more authentic version of the same story.Not what I expected ... in a good way! - sinic
The one thing that is clear right from the start of this movie is that the plot isn't the strong suit here. The story is fairly loose and pretty predictable. Saying that alone would be selling a rather good movie short though. I enjoyed the movie as a whole. While I am not really familar with the whole hooliganism problem that seems to plague Europe, this movie did a nice job of showing that it isn't about the "soccer" really; it's about brotherhood, trust, and reputation. These people are often portrayed as bruts that run from town to town causing trouble (and some of that is absolutely true ... if this movie is credible), but there is another side to the story we all hear. This movie seems to give both sides of the story.
The acting is good overall, but I am not sure that Wood would be my first choice for this movie. He never comes off as truly convincing in the role. Other than that, I throughly enjoyed the movie and recommend it!
Member Reviews
Read All...
Fan or Fanatic? - movie_goer
Green street Hooligans is an underrated- gem!
Elijah Woods has this presence about him that's unforgettable. His Gorgeous Blue eyes just glow on screen, i remember him from Flipper it's obvious He's moved on and proved that it's possible to transform ...Just fighting. Big deal. - cathyottawa
This film gave me a better understanding of why those brawls seem to break out at every major soccer match in England - it's all about "Firms" (gangs associated with each soccer team - "only we don't shoot out of car windows at little kids like crips and bloods"). ...Not what I expected ... in a good way! - sinic
The one thing that is clear right from the start of this movie is that the plot isn't the strong suit here. The story is fairly loose and pretty predictable. Saying that alone would be selling a rather good movie short though. I enjoyed the movie as a whole. ...