It's there one day that he spots Mrs. Wilkinson (JULIE WALTERS) and her ballet class. Immediately drawn to the dance form, Billy eventually joins Mrs. Wilkinson's young daughter, Debbie (NICOLA BLACKWELL), in the class, but doesn't tell anyone in his family. Despite not being very good, Billy perseveres, with his instructor sensing an innate talent buried somewhere within him.
At home, things aren't going as well. The tension among the family members is ripe and that explodes when Jackie learns of Billy's recent activities and even goes so far as to question his son's sexuality, a point that would have added weight if he knew that his son's platonic friend, Michael (STUART WELLS), was an apparently gay transvestite.
As the coal miners' strike continues and various "scabs" cross the picket line, Billy continues with his training, hoping to gain an audition one day with the Royal Ballet School, all while confronting various levels of internal and external obstacles that stand in his way.
Various characters have varying degrees of bad attitudes, including various family members who are mean or disrespectful to the title character (due, in part, to the family still dealing with the mother dying a year earlier). Some characters are on strike against a coal mining company, and some police on protestor violence occurs, as does some other non-graphic punching and slapping.
Certain characters smoke (totaling a heavy amount) and others drink (with a few appearing a bit intoxicated), while a few instances of behavior that might be imitated are also present. Should you still be concerned about the film's appropriateness for anyone in your home after that summary, we suggest that you take a closer look at our detailed content listings.
All Rights Reserved,
(2000) (Jamie Bell, Julie Walters) (R)
Alcohol/
DrugsBlood/Gore
Disrespectful/
Bad AttitudeFrightening/
Tense ScenesGuns/
Weapons
Moderate
Minor
Heavy
Minor
None
Imitative
BehaviorJump
ScenesMusic
(Scary/Tense)Music
(Inappropriate)Profanity
Mild
None
None
None
Extreme
Sex/
NuditySmoking
Tense Family
ScenesTopics To
Talk AboutViolence
Moderate
Heavy
Moderate
Moderate
Moderate
CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO
Then read OUR TAKE of this film.
(Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below).
Reviewed August 23, 2000 / Posted October 20, 2000
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