cskoien The promotions for "Clubbed" project a slick looking film based around the clubbing scene of the 1980's. What we end up with is a film with identity issues. The sub-plots end up taking over from what viewers would assume to be the main plot, so the focus on this film being mainly about "clubbing" ends up being left in the gutter.Boxing, depression, self-loathing, gangsters, bouncers and drug-deals, are all hastily crammed into 90 odd minutes. On no less than 4 occasions I had to check the run-time of the film, as the worry grew that this film was bound to disappoint.What club scenes we do see are bland and repetitive, featuring approximately 3 extras dancing in what is barely recognisable as a "club", hardly capturing the vibe of the day.If you're looking for a film about the 80's club scene, something along the lines of what "Human Traffic" did for the late 90's, forget "Clubbed".

patrick powell I discovered Clubbed by chance when I came across a copy promoting the release of the film on DVD in the office. That I had never heard of it is, in a way significant, in as far as it is an independent production without big studio backing and obviously only had limited promotion when it was first released in cinema. Or at least limited promotion of which I was unaware. That is a shame, because it isn't half bad (as we Brits tend to understate), and deserves a wider audience. Briefly, it is the story of a man who discovers courage and self-respect. Mel Raido is that man - Danny - a factory worker in a dead-end job who has been divorced by his wife and dotes on the two daughters he can only see by arrangement and the goodwill of his wife. By chance he meets Louis, a nightclub bouncer who is passionate not only about boxing but the psychology of violence, fear, warfare and 'fighting with fighting'. He also meets Louis's two assistant bouncers Rob and Sparky, of whom Rob is by far the more sympathetic. Other characters include a local psychopathic hoodlum and his henchmen, and Danny and Sparky's wives. Every performance is strong and intelligent, and there is a horrible logic to how everything gradually spins out of control with Rob dying a horrible death, Sparky killing himself by drinking bleach and Louis serving 12 years in prison for an attack on Hennessy, the hoodlum. Invariably, Clubbed will be lumped together with other recent Brit films - the DVD bills it as a cross between Trainspotting and Layer Cake, but that is unfair. It is more intelligent than Layer Cake ever was and has none of the very dark - Scottish - humour of Trainspotting. If anything, my one criticism is that Clubbed lacks depth: we could have done with more characterisation and the establishment of character and motivation. If that would have made the film longer, well so be it, I, for one would not have complained. Given that British films, as a rule, have far more limited resources than Tinseltown productions, and given that independent British films have even fewer resources, Clubbed is exceptionally well-made. However, as with other Brit films, a certain self-consciousness comes over in as far as Clubbed knows that it will be likened to the other Brit flick lowlife gangsters films which have been made these past ten years and, more pertinently, that is where it will be assumed it target audience is. But clubbed is not just another lowlife gangster film. It is a film examining character, yet I sense that, with one eye on the market - which means the finances, which means not losing money - it feels it has to pull its punches slightly and cannot get as deep into an examination of Danny's psyche as it would have like to have done which, at the end of the day, would have made a good film even better. Finally, it has to be said that the portrayal by Mel Raido - who would be a shoo-in for the title role of any mooted biopic of the great Norman Wisdom - is superb, and that despite the necessary limitations of the script and direction, he gains sympathy for his character Danny, at heart a decent family man who has yet to realise his full potential.

ReaperRayle This movie was an absolute waste of time. It's nothing but a wanna-be gangster movie. It contains a very predictable plot. My feelings are unsympathetic to the characters, and the dialogue is mediocre at best. Half the time you are looking for something else to do, because the movie is that boring, since you already know what's going to happen. The other half of the time you're desperately hoping the protagonist grows a pair of balls or just ends his life by jumping off a bridge or something. Also, the secondary characters are for the most part one- dimensional. There's no depth to any of the characters in this movie! No depth!

greavsie-1 Went to see Clubbed mainly out of curiosity. I'd seen it compared to Trainspotting, Goodfellas, This is England and everything by Guy Richie. Couldn't work out how it could be like all this lot at the same time, and it isn't. It's not like anything else really, and I think that's why people have struggled to pigeon hole it. Just when you think you've got it sussed as you recoil in horror at some pretty graphic violence it throws another emotion at you, as you struggle with the lump in your throat, only to have that demolished by a laugh out loud moment. As if that wasn't enough, you're forced to think about what it really means to be a man - to face fears and stand up and be counted. There are no trite solutions here, just difficult questions with no back and white answers. All this is wrapped up in a tense, gripping story acted out in some of the best performances you'll see, and overlayed with a stunning 80's soundtrack. Definitely not to be missed!