Filth (film)

This article is about the 2013 Scottish crime comedy. For the 2008 Finnish horror film, see Sauna (film).

Filth
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Jon S. Baird
Produced by	Jon S. Baird Mark Amin Christian Angermayer Will Clarke Stephen Mao Ken Marshall Jens Meurer Celine Rattray Trudie Styler
Screenplay by	Jon S. Baird
Based on	Filth by Irvine Welsh
Starring	James McAvoy Jamie Bell Joanne Froggatt Imogen Poots Eddie Marsan Jim Broadbent
Music by	Clint Mansell
Cinematography	Matthew Jensen
Edited by	Mark Eckersley
Production company	Steel Mill Pictures Film i Väst
Distributed by	Lionsgate (UK)
Release dates	16 September 2013 (2013-09-16) (Old Town Taito International Comedy Film Festival) 27 September 2013 (2013-09-27) (Scotland) 4 October 2013 (2013-10-04) (UK)
Running time	97 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Box office	$9.1 million

Filth is a 2013 British crime comedy-drama film written and directed by Jon S. Baird, based on Irvine Welsh's novel Filth. The film was released on 27 September 2013 in Scotland, 4 October 2013 elsewhere in the UK and Ireland, 30 May 2014 in the United States. It stars James McAvoy, Jamie Bell and Jim Broadbent.

Plot

Bruce Robertson is a Detective Sergeant in Edinburgh, Scotland who suffers from Borderline Personality disorder; He is a scheming, manipulative, misanthropic man who spends his time indulging in drugs, alcohol, sexually abusive relationships, and "the games" — his euphemism for the myriad foul plots he hatches directed at workmates. Robertson also delights in systematically bullying and taking advantage of his mild-mannered friend Clifford Blades, a member of Robertson's masonic lodge whose wife, Bunty, he repeatedly prank calls and asks for phone sex.

Robertson's main goal in life is to gain promotion to Detective Inspector, the path to which appears to open when he is assigned to oversee the investigation into the murder of a Japanese student. He slowly loses his grip on reality as he works the case, however, suffering from a series of increasingly severe hallucinations. These hallucinations become worse over time, and Robertson descends into insanity. It is ultimately revealed through dream-like exchanges with Dr. Rossi, his psychiatrist, that he is on medication for bipolar disorder and is wracked with guilt over a tragic accident that led to the death of his younger brother during his childhood. It also becomes clear that Carole, his wife, had left him for another man some time prior to the film's events and is denying him access to his daughter, Stacey, developments which sparked his desperate bid for promotion and also led him to start dressing as his wife when off duty in order to "keep her close" to him.

While wandering the streets on such an occasion, Robertson is captured by a gang led by Gorman — who are responsible for the murder — and badly beaten. However, he manages to kill Gorman by throwing him out a window and is found by his colleagues. Robertson not only misses out on the promotion as a result of the events, but is in fact demoted to Constable and is reassigned to uniform, while rookie Ray Lennox is promoted to Detective Inspector. Afterwards, Blades receives a tape of Robertson apologising. Robertson then prepares to commit suicide by hanging himself, but is interrupted by Mary, a woman whose husband Robertson attempted to save, and her son knocking on his front door. He then breaks the fourth wall and addresses the audience repeating his catchphrase — "Same rules apply" — and laughs as the chair breaks under him.

Cast

• James McAvoy as DS / PC Bruce Robertson
• Jamie Bell as DS / DI Ray Lennox
• Eddie Marsan as Clifford Blades
• Imogen Poots as DS / Acting DI Amanda Drummond
• Brian McCardie as DI / DCI Dougie Gillman
• Emun Elliott as DS Peter Inglis
• Gary Lewis as DS Gus Bain
• John Sessions as DCI / DSI Bob Toal
• Shauna Macdonald as Carole Robertson
• Jim Broadbent as Dr. Rossi
• Joanne Froggatt as Mary
• Kate Dickie as Chrissie
• Martin Compston as Graeme Gorman
• Iain De Caestecker as Ocky
• Shirley Henderson as Bunty Blades
• Jordan Young as Lexo
• Pollyanna McIntosh as Size Queen
• Bobby Rainsbury as Stephanie
• Zack Niizato as Japanese Student
• Ron Donachie as Hector
• Tracy-Ann Oberman as Diana
• Natasha O'Keeffe as Anna
• David Soul as Punter
• Joy McAvoy as Estelle
• Megan Finn as Stacey Robertson

Reception

Box office

The film earned £250,000 in box office revenue during its opening weekend in Scotland, reaching number one in the charts. It grossed £842,167 ($1.4m) in the following weekend, when it went on general release throughout the United Kingdom. The film ultimately ended up grossing $9.1 million worldwide.

Critical response

Rotten Tomatoes reports that 63% of 81 critics gave the film positive reviews, with an average rating of 6.2 out of 10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Warped, grimy and enthusiastically unpleasant, Filth lives up to its title splendidly." The film also has a score of 56 on Metacritic based on 24 reviews.

External links

• Filth at IMDb
• Filth at Box Office Mojo
• Filth at Rotten Tomatoes
• Filth at AllMovie