Beautiful Thing (1996)

User Rating:

7.4/10   

Director:

Hettie Macdonald

Writers:

Jonathan Harvey (written by)
Jonathan Harvey (play)

Release Date:

9 October 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

An urban fairytale.

Plot:

In a suburb of London, young Jamie is escaping sport hours, to avoid being the victim of his comrades. Young Ste, his neighbor, is beaten by his father, and comes to sleep overnight. They discover new feelings, sleeping in the same bed.

Plot Keywords:

Housing Estate | Club | Single Mother | Gay Kiss | Single Father

Awards:

4 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Meera Syal	...	Miss Chauhan
Martin Walsh	...	Mr. Bennett
Steven M. Martin	...	Ryan McBride
Andrew Fraser	...	Jayson
John Savage	...	Lenny
Scott Neal	...	Ste Pearce
Glen Berry	...	Jamie Gangel
Julie Smith	...	Gina
Linda Henry	...	Sandra Gangel
Jeillo Edwards	...	Rose
Tameka Empson	...	Leah Russell
Anna Karen	...	Marlene
Garry Cooper	...	Ronnie Pearce
Ben Daniels	...	Tony
Daniel Bowers	...	Trevor Pearce

MPAA:

Rated R for sexuality, pervasive strong language and some drug content.

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Singapore:(Banned) | Australia:MA | Finland:K-8 | France:U | Germany:12 | Italy:T | Spain:13 | UK:15 | USA:R | Hong Kong:IIB | Iceland:12

Filming Locations:

Anchor Pub, Rotherhithe, London, England, UK

Company:

Channel Four Films

Trivia:

Cameo: [Jonathan Harvey]Screenwriter appears as the Wheelchair Queen in the scene in the Gloucester pub.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Leah is dressed up as Mama Cass, she has yellow tights over her head. Between shots the legs of the tights alternate from behind/in front of her shoulders.

Quotes:

Sandra Gangel: Now you just remember I won a year's supply of toilet freshener for making up that poem. That took brains and artistry, that did.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Schau mir in die Augen, Kleiner (2007)

Soundtrack:

It's Getting Better

Feel-good, positive film

This is one of those great British dramas set in a typically grim environment but shot with positivity throughout. Having grown up around the area in the film and being only a few years older than the featured boys, it was a joy to see life there depicted in the film.

I agree with all previous comments about the actors and how true-to-life it feels. Although slightly exaggerated in places, this film is a great comment on London working class life as well as being focused around a gay-based storyline.

However, I wanted to add that this film also comments on the complex class system in the UK which explains why Tony was dropped by Sandra. Many non-British viewers may not have picked up on this. Thoughout, Tony is shown as a middle class character who doesn't really fit into the working class environment. He uses different slang words to the others, has a 'posher' accent and has slightly different attitudes to all the other characters. He and Sandra come from different worlds. As Sandra says, she has been fighting all her life, whereas he has had evertyhing given to him on a plate. Ultimately, this relationship was never going to last. Life in London (and the UK) is still spilt into different social classes, although they do mix a little more than they used to. But you can often tell where someone is from by their accent and their choice of words. This was used to great affect in the film.

Overall, a light-hearted look at life on a London council Estate with some great performances... one of my favourite films.