Billy Elliot

British film first released in 2000, directed by Stephen Daldry and based on the screenplay by Lee Hall. With The miners' strike of 1984 as background, it deals with young Billy Elliot and his dream of becoming a professional ballet dancer. The story has also been turned into a same-titled musical staged for the first time in London at the West End theatre in 2005 and still performed until today.

Plot

Eleven-year-old Billy Elliot (Jamie Bell), the protagonist of the story, lives with his father, Jackie (Gary Lewis), his older brother, Tony (Jamie Draven), and his grandmother (Jean Heywood) in a typical working-class district in Durham, in the North of England.

Billy’s father wants him to take boxing lessons but when Billy runs into a ballet class that takes place in the gym at the same time, he is enthusiastic about it from the start and decides to take regular dancing lessons instead. He even secretly continues when his father clearly forbids him. Jackie considers dancing no proper sport for boys and does not want to spend the little money they have on an activity that presumably lets his son turn gay. The only person who knows about Billy's passion for dancing is his friend Michael, who is later revealed gay.

Mrs. Wilkinson (Julie Walters), Billy’s ballet teacher, enrols him for an audition at the Royal Ballet School in London, but which Billy does not attend. She tries to convince Billy’s father of supporting his son but without any success, Jackie will not change his mind, at least not until he sees Billy dancing one winter evening at the gym. Truly impressed by his son’s talent, he is even willing to end the strike so that Billy can audition in London. In the end, they sell some of the jewellery of Billy’s dead mother and by the help of his neighbours Billy is eventually able to got to London.

At the audition, Billy performs in front of a committee who watch him closely and release him right away without letting him know how he has done. Billy and his father then return home, uncertain if Billy is accepted or not. After a long time of waiting, the boy is finally admitted. The very last scene shows Billy as a grown-up successful ballet dancer.

Analysis

The story addresses different themes and issues; “Live your Dream” is the underlying motto and message of the film but it also focuses on an important political and social topic like the miners’ strike of 1984, and issues of the British class system. Furthermore, it raises topics like sexuality and gender as in the contrast of Billy’s “manly” father and brother and the rather feminine Michael or the objections to a boy dancing ballet, and can hence be seen as a call for more tolerance and respect.

Reviews

The Movie Gazette rates Billy Elliot as a “touching film – a simple tale given power by strong performances from its cast. […] There are no real surprises in the plot – this is unashamedly a happy-ending, coming-of-age, pursue-your-dreams drama, but the handling of it is remarkable and the characters sympathetic” [1]

A.O. Scott for the New York Times also criticises the film for „its patches of thinness and predictability. The first half seems almost to acknowledge its own triteness; the scenes move quickly, as though being checked off a list, and the actors inhabit their roles like second-hand suits“ [2]

But despite its predictability or possible superficial character, most critics share Peter Bradshaw’s (Guardian) overall conclusion of the film: „Billy Elliot has a freshness that makes it a pleasure to watch; it's a very emphatic success“ [3]. And Scott adds to his criticism (above) that after a while, „the fates of the characters, though still unsurprising, begin to feel real and consequential“ [4], which in the end make the film worthwhile seeing.

The film was quite successful and received different awards, among them the British Independent Film Awards (2000) for the best British Independent film as well as best director (Daldry) and best newcomer (Bell). Furthermore, it was also nominated for the Golden Globe Award (2001) for best motion picture.

References

http://movie-gazette.com/108/billy-elliot (access: 25/06/12)

http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9E02E1DD143FF930A25753C1A9669C8B63 (access: 25/06/12)

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2000/sep/29/1 (access: 25/06/12)

http://billyelliotthemusical.com/london-the-show (access: 25/06/12)