Rotten Tomatoes

Movies / TV

    Celebrity

      No Results Found

       View All       Movies Tv shows Shop News Showtimes

      16 Years of Alcohol

      R Released May 18, 2003 1h 37m Drama List
      80% 15 Reviews Tomatometer 68% 2,500+ Ratings Audience Score Frankie (Kevin McKidd) looks back on his wasted life as he is beaten senseless by a group of thugs in an alleyway. As a child, Frankie lived under the influence of his drunken, philandering father. As a teenager, he fell in with a gang of skinheads who unleashed their pent-up rage across the city of Edinburgh, Scotland. As an adult, however, he seeks help and becomes involved with two women -- an art student (Laura Fraser) and a fellow addict (Susan Lynch) -- who may prove to be his salvation. Read More Read Less

      Audience Reviews

      View All (82) audience reviews
      Audience Member As a child, Frankie Mack (Kevin McKidd) is confronted with two pathways in life, relating back to his ambivalent feelings for his father. Faced with this swaggering man, a womanizer and a drinker, Frank is torn between rejection and unconscious imitation. From then on, he continually vacillates between a desire for self-control and stability, and giving in to hatred and mistrust, a legacy of his painful experience of betrayal. His first precocious glass of alcohol drags him in to a dangerous violent direction, which continues throughout his adulthood... "16 Years of Alcohol" explores one man's battle against the social and psychological ravages of alcoholism. The film is split into three sections: Frankie's troubled childhood, his violent adolescence as a ska-loving skinhead who commands a small gang, and a period of change, in which Frankie tries to believe in hope and love. The backdrop of historic Edinburgh set the feeling and environment in which we see Frankie´s violent demise as a human being and the resurrection that still ends with his past catching up with him. It´s a balance between hope and hopelessness in his life, and the end is left open to the viewer. I saw "16 Years of Alcohol" some years ago, and re-seeing it now doesn´t change my opinion about this movie. It´s such a strong and emotional story that goes through the screen. The homage to "A Clockwork Orange" is done in a great way and I do love the voice-over from Kevin McKidd and the philosophical narrative. Kevin McKidd is excellent as Frankie Mack and the beautiful Laura Fraser as Helen is a great counterpart to Frankie. The soundtrack adds to the storyline as well. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/21/23 Full Review Audience Member Rarely give up on a film before it finishes. The first 20 minutes of cliched narration were unbearable. This is clumsily punctuated by a backing piano loop which attempts to cling to your sympathies but instead really fucking gets on your nerves. The movie improves past this point, but not enough to feel like more than a failed homage to Kubrick's Clockwork Orange, I stopped wasting my time less than halfway through. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 02/26/23 Full Review Audience Member This is on one level a very gritty story of alcohol abuse and violence; on another it is an aesthetically realised elegy to hope and hopelessness. The beautiful images of historic Edinburgh are used unpretentiously as a backdrop to mindlessly savage beatings and physical intimidation, cinematic techniques involving varied use of lighting, colour, slow motion and overt symbolism. The artistic attempts of writer/director and former Skids band-member Richard Jobson are what make the biggest impression - hypnotically beautiful images of Edinburgh and a voice-over in that recognisable cadence, with repeating cycles of words drawing out every ounce of meaning from clichés like "hope"... He skirts cliché while playing with it, trying to show the violence endemic in that society and making many references to other films ('Clockwork Orange', westerns, 'Trainspotting', Martin Scorsese, etc.). It is larger than life and demonstrates how the mythic archetypes shape the characters rather too small for the roles they want to adopt. '16 Years of Alcohol' won Richard Jobson the award for Directorial Debut at the British Independent Film Awards. It has received glowing reviews from Time Out, The Guardian, and Sight and Sound. It has played at festivals the world over. Forget the dismal comments of those too cynical to enjoy real film-making. See this poetic triumph for yourself. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Audience Member Great movie about a young man who struggles with the effects of a life fraught with alcoholism. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/29/23 Full Review Audience Member Pretentious! Deeply not moving monologues by stereotypical people. What a waste of talent. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 01/15/23 Full Review Audience Member Stumbled upon this film and was pleasantly surprised. Emotionally and visually moving. Artistic. Poetic. Absolutely loved the movie. Loved Kevin McKidd. Well-done Richard Jobson. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/22/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

      Cast & Crew

      Show Less Cast & Crew Show More Cast & Crew

      More Like This

      View All Best Movies to Stream at Home
      88% 77% The Woodsman 60% 87% Small Faces 88% 87% Soldier's Girl 25% 65% Till Human Voices Wake Us 34% 81% The United States of Leland Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

      Photos

      View All 16 Years of Alcohol photos

      16 Years of Alcohol

      16 Years of Alcohol (2003) 16 Years of Alcohol (2003) View more photos

      Critics Reviews

      View All (15) Critics Reviews
      Ruthe Stein San Francisco Chronicle Eventually the movie drowns in words. Rated: 2/4 Apr 29, 2005 Full Review Eleanor Ringel Cater Atlanta Journal-Constitution It's a carefully made movie, evocatively filmed and intelligently thought out by the director and his cast. Rated: B Apr 21, 2005 Full Review 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. Mar 18, 2005 Full Review David Sterritt Christian Science Monitor The frequent narration is a nonstop string of clichs, platitudes, and truisms that should have been flung out the cutting-room window. Rated: 2/4 Mar 24, 2005 Full Review Ken Fox TV Guide The voice-over is a touch pretentious and a few scenes play like acting exercises, but the film is filled with a real sense of hopeless poignancy. Rated: 2.5/5 Mar 18, 2005 Full Review Martin Scribbs Mixed Reviews 'Hello, my name is Frankie. And I am a violent man.' May 1, 2004 Full Review Read all reviews

      Movie Info

      Synopsis Frankie (Kevin McKidd) looks back on his wasted life as he is beaten senseless by a group of thugs in an alleyway. As a child, Frankie lived under the influence of his drunken, philandering father. As a teenager, he fell in with a gang of skinheads who unleashed their pent-up rage across the city of Edinburgh, Scotland. As an adult, however, he seeks help and becomes involved with two women -- an art student (Laura Fraser) and a fellow addict (Susan Lynch) -- who may prove to be his salvation.
      Director
      Richard Jobson
      Producer
      Steve McIntyre, Wouter Barendrecht, Michael J. Werner
      Screenwriter
      Richard Jobson
      Rating
      R (Alcohol Use)
      Genre
      Drama
      Original Language
      English
      Release Date (Theaters)
      May 18, 2003, Original
      Release Date (DVD)
      Oct 29, 2014
      Box Office (Gross USA)
      $7.5K
      Runtime
      1h 37m