The Football Factory
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Promotional poster for The Football Factory |
The Football Factory is a
2004 British film, directed by
Nick Love and starring
Danny Dyer and
Frank Harper. It is based on the popular novel of the same name by
John King. The film is the first foray into film-making by video game producers
Rockstar Games, credited as Executive Producers.
The subject of the film, in a nutshell, is about
football hooliganism. Although great measures have been taken in the
U.K. over the past few decades to control the violence surrounding football, it nonetheless remains problematic. The two
firms that
The Football Factory mainly focusses on are the
Headhunters, who support
Chelsea F.C. and the Bushwhackers, who support
Millwall F.C.. Throughout the movie, the Headhunters have at it with other English firms, such as those supporting
Tottenham Hotspur;
Liverpool; and
Stoke City. No real-life firms are actually mentioned in the film, but in the scene where the Chelsea coach (bus) is heading north to Liverpool, there is an actual Headhunters' flag hung in the rear windscreen (window).
The film largely follows the protagonist, 'Tommy Johnson', a member of the 'Chelsea Headhunters' football firm. The film explores the mindset and culture of contemporary English males, as the audience witnesses through the misadventures of Johnson (a twenty-something who lives for the weekend); Billy Bright, an embittered
right-wing fascist played by Frank Harper; Zeberdee, an amoral junior firm member; and Johnson's grandfather, Bill Farrell, a war veteran. During the film, Johnson moves toward a mental collapse as he starts to question for the first time the lifestyle of casual sex, cheap drugs, and extreme violence from which he cannot pry himself away.
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Danny Dyer — Tommy Johnson
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Frank Harper — Billy Bright
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Neil Maskell — Rod
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Roland Manookian — Zeberdee
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Jamie Foreman — Taxi Driver
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Tamer Hassan — Millwall Jack
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Kara Tointon — Tameka/Shie
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Tony Denham — Harris
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Stephen Humby — Hooligan
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Danny Kelly — Radio announcer
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Sophie Linfield — Tamara
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Dudley Sutton — Old Man Farrell
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Official Site
