Alex’s Review: The Firm
I must admit I really wasn’t expecting much as I sat in the cinema waiting for British director Nick Love’s latest offering.
The Firm is a remake of a seminal 1988-television feature that starred Gary Oldman and was directed by Alan Clarke. It caused outrage when it was first shown. British tabloids warned its readers of ‘Sick scenes’ and it was even controversial enough for famous clean up campaigner Mary Whitehouse to try and get it banned.
Alan Clarke was no stranger to controversy as a filmmaker having previously directed Scum in 1977 and Made In Britain in 1982. Alan Clarke’s The Firm is a gritty, well-made and violent film about football hooligans and yob culture.
Having watched it recently ahead of watching the remake I have to say it has dated quite a bit, but it hasn’t lost any of its power to shock. It’s a brilliant piece of filmmaking and my initial reaction was that it really didn’t need to be remade at all.
Remakes are generally a bad idea so when Nick Love came out to introduce his film I was interested to see what he had to say.
He spoke about the cynicism associated with remakes and that he hoped with all the changes he had made to the script it would be appreciated as a good film in its own right and that he was very proud of his work. He had caught my attention straight away because he was being genuine. He admitted that bad press usually surrounded remakes and that he felt he was up to the challenge to break the mould.
Maybe this wasn’t going to be so bad after all.
The film begins with the famous Warner Bros. logo lit up in 80s neon and as the credits roll Tainted Love begins to play. In one clean swoop Nick Love had transported me back to the 80s. It was a perfect start.
Then we meet Bex played by Paul Anderson, a violent football hooligan who along with his ‘FIRM’ walk down the street like a pack of baying wolves. It’s clear they are up to no good and when they meet a rival group we all know what’s going to happen. Soon we are right in the middle of the battle as punches and kicks are thrown and threats are called out. 80s London was a tough place.
After the initial mayhem we are introduced to Dom played by young actor Calum McNab, he is just an average youngster and on a night out he and his mate Terry (Billy Seymour) run into Bex. The two boys don’t have a clue who Bex is, so when they get a bit too mouthy Terry ends up with a broken nose. The power and authority this man exudes transfixes Dom. He wants to be everything Bex is and have everything that Bex has and so begins Dom’s journey from young football casual to football hooligan
The journey will threaten to destroy his relationship with his best friend and tear his family apart.
Nick Love has shot his remake with style. The grey decaying walls of London are of stark contrast to the bright coloured shell suits that the hooligans wear. It has perfect touches of 80s brilliance as we see flashes of sport brands that define the era. Huge Fila and Ellesse logos adorn clothes and the brand spanking new bright blue adidas trainers that Bex buys himself really hit home visually.
The soundtrack is also a huge highlight with 80s disco and pop being played while breakdancers practice their moves on the street.
You can almost smell the 80s leap of the screen. The violence itself is handled really well. As soon as a fight begins Nick Love thrusts us right in the middle of the chaos. We are essentially one of the boys as the camera moves and shakes as if we are dodging punches ourselves.
Talking of the violence Nick Love seems to have decided to try something different in the way he shows it. Because the fight scenes are so chaotic we never actually see any punches or kicks land. Instead we are treated to hundreds of sickening thuds and we can only really guess at the damage that is taking place around us. It is not until after the battle that we actually get to see the bruises and cuts that took place only seconds earlier. It’s not an entirely new idea of depicting violence but it does work pretty well within this context.
The main difference between this and the original is the shift in focus with the characters. Alan Clarke’s version unfolds thought the eyes of Bex himself. We see the world though the top dog. It is the life of a hooligan as seen by the boss. Nick Love drastically changes attention on the new recruit.
We see Bex as a father figure, as an idol or even as god. We look up to him and with this shift comes a whole new sense of innocence being lost. Dom isn’t actually a bad person; he has just fallen in love with the idea of commanding respect and fear.
The change does work for the better. Today’s audiences are more inclined to relate to Dom rather than Bex. Everybody at some point in his or her life has fought for respect or attention. Even though Bex is a violent thug he is always directly responsible for what happens in his life. Dom is young and easily led and everyone can relate to that.
Obviously this is a remake and there are similarities between the two films. Some scenes are copied directly from the original and this wouldn’t be a problem for anyone who hasn’t seen the 1988 version. However if you are familiar with Alan Clarke’s version these scenes just seem lazy as if Nick Love couldn’t think of any other way to progress the story.
It’s not a perfect film by any means. There are a couple of downfalls that let the film down. Because it is shot with so much style it loses a sense of realism.
It’s nowhere near as gritty as the original, which means the mean streets of east London just don’t seem as mean as they should be. It is well shot but Alan Clarke shot the original almost like a documentary, which gave it a chilling and more menacing look. However it’s biggest downfall is the simple fact that even though Paul Anderson plays Bex with brutal precision he won’t be able to escape comparisons with Gary Oldman’s portrayal. We all know that when you go head to head with Gary Oldman you aren’t going to win.
Having said that I was pleasantly surprised with The Firm. Like I said my initial reaction was that this was just another pointless remake with nothing new to add to the story. Nick Love is very much a hit and miss kind of director but I can honestly say this is a great addition to his filmography and a welcome addition to this years British films in general.
While it may not be perfect it is definitely worth checking out.
The Firm is scheduled for UK release on 18th September 2009.
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