Rating: 
Summary: It's all about being able to express yourself.
Review: Beginning with an exuberant title sequence, this charming, offbeat, coming-of-age story revolves around Billy Elliot (Jamie Bell), the younger of two sons of a widower coal miner (Gary Lewis) near Newcastle in Northern England. It's 1984, and the National Union of Mine Workers is engaged in a long, bitter strike, marked by street battles with riot police and protests against the busloads of scabs crossing the picket lines. Following the family tradition, Billy is expected to learn boxing at the Everington Boys Club where, instead, the 11 year-old becomes enthralled by the girls' dancing class, led by a chain-smoking teacher (Julie Walters) who soon recognizes his raw talent. He loves watching Fred Astaire in old movies and is instantly drawn towards the ballet class, but when his macho father and rabble-rousing brother (Jamie Draven) discover he's taking ballet classes, they ridicule Billy - "Lads do boxing and football and wrestling, not friggin' ballet!" - forcing him to hide his slippers under the mattress and sneak off to class. Then come the auditions for the Royal Ballet School and Billy's defiantly joyful, foot-stompin' "I Want to Boogie" sequence. What makes this heartfelt English import such a gem is the collaboration of screenwriter Lee Hall, cinematographer Brian Tufano ("Trainspotting") and former stage director Stephen Daldry ("An Inspector Calls"), who - despite the simplistic predictability of the plot - create eccentric, lovable characters and evocative imagery. One haunting sequences focuses on a little neighborhood girl dragging a stick along a brick wall, which dissolves into a phalanx of plastic police shields. Another involves the father grimly chopping up Billy's mother's beloved piano for needed firewood. While some of the authentic, heavily accented dialogue may be indecipherable to some, the musical soundtrack, combining classical and pop, is terrific. In the title role, newcomer Jamie Bell embodies awkward determination, juggling grim reality with a surreal fantasy world, explaining, "Just because I like ballet doesn't mean I'm a pouf!" As Billy's father, Gary Lewis ("My Name is Joe") is tough-yet-tender, and Julie Walters ("Educating Rita") scores as Billy's crusty yet compassionate teacher. ("I feel like a sissy," Billy tells her. "Well, don't act like one," she retorts.) Jamie Draven and Stuart Wells lend strong support. Jean Heywood is touching as Billy's senile grandmother, whom he tenderly cares for and who repeatedly recalls, "I could have been a professional dancer." While the bleak setting, in the 1984 miners' strike in northeastern England, is reminiscent of "The Full Monty," the energetic mood evokes "Flashdance" - and it was a bit hit at both the Toronto and Cannes Film Festivals. On the 'Lund Movie Scale' of 1 to 10, "Billy Elliot" is an exhilarating 9. Combining comedy and poignancy, it's all about being able to express yourself.
Rating: 
Summary: The story of Billy Elliot...and all he wants to do is dance
Review: We have seen the story in "Billy Elliot" dozens of times before, but the reason we see it over and over again is because sometimes it works. This time the kid with a dream is an 11-year old boy in a Northern English coal town in 1984, who gets it into his head that he would rather be a ballet dancer than a boxer. Billy Elliot (Jamie Bell) appears to be gangly and he cannot box, but when he suddenly finds himself taking part in a ballet class for reasons that are never articulated, he achieves a moment of perfect grace that becomes the foundation for everything that is to come. "Billy Elliot" also owes something to other recent British imports like "Brassed Off!" and "The Full Monty," which combine comedy and social consciousness in a manner calculated to please viewers. Writer Lee Hall takes the time and place into account in putting up a series of formidable obstacles in young Billy's way. Billy's mother has died and the chain-smoking lady who teaches ballet, Mrs. Wilkinson (Julie Walters), obviously takes her place. This is good because because neither his father (Gary Lewis) or his older brother (Jamie Draven) are both coal miners who cannot stand the idea that Billy would be a ballet dancer and immediately jump to the conclusion that he must be a "poof." To make things worse, the coal mine is on strike, and this is more than a minor sub-plot in the film. The police are always clashing with the strikers, who make it very clear how they feel about scabs, thereby providing the film with a sense of poverty and social injustice. So there is no money coming into the house, and 50 pence for anything, let along ballet lessons, is hard to come by. Billy has no doubts about his sexuality, not after a pillow fight with Mrs. Wilkinson's daughter, Debbie (Nicola Blackwell), but there are questions about his friend Michael (Stuart Wells). Having been subjected to his father's prejudice on the subject, Billy is more inclined to be open minded with his friend. But throughout the film Billy finds himself incapable of articulating what he feels to his father, and when it comes to the crucial moment and Billy is confronted with his father's embarrassment he finally does in public what he has been doing for quite a while in private: he dances. Until that moment the film has belonged to Billy and Mrs. Wilkinson, but now the dynamic changes and Billy's dad tries to help his son with his quest: an audition for the Royal School of Ballet. Loach's performance as the final pillar of his character's world collapses makes the character's actions, which could be considered to be totally unrealistic for a striking British coal miner, work within the context of the film. At the end the film becomes more commonplace, but then it really it is hard to come up with a new twist on a dance audition and if this one makes you think of "Flashdance," try and think of what they could have done in the alternative. Still, this film succeeds mainly because of Jamie Bell's performance. Most of the key moments in this film are non-verbal, relying entirely on Stephen Daldry's camera direction and Bell's dancing. Whatever faults the film has are redeemed in those moments and the payoff for the film becomes the look on the face of a father when he is finally able to allow himself to appreciate his son, the ballet dancer.
Rating:
Summary: A Winning Story
Review: "Billy Elliot" is a fairly good, if melodramatic, film that addresses many issues, some better than others: early death of a parent, a striking caol miners' union, family dynamics, and gender identity. When Billy discovers his talent and affinity for ballet at age 11, he must overcome the gender stereotyping that prevails in the small, northern-England mining town in which he lives. A tough but sympathetic ballet teacher helps him achieve enough finesse to audition at the Royal Ballet in London, but he must also overcome his father's and his brother's objections. The audition is painful to watch--it put me in mind of a similar audition in "Flashdance": the same dour panel of judges. Jamie Bell, who plays Billy, is delighful and a very good dancer as well. His infrequently seen smile transforms his entire face. I found this movie very difficult to understand--the audio was very uneven and the British accent/dialect indecipherable at times. I am new to DVD technlogy and did not realize that English subtitles were available. That might have been distracting but would have been a great help.
Rating:
Summary: Teaches one to do what they love regardless of everyone else
Review: The title says everything. "Billy Elliot" gives a great example to the audience of how to live life. Don't listen to the stereotypes. Some may criticize your choices, but as long as you act passionately, nobodys' opinions matter. In this movie, one English boy lives this everyday. Jamie Bell plays Billy Elliot, an eleven year old secretive ballet dancer, whose forced by his family and society to continue boxing. He lives with his hateful brother and abusive father depressed about the death of his wife. Elliot must cope with the cruelity at home and the sports center. Jamie Walters, in her Oscar nominated role, plays his strong-willed ballet instructor. She will stop at nothing to help Elliot perfect his ballet moves. The two, along with the rest of the cast, wonderfully portrays their characters. They give the movie the emotion it needs to portray the realities of their lifestyles. Stephan Daldry brilliantly directs this movie. He's a genius at character's emotions. One must respect him more because of the risque material in the script. Few dare this. He proves that he will be the next Steven Spielberg in a few years. Those who are impressed with "Billy Elliot" must also watch "The Hours", another Daldry-directed movie. "Billy Elliot's" unique storyline will inspire the audience.
Rating:
Summary: Real Men DO Dance!
Review: Set during Northern England's miners' strike of 1984, Billy Elliot is a heart-warming, inspiring story about an eleven-year-old boy from a poor working-class family who aspires, despite the odds, to be a ballet dancer. Billy, however, lives with his elder brother and his father, both of whom are striking miners and neither of whom can abide let alone comprehend Billy's desire to take ballet lessons. It simply isn't done. It's not for a lad, and that's that. Billy struggles to follow both his heart and his innate talent in order to break free from a less-than-ideal (and at times even violent) home life and the prospects of a bleak future. As a result, walls, cages, barriers and other images of entrapment figure prominently in the film, underscoring his predicament, and his dancing (by which means he struggles to break free) is powerfully juxtaposed with scenes of the violence, rage, and hatred in the community at the time. The Special Edition of the video contains a 20 minute blurb (after the closing credits) with the show's stars, producers, and director talking about the film, the characters, and the situation in England at the time, all of which is interspersed with brief clips from the film. The film is a 2000 BBC co-production with a running time of 111 minutes. Apart from a superb storyline that is powerfully portrayed, the acting is absolutely first rate by all involved. The Northumberland accents may be a little difficult at first for some, but it's nothing that can't be overcome with close attention, and it's well worth the effort. In short, I'd highly recommend this film to anyone looking for a moving and inspiring yet rough-around-the-edges story of a lad intent upon breaking free and following his dreams in spite of the odds. This is not some slick but gooey, maudlin Hollywood-style production, and in my opinion it's all the better for it. The production is extremely well done--all the more so for being done in a manner so sensitive to the subject matter and the setting.
Rating:
Summary: A daddy cries...
Review: My son dressed up like Beauty(Belle from Beauty and The Beast...not the concept of beauty) for halloween. He dressed like the Mother Superior when we took him to the sing-along Sound Of Music. The other day he got a superman toy and was putting a Barbie Shoe on it. I am living in the world of the unique child.And I know there will be a day where someone will try to change my son........ This is why I cried in Billy Elliot......This is a beautiful film about being different in an uncompromising world. It is a film about economics and society, and how art is developed through frustration and need...but with all that aside it is a truly entertaining and fabulous film. Stephen Daldry, the reknowned theatre director, makes his debut here. The direction is the thing that gives this it's guts. This is a much better film than it needed to be. And the performances....Julie Walters, Jaime Bell and Gary Lewis(such an amazing performance as the dAd)...Just check this out. The movie goes places that you don't expect, and thankfully, places you do. I have just been thinking about the end of the film, and how it is an ugly duckling story...the coolest thing about it is that more than Billy turn into a swan. It seems like the entire community turns swanish. Art and individuality can do that. I was the quasimodo of ducks before my som came along.
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful & Outstanding Performance!
Review: This is a beautiful film, warmth, sensational, and it may even make you cry. The film also makes you feel complete: it starts with young Billy's kiddie jumps while he's making his breakfast, it ends with grown-up Billy's beautiful ballet jump while he's already a superstar ballet dancer performing the Swan Lake. The storyline is straight foward but the details between the father and son's bonding, the confusing friendship with Billy's sweet gay friend Michael, are very well done. Jamie Bell (as Billy) did an outstanding performance in his debut. Undoubtfully, his acting, his dancing, his enthusiastic performance, really make this film truely alive! Billy Elliot, FIVE STARS!
Rating:
Summary: A tender and enjoyable story
Review: This was a good film with good production quality. The acting was solid and heart felt. The story was tender, heroic, affirming and at times very funny. Since the story line is outlined in the other reviews, I'll not be redundant. The fact is that I enjoyed the film on it's many levels and feel that it is a sound investment. The images of the young man fighting for the freedom to be and do what it is his nature to, was exceptional and inspired. The courage that this eleven year old shows in the film is splendid and this film is good not only for the skill of acting but for the heart warming feeling that it inspires. It is true that the basis of the story has been done before in many other ways however it can be important to see it from other perspectives as this did. A good investment.
Rating: 
Summary: tell me something new...
Review: do what you love, that's the movie. have known it for 15 years. been there, done that. please show me something new.
Rating: 
Summary: Little Kid Go To Dance School and Dance Like Sissy
Review: Complete B.S. I Don't think there was a good part... It featured a little kid dancing on a roof being watched and/of laughed at by a little girl. Nice acting... total B.S. Other reviews many say other wise but trust me, it suck!!! Guys, you won't like it, you'll probably be forced to watch it anyway by your girlfriends. Sappy people, watch it it's exelent! (That was a joke...) Oh yeah... the little girl offers to show Billy her bossom... (I think she's like 9)
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