This is probably one of the most notorious films to have emerged from Britain. It's become almost a cult film now with it's mixture of brutal violence and memorable quotes ("I'm the Daddy now!")
"Scum" was originally produced for the British television in 1977 (as part of the BBC's "Play for Today" series) but the TV version was banned, so writer Roy Minton and director Alan Clarke re-made it as a cinema film. The film takes place entirely inside a British "Borstal" (a prison for young criminals) and details the experiences of three new inmates, notably the violent Carlin (memorably played by Ray Winstone in his first starring role), who soon rises to the position of "Daddy" (or "top dog") in the institution.
The frequent violence (dealt out by both inmates and guards) is brutal and uncompromising, there are a couple of graphic suicides and, in the most notorious scene in the film, a horrifying rape.
This is a very powerful film that has not lost it's power to shock. Worth watching but only if you've got strong nerves and a strong stomach.
By the way the Borstal system was abolished in Britain in the early 1980s and is replaced by the current "Young Offender's Institutions".
"Scum" was originally produced for the British television in 1977 (as part of the BBC's "Play for Today" series) but the TV version was banned, so writer Roy Minton and director Alan Clarke re-made it as a cinema film. The film takes place entirely inside a British "Borstal" (a prison for young criminals) and details the experiences of three new inmates, notably the violent Carlin (memorably played by Ray Winstone in his first starring role), who soon rises to the position of "Daddy" (or "top dog") in the institution.
The frequent violence (dealt out by both inmates and guards) is brutal and uncompromising, there are a couple of graphic suicides and, in the most notorious scene in the film, a horrifying rape.
This is a very powerful film that has not lost it's power to shock. Worth watching but only if you've got strong nerves and a strong stomach.
By the way the Borstal system was abolished in Britain in the early 1980s and is replaced by the current "Young Offender's Institutions".