16 Years of Alcohol (2003)
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80% of critics liked it
(15 reviews) -
58% of users liked it
(2,471 ratings)
Scottish writer and former vocalist for the punk band the Skids, Richard Jobson makes his directorial debut with 16 Years of Alcohol, the stylized psychological drama based on his own semi-autobiographical novel. Through voice-over narration and various flashback methods, troubled young man Frankie… More Scottish writer and former vocalist for the punk band the Skids, Richard Jobson makes his directorial debut with 16 Years of Alcohol, the stylized psychological drama based on his own semi-autobiographical novel. Through voice-over narration and various flashback methods, troubled young man Frankie Mac (Kevin McKidd) recalls his childhood (played by Iain De Caestaecker as a boy) growing up in working-class Edinburgh. In the '50s, his father (Lewis McCloud) was a hard-drinking good-timer and his long-suffering mother (Lisa May Cooper) eventually gave up on the family. As a teenager in the '70s, the violent Frankie falls in with a street gang and tries to clean up to impress record store clerk Helen (Laura Fraser). After some fights with his old street thug enemy Miller (Stuart Sinclair Blyth), Frankie makes an another attempt to stop drinking at an AA meeting, where he meets Mary (Susan Lynch). ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi
- Directed By
- Richard Jobson
- Genres
- Art House & International, Drama
R,
- In Theaters
- Jan 1, 2003 Wide
- Studio
- Tartan Films
Critic Reviews
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Ruthe Stein, San Francisco Chronicle
Eventually the movie drowns in words.
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Eleanor Ringel Gillespie, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
It's a carefully made movie, evocatively filmed and intelligently thought out by the director and his cast.
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Derek Elley, Variety
The freely associative, poetic tone signals this isn't going to be just another grungy British pic about young malcontents and petty crime.
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Lou Lumenick, New York Post
Despite reams of maudlin narration, McKidd's powerful performance as a conflicted man makes this beautifully shot low-budget feature worth checking out.
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Jack Mathews, New York Daily News
The film has a poetic pulse, its ups and downs accompanied by some smartly chosen pop songs, a seductive original score and McKidd's husky voice-over narration.
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Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
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Cast
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Kevin Mckidd
as Frankie Mac
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Laura Fraser
as Helen
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Susan Lynch
as Mary
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Stuart Sinclair Blyth
as Miller
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Jim Carter
as Director
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Ewen Bremner
as Jake
- Elaine C. Smith
- Kate Robbins
- Marcia Rose
- Iain De Caestaecker
- Lewis McCloud
- Lisa May Cooper
- Allison McKenzie
- Michael Moreland
- Russell Anderson
- Gerald Lepkowski
- Iain De Caestecker
- Lewis Macleod
