Rating: 
Summary: Welcome Scottish film
Review: This film, sadly, depicts the way of life for many people in Scotland (and indeed the UK in general) today, and to rubbish statements in other reviews, I would like to assure anybody who has seen or is interested in this film that it is genuine. I live in the West of Scotland and believe it or not this is for a large percentage of people here the culture - the way we speak (and the film I was pleased to see has this down to a tee) the violence, and the hopelessness. (I'm sorry to shatter any illusions).
The film is by no means a classic, it is far too realistic for that status. It does however make a decent story out of real life. Liam is in a desperate situation, his stepfather and grandfather have thrown him out of his home whilst his mother remains in prison. His dream is for when his (unbelievably depressing and frustrating) mother is realeased that he has a home ready for her away from her psychotic boyfriend. He sets his heart on a 6000 pound caravan overlooking the water, and goes about dealing drugs with his best pal Pinball to achieve his ambition. The further he goes down this route however, the more he digs himself a hole and gets caught up in some very ugly situations.
The film has a clear message for economists - poverty and depravity is a major situation, as for the vast majority there is no way out. The fact that this film is shot all on location, people should really sit up and take notice of this fact.
Overall it is very refreshing to see a Scottish film getting the plaudits it deserves. Recommended if you think you can face the harsh reality of life. 4/5.
Rating: 
Summary: The side of Scotland people never see.
Review: As someone who has lived in the council estates of Scotland all my life, I enjoyed this film becuase it shows Scotland for what it truly is. For once, and refreshingly, there are no shots of mountains and castles.
The story is about a young guy called Liam growing up on a council estate in Greenock (a town outide Glasgow which has been caught up in unemployment due to decline in shipbuilding over the years. Also where the lead actor grew up and lives)Liam wants a better life for his mum and sister but he needs to raise the cash to do this. And he raises the money through the only ways he knows how. Work? No. Drugs. Liam feels that selling drugs will help him by a 'home' to get his mother away from her drug dealing boyfriend. But he becomes involved with the notorious Glasgow underworld and gets sucked into further crime through desperation to proove his toughness, and the pull in the opposite direction of a future for his family. This film is extraordinary becuase it tackles situations which most don't think about and it's totally realistic. Liam seems to have a good heart, but he is trapped by the society in which he has grown up. He has no real morals other than close family ties and the need to protect them. Despite the hopes of the viewer, we know that Liam is on the slippery slope and there is no way back. The acting is superb. Martin Compston flourishes in his first ever role. He had absolutely no acting experience prior to this and was in fact a professional footballer. The supporting cast are all perfect for their roles. In particular the slightly insane Pinball (liam's best friend), Liam's loving sister Chantelle and the psycopath Stan. I believe there are English subtitles on the DVD. The accent is very strong and unlike other films based on Scotland (Trainspotting/Braveheart) it is not toned down at all. Watching this film affects me personally as people I have grown up knowing have gone in similar ways to Liam. This films is good becuase it show Scotland for what it really is. Forget the mountains, castles and bagpipes. These things are tourist season show. Sweet Sixteen is life as it is the rest of the year.
Rating:
Summary: The Destiny of Souls
Review: Cold, depressing and realistic, Sweet Sixteen is bitter tale of a cycle unbroken. Can anyone, let alone the poor, ever achieve a goal of shattering that progression? Are we all destined to be what we are? And can family history and your past be left behind? I enjoyed this film immensely, reminded often of how people may change, but situations remain the same. Liam (played wonderfully by the handsome, athletic and very natural Martin Compston) knows his destiny. And, like his sister, knows there is a better life. But unlike Chantelle, Liam is willing to sell his soul to get it. While Chantelle studies hard at school, bring up her adorable son Calum, Liam will risk his own life to make his imprisoned mothers life better when she gets out in a few months, a day before his sweet 16 Birthday. But, reality sets in when he realizes what he must do to get that life. And while he's willing to do it, it is slowly killing his soul. The films coldness works, as the sun is never seen. It reminds us that Liam, and the life of many in Glasgow (and really, this could be any town in any country), are not what movies are made about. It shows with laser point accuracy for some, the only way to "move on up" is to sell what little humanity you have left. Liam's sister knows the true way to succeed, but that's not for Liam. He loves his sister, his nephew and his mom, but Chantelle is disappointed that Liam cannot see the forest for the trees. And, like so many, he learns too late that maybe his sister is right. Maybe her bitterness at her mother is justified (as Jean proves it by going back to her hateful boyfriend, Stan) and maybe there is away out of the hell you born into. The cast is wonderful, led my Compston's Liam. Annmarie Fulton is the sister who must protect her son and brother, but feels she is losing him. Michelle Coulter is the mother you've seen on every episode of COPS and who continues to return to the one place that is perhaps, the worse place to be. Gary McCormack is the typical villain of sorts. His Stan is filled with so much hate, that you can understand why Liam would not want to be near him. But William Ruane stands out as Liam's best friend Pinball. He too is a lost soul, but finds himself on the short end of the stick. He tries to be like Liam, but finds that his destiny is no where near his best bud. Finally, if you rent or buy this film, watch it with the captions on. The thick Scottish accent almost makes this film a foreign language contender. Still, it's a brilliant film that demands you to watch. It may last only 108 minutes, but you'll be thinking about it long after the credits have rolled.
Rating:
Summary: Beautifully depressing
Review: Despite its title, "Sweet Sixteen" is one decidedly sour film. This movie isn't based on an Irvine Welsh novel, but with its gritty examination of tough Scottish street life, it might as well be. The movie centers around a fatherless high-school dropout who expects his family to become whole again when his mother finally gets out of prison. In the role of the teenaged protagonist Liam, Martin Compston turns in a brilliant performance that belies his youth. In the opening scene, we see what kind of situation Liam is dealing with: going to visit his mother in prison, her slimy father and her even slimier boyfriend Stan want Liam to pass her drugs to hook up her fellow inmates so that Stan can make a killing off their boyfriends. And when Liam refuses to do it, he winds up getting the hell beaten out of him by the side of the road. This is obviously a kid who's had the odds stacked against him from the beginning. Through Liam's story, "Sweet Sixteen" makes the rather depressing point that street life can claim even the best-intentioned among us. What makes the movie work is the ambiguity that Compston brings to his character, aided by a first-class script and some very dreary cinematography. Liam is neither a hero nor a villain; he's just a kid doing his best to live a normal life amid highly unenviable circumstances. And he'll do anything to achieve that normal life, even if it means selling heroin to afford a trailer for himself and his family. Of course, it should be obvious to most that drug-dealing is not the best path to normalcy and stability, but Liam's misguided nature is the very quality that makes him such a tragic and sympathetic figure. Throughout the movie, Liam paves the way to hell with his good intentions, as his naivete constantly puts him in over his head. He continually invests his time and money trying to provide for his mother and keep her away from Stan, even as it becomes increasingly apparent that she's a lost cause. He sticks by his best friend Pinball even as Pinball's dim wit threatens them both. Meanwhile, he alienates his sister Chantelle, who's the only person around him he can actually trust. You can't help but root for Liam, even as you're slapping your forehead at some of the things he does. He wants to be better than the likes of Stan and his grandfather, but he doesn't even know how. Although it does have its moments of humor, "Sweet Sixteen" is mostly a down note right until the bitter end. There's a sense of foreboding througout the film, as you can just tell that Liam is going to screw up in a big way. Still, if you're not averse to a little depression, you owe it to yourself to see this movie. I didn't always like what I was seeing, but I was glued to the screen just the same.
Rating:
Summary: Beautifully depressing
Review: Despite its title, "Sweet Sixteen" is one decidedly sour film. This movie isn't based on an Irvine Welsh novel, but with its gritty examination of tough Scottish street life, it might as well be. The movie centers around a fatherless high-school dropout who expects his family to become whole again when his mother finally gets out of prison. In the role of the teenaged protagonist Liam, Martin Compston turns in a brilliant performance that belies his youth. In the opening scene, we see what kind of situation Liam is dealing with: going to visit his mother in prison, her slimy father and her even slimier boyfriend Stan want Liam to pass her drugs to hook up her fellow inmates so that Stan can make a killing off their boyfriends. And when Liam refuses to do it, he winds up getting the hell beaten out of him by the side of the road. This is obviously a kid who's had the odds stacked against him from the beginning. Through Liam's story, "Sweet Sixteen" makes the rather depressing point that street life can claim even the best-intentioned among us. What makes the movie work is the ambiguity that Compston brings to his character, aided by a first-class script and some very dreary cinematography. Liam is neither a hero nor a villain; he's just a kid doing his best to live a normal life amid highly unenviable circumstances. And he'll do anything to achieve that normal life, even if it means selling heroin to afford a trailer for himself and his family. Of course, it should be obvious to most that drug-dealing is not the best path to normalcy and stability, but Liam's misguided nature is the very quality that makes him such a tragic and sympathetic figure. Throughout the movie, Liam paves the way to hell with his good intentions, as his naivete constantly puts him in over his head. He continually invests his time and money trying to provide for his mother and keep her away from Stan, even as it becomes increasingly apparent that she's a lost cause. He sticks by his best friend Pinball even as Pinball's dim wit threatens them both. Meanwhile, he alienates his sister Chantelle, who's the only person around him he can actually trust. You can't help but root for Liam, even as you're slapping your forehead at some of the things he does. He wants to be better than the likes of Stan and his grandfather, but he doesn't even know how. Although it does have its moments of humor, "Sweet Sixteen" is mostly a down note right until the bitter end. There's a sense of foreboding througout the film, as you can just tell that Liam is going to screw up in a big way. Still, if you're not averse to a little depression, you owe it to yourself to see this movie. I didn't always like what I was seeing, but I was glued to the screen just the same.
Rating:
Summary: Oustanding on so many levels, but be ready for a tough one
Review: First of all, Sweet Sixteen is a strong movie because it stays true to Scotland, showing the modern Scotland with true accents coming from natives of the region. But more importantly, the movie and the plight of its main character, Liam, is true all over the world. Liam is a child who cares for little except his family; more particularly, he cares almost entirely for his drug-addicted and narcissistic mother. He tries to pull the pieces together and somehow force his family back together like stubbornly pairing repellant magnets. He does everything he can, even falling into the exact same path of drugs and violence that has ruined his family for generations, from his abusive grandfather to the maniac boyfriend of his mother. But he does it all for a noble cause, for the hope that underneath all the rubble a mother is a mother, and that there is something sacred and incorruptible about a mother and her love for her son.
Ultimately, we learn that love is not an unconditional thing and love does not come to life in a mother's heart when she gives birth. The film challanges our absolute standards, crossing barriers that are usually seen as too dangerous. Liam holds on to his dream throughout the film (until the end), the dream that some sense of morality can survive amidst the squalor of his drug-infested surroundings. But circumstance and fate can crush anything, and we are forced to part with our overly idealistic image of the selfless and loving mother in the face of poverty and danger.
Liam seems trapped throughout the entire movie, and it is clear that his fate will be dreary. The film does an excellent job of frequently portraying Liam as a prisoner, with shots of him looking through windows, pounding at doors in desparation, or waiting for some answer from behind a wall. In a way, he is cut off from nourishment. He cannot automatically recieve love from his mother; he has to knock on a door and beg for it. All of Liam's pure and natural reflexes are put on hold.
The film is superb, and I strongly recommend it. Still, you should know that this film is not for the fain of heart. It's tragic, and even more than that, it's frustrating. It challenges your ethics in every way; it makes you say, "That shouldn't be! That CAN'T be!" But it is. Either you will watch and accept what you see or you will be overcome by the frustrations and decide that the film is lying to you, that what you see cannot be true. Therefore, the film will not be popular for everyone. It is tough to handle, so be prepared.
Rating: 
Summary: Pointlessly depressing
Review: Having left Scotland for good a year ago after more than 30 years in country, I decided to watch this movie and see what all the fuss was about. I really wish I hadn't. Ken Loach may be a brilliant director but I'd question why this movie needed making. I realise movies have to reflect all sides of life but this particular 'gritty' slice of west-coast Scotland drug-taking, cursing, ennui and violence was 2 hours that I could have done without. I'm a big fan of movies made in my country; from Trainspotting to Local Hero, they all have something to offer. Sweet Sixteen just depressed the hell out of me in a way not even Irvine Welsh's The Acid House didn't. Liam comes from a bad background and there appears to be no way out. Despite his best efforts, his dreams are eventually shattered when his jailbird mother rejects a new life (albeit narcotically-funded) and instead returns to her abusive lover. Young Liam finds this too hard to deal accept and ends up stabbing his mothers' lover. The movie ends on his 16th birthday with him seemingly giving up all hope and almost certainly facing time in prison. Interesting movie (which enticed me into a burst of Scottish swearing which my American wife did NOT like) but not something I'd like to watch again.
Rating:
Summary: genuine
Review: having read the reviews here i can concur with those that question whether such a gritty film had to be made. But i do so perhaps for different reasons - i come from the town in question (Greenock) and can assure you it DOES reflect life as it can be in a town rife with unemployment and populated by many who dont have a clue what tomorrow will bring. Dark it is. Gritty too. But dont question its reality - if you want escapism dont watch it, but as a portrayal of life in many parts of the UK it hits the mark - and with a fair amount of humour too.
Rating: 
Summary: can't understand the actors!
Review: I've heard good things about this movie, and decided to buy it. The only problem is that I can't really understand the actors. Their accent or something. I didn't know the movie was made in Scotland, but also thought I would understand the actors. I should have bought "Together" instead.
Rating:
Summary: can't understand the actors!
Review: I've heard good things about this movie, and decided to buy it. The only problem is that I can't really understand the actors. Their accent or something. I didn't know the movie was made in Scotland, but also thought I would understand the actors. I should have bought "Together" instead.
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