The Damned United (2009)

I can very clearly recall the first time I saw Brian Clough being interviewed on TV sometime back in the early 70s. A very scary man, I thought.

Instead of the doe-eyed likeability that Michael Sheen brings to almost all of his renditions well-remembered public figures, there was the glassy-eyed, unempathetic inwardness of an ego feeding off itself.

But whether or not this is the real Clough, or indeed whether Timothy Spall has made any effort to recreate the real Peter Taylor, is not the real point here.

One doesn't have to bring along any preconceptions about the characters or indeed an actual interest in football, in order to fully enjoy Tom Hopper's film. (Though a certain kind of anti-nostalgia for the period might come in handy!)

Grade: A-