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Beautiful Thing
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Beautiful Thing (1996) More at IMDbPro »

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Beautiful Thing (1996) -- 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.

Overview

User Rating:
7.4/10   8,875 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 3% in popularity this week. See rank & trends on IMDbPro.
Director:
Hettie Macdonald
Writers:
Jonathan Harvey (written by)
Jonathan Harvey (play)
Contact:
View company contact information for Beautiful Thing on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
9 October 1996 (USA) more
Genre:
Comedy | Drama | Romance more
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. full summary | add synopsis
Awards:
4 wins & 3 nominations more
User Comments:
Feel-good, positive film more

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
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Additional Details

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 more
Sound Mix:
Dolby

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Cameo: [Jonathan Harvey]Screenwriter appears as the Wheelchair Queen in the scene in the Gloucester pub. more
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. more
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. more
Movie Connections:
Featured in Schau mir in die Augen, Kleiner (2007) more
Soundtrack:
It's Getting Better more

FAQ

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47 out of 50 people found the following comment useful:-
Feel-good, positive film, 1 June 2004
Author: Rick from London, UK

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.

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Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Best seduction scene ever! purely4ice
More gay films? Reel_Bill
The Slow-Dance Scene yangedd
Totally in love with this movie purely4ice
Is Sandra a lesbian? eldino26
dialogue problems chocochips191
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