Rating: 
Summary: Absolutely smashing
Review: A charming and artistic look at the trials and triumphs of discovering oneself. From moment to moment it can be heart-wrenching, heart-warming, and heart-lifting. Jamie Bell plays a superb Billy Elliott. It goes toward the top of my list of all-time favorites. Watch it with subtitles or captions (on DVD) to catch some of the hard-to-understand spots.
Rating:
Summary: Billy Elliot = A movie for everyone with a dream
Review: At first I didn't want to see this movie, but I am glad that I did. Like Billy, I had people that didn't think I should be a dancer because of certain reasons, not quite as severe as Billy though. He found the courage to push everyone aside and go the distance. I thought that Center Stage was a good movie filled with dancing and such, but Billy Elliot is better in my opinion because it shows that guys can have a passion to dance even more that girls.
Rating:
Summary: A great coming of age film but not for kids?
Review: While I had hopes of watching this one with my family, I'm glad I watched it alone first. First of all, the parts that might keep you from sharing it with your kids - another boy who has a homo-erotic crush on young Billy Elliot (and a later scene showing this boy as a possible transvestite in adult life), some explicit cursing and some violence, etc. Depending on your comfort level with sharing (and explaining) this to your kids, you may decide to hold off sharing this film with the rest of your family. Another point - the British accents are quite thick and hard to understand at times. As a dance film and as a coming of age story, however, I found this one among the best I've seen. Billy Elliot (played by newcomer Jamie Bell) is totally believable as a young boy in a difficult situation, his family torn apart by his mother's death and living in bleak circumstances. Billy has no talent for being a boxer, a sport his father loves. But he does have a knack for dance, a talent he discovers when he blunders his way into a dance class. Taken under the wing of the instructor (played by the inimitable Julie Walters)he begins to blossom. The dance numbers are mostly in the Fred Astaire/Gene Kelly style and Jamie Bell brings just the right amount of passion and amateurish charm to the role. He dances like no young dancer I've ever seen, actually making awkwardness engaging (no small feat). I was moved to tears when he finally stood up to his father and improvised a wild, rebellious and angry dance which left his father speechless. Julie Walters is in top form as a teacher with heart and just the right amount of firmness to handle Billy's turbulent emotions - and his family's resistance to dance. But don't be misled into thinking this is just a dance film. Billy's entire family takes center stage in this one and his father's pain is palpable, his grief at having lost his wife and his despair at trying to make a living as a miner in a town torn apart by a mining strike. There are few coming-of-age films which show a young boy's life in such real detail and which highlight the anguish of a young adolescent so honestly. Don't miss your chance to see this one!
Rating:
Summary: Billy Elliot
Review: One of the best movies ever. Great womens night out movie. Loved the music, dancing, and the British accents. Jamie is wonderful!
Rating:
Summary: Funny, emotional ...wonderful!
Review: You should see this movie. Period. The story of a boy who fell in love with ballet and, through his dream, he elevated not only his own career, but also his own family relations, is simply irresistible. The surroundings of a mid-sized English town during the difficult times of economic depression only add to the special character of this movie. This is a great family movie -- a wonderful mixture of hilariously funny, highly emotional and brutally real scenes. A great addition to your DVD library!
Rating:
Summary: Dream work: scipt + director + actors
Review: A fine story about perusing a dream. The ticket office clerk said 'It's a beautiful movie', and yes, he was perfectly right. You can learn the plot in other places, I would like to concentrate on what to my mind is making this movie good. First of all, a solid acting of the lead of Billy Elliot and some good moves from father Eliot. The kid was able to behave mature, well trained, naturally in the whole line of acting to create a coherent character of a struggling boy, obsessed by the idea, weakened by not knowing what would be right, and still strong to allow us to feel it. Guess for that we have to thank the director, who really could mould the script in a living action, driving the audience to empathy. The story line is interesting and not banal. Actions do not flow by a one- track algorithm, there are hints, but it feels like a life. We know Billy will have to stand up to his father, but he does it in a difficult, comical and not transparent way. I can perceive symbols, like the rusty metal fence, opposite to the alluring endless sea or the bridge and more. They just are, noticeable or hidden. Some redundant to my mind details are the homosexual line, or revolving of 11-years-olds around sex issues, which is probably a tribute to common thinking, because they are not really needed to open the characters. In overall, the director's feel of reality and proportion is what that make the film so well-paced. Almost no exaggerations, precise timing. There is no sweet American-style 'work-and-be-great' fanfarous finale, which feels fine, although audience might have wanted to see Billy playing the prince, not a swan in the episode with the 'Swan Lake', but this is just a minor detail, maybe designed to underline the consistency of the likable good character. D. Sun
Rating:
Summary: Man,,this boy knows how to DANCE!!
Review: My gosh,, Billy, Billy, Billy,, I didn't think too much when I picked this one from BlockBuster, but not only I watched it 3 times in a row, also purchased it the day I rent it. I frankly don't know where to start with,, The story itself is pretty interesting;a british boy, who lives in this small coal mining town with intensified strikes going on, happens to find his hidden talent as a ballet dancer. It is a very powerful movie because it gives out this inspiration, motivation, little push to change your life if you are caught up with the situation/circumstances. I'm not joking here, but I literally packed all of my video games and systems (which happen to be my precious collection over years) to sell them and move on to be a determined law school student,,(which ended up in unpacking everything i've packed..it was so close though,,). I mean, I could never ever picture myself throwing away my precious game collections, but this movie actually persuaded me to throw them away to dance for my own dream, almost. This movie shows a burning desire of a boy, (hold it right there!) you see, do you know what it feels like to have that burning desire? that you wanna do something so bad yet you are strained by your own family,, This movie did an excellent job on building/developing the struggle by Billy with the family, outside, and himself. man,, this boy surely knows how to dance,,let me tell you that- (I'm seriously considering of registering a dance class, though i'm not much of a dancer) I absolutely agree with the other reviewer who said that this movie was overlooked during Oscar ceremony. I don't know about you, but i couldn't understand why the Billy Elliot wasn't picked as a best movie, well at least it's better than Gladiator. This already maginificient movie with struggling, dancing, maturing boy, is again solidified with the father's decision to sacrifice himself utterly, i mean utterly and vague touch of Billy's gay friend, who adds more to the depth of the story with this faint scent of nostalgia. Aaahh(sigh),, I literally watched his dancing scenes more than,, i don't even remember,, But this boy, who wants to be a ballet dancer, will either make you cry with tears of determination or give that warmth that you haven't felt for a long time. Hey people, dance like Billy, dance like Billy to go forth to reach for your dream regardless of the struggle, obstacle, and circumstances,, if Billy can do it, then you and I can do it =)
Rating:
Summary: INSPIRING AND BEAUTIFUL!!
Review: This was a fantastic movie. It had a really good message and the story was wonderful!! The acting and dialogue was magnificent!! This is one of my favorite movies, buy it!!
Rating:
Summary: A really outstanding movie
Review: Some movies are only worth the price of rental. Others are worth owning. Billy Elliot is definitely worth owning. It will leave you uplifted and reaching for the remote to replay scenes over again. If you like the energy of Gene Kelly and Donald O'Connor, you'll find the dance sequences here equally breathtaking. The story line is terrific and believable. The entire cast is exceptional. The family's effort to survive a pivotal coal strike parallels Billy's struggle to get his macho coal-miner dad to understand his son's need to dance. The scene where Billy dances this message into his dad's heart is not to be missed -- it's more eloquent and moving than any spoken word. And Billy is a very likable hero -- rough-hewn and flawed himself, but a dancer who is fueled by dance as if it were "electricity." The whole movie is riveting and the last scene is a particular triumph for everyone who's ever struggled for a chance to prove that dreams can come true. The DVD includes nice extra features about the making of the movie.
Rating: 
Summary: FROM BOXING TO BALLET...
Review: This is a heartwarming film, made all the more delightful by the wonderful, breakout performance of newcomer, Jamie Bell, in the leading role of Billy Elliot. The son and brother of coalminers, Billy is given boxing lessons by his father but is drawn, instead, to learning ballet. So, he surreptitiously takes ballet lessons. When his father finds out, all hell breaks loose, as in the macho world of his coalminer father and brother, this is tantamount to a sign that Billy is gay. Billy's teacher, however, thinks Billy has talent, and attempts to persuade the father to permit Billy to audition for the Royal Ballet School. At first, the father refuses. He is ultimately won over, when Billy gives him a private dance performance so passionate that even he is moved, So, Billy then goes off to London for the audition. What happens next is sure to move even the most stone hearted viewer. This is ultimately a film about hope and the ability to realize one's dreams. Well acted, it is a film that is sure to delight the viewer. The only real flaw in the film is the sound quality, which tends to be somewhat uneven. All in all, however, this is an excellent film and well worth watching, if only for Billy Elliot's dance scenes.
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