WhatzUp

Billy Elliott
by Derek Neff

Billy Elliot takes place in the mid-1980s, when English coal workers went on strike for well over a year, leaving an entire community of working class people in poverty. Billy’s father and brother work for the mines, but 11-year-old Billy’s secret ambition is to go to London to learn the ballet. (Billy is played by Jamie Bell, and I can’t imagine how they could have made this movie without his acting and dancing talents, which are considerable.) The last thing Billy’s father needs is a boy who would prefer to dance than box; when he finds out what Billy’s been doing, he forcibly removes him from his lessons. The role of Billy’s father is a tricky one, but actor Gary Lewis does a credible job. Early in the film he just seems cruel and hard-hearted, but as the movie progresses, we realize he is still reeling from the death of his wife, and that the coal strike also is taking its toll on him.

The dance scenes are convincing; Billy has real talent, but he’s clearly not a master yet, either. The relationship between him and his teacher (Julie Walters) is infused with an understated sense of excitement and affection.

I rented Billy Elliot on DVD, and I am glad I did; the movie is spectacularly photographed. Nearly every shot is a feast for the eyes. Cinematographer Brian Tufano has made the poor neighborhoods of the northern English coal fields look desolate and sumptuous all at once. I would have missed this had I rented a standard pan-and-scan VHS copy.

There are many ways that a movie like Billy Elliot could go wrong, and miraculously, director Steven Daldry has managed to avoid most of them. What he has done instead is to create a real boy, at a real time and place, and given him a passion that cannot easily be accepted by his friends, neighbors and family. Billy Elliot is about the way that passion for something somehow allows us to do what must be done.