Wow! Such a good movie.

Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

the audience applauded

For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!

This film is as bad as they get. The title "Rise of the foot soldier" gives the impression its some sort of story about some criminal who is a fairly well known bad guy rising through the ranks of some organised crime syndicate. What you have in fact is a low order villain who makes some cash while working for a loosely connected group of drug dealing door minding crew of no real standing. The character portrayed does not rise anywhere as there is no organisation for him to rise within. He is a peripheral player within this group who would have remained unknown outside of Essex if they had not of been all shot dead in a execution style ambush by major league players. The story is no more of a story of any rising foot soldier and more to do with a infamous mass murder where he had a loose relationship with the victims. Absolute load of crap not worth watching.

The life-story (so far) of infamous West Ham United football hooligan, Carlton Leech. Starting in the 1970s, young Carlton joins the ICF hooligan gang and as the years pass into the early 1980s becomes a leading figure in the organised mob of East London thugs – taking on football gangs from around London and across the country, making a name for himself as a fearless street-fighter and gang-leader. Working as night club bouncer in some of East London's roughest venues, Carlton has the foresight and skills to organise security firms as the Acid House and Rave era dawns over the UK – and in the process, whilst his marriage suffers, he makes more contacts and a lot of money. Controlling the drug traffic through the doors of the venues, with a small army of ex-hooligans turned bouncers, the error of a couple of his men land him and his organisation in a war with the London Turkish Mafia. Coming through the other side, littered with casualties, Carlton enters the 1990s with over a decade of blood on his hands, a wealth of underworld experience – and a reputation to be feared and respected. But the 1990s bring a new era of Essex based criminals and new way of doing things.Partnering up with Tony Tucker, an Essex playboy gangster, Carlton finds himself amongst the wild, brash criminal circles of the richer suburban towns outside London and on the edge of one of the most shadowy and suspicious criminal conspiracies of modern British gangland lore – the Range Rover Murders."Rise of the Footsoldier" is a fantastic Brit gangland film which achieves not only in telling the story of the connection between football hooliganism and organised crime, but does so with both speed and detail. The early sequences of mass hooligan fights through the 70s and 80s is nothing short of brilliant and is by far the best portrayal of any films in the genre. The Acid House and rave era is depicted with style and energy, whilst remaining faithful to telling Carlton's story, and we never lose sight of the journey he makes as a character – and as Carlton and his boys move into paid-for-violence debt collecting and eventually into gang war against the Turkish group, again the pacing, deft direction of the action and the drama of Carlton's life are perfectly balanced, making the film not only one that is gripping but also a fully engaging experience, which any movie lover will appreciate. The only issue with the film is that the final chapter, the 'Essex boys' part of his story, feels detached from the rest of the film. It is essentially Act 4. Carlton is reduced to a minor player and so the final part of the film focuses on three new characters backed-up by three new supporting characters – it is their story, of which Carlton makes only fleeting appearances. That said, this aspect will not bother some viewers in the slightest and "Rise of the Footsoldier" remains an excellent film which must be watched.

Rise of the Footsoldier is an interesting box of tricks. Some people describe it as 'Britain's attempt at Goodfellas.' However, I couldn't see that much in common with the American classic. Yes, Footsoldier is about gangsters, but, despite being a 'firm' they never came across as that organised in the way the American 'Mafia' seems to be portrayed on film.The film is apparently based on a true story. This is slightly open to interpretation as, in real life, the 'truth' is still being debated. In 1995, three gang members were gunned down in a Range Rover in Essex. Footsoldier attempts to explain the motivations behind the murders. It's about Carlton Leach, a small time football hooligan in the early eighties, who works his way up to doorman. Yes, that doesn't sound that much of a 'rise' but he also gets involved in some drug operations which elevate his status as an 'enforcer.' However, the story (spanning nearly two) hours, sort of leaves Carlton at about the hour mark and goes off to tell the tale of the three gangsters who will later be killed. This seems to have split audiences. Granted Leach was an unlikeable character (in fact, you may find it hard to find ANYONE in this film who you actually like), but at least he was the 'hero' (or antihero possibly). The change of direction is sort of jarring and it put me off a bit on my first watch (I'm reviewing it on my second viewing for the record).Perhaps Footsoldier is best looked at as a film of two halves. The first half sets up the scene, depicting how the underworld works in and around London, then we see what *might* happen to the three gangsters.Rise of the Footsoldier is certainly not for everyone. It is extremely violent and bloody. Plus there isn't even any real humour to speak of (ala Lock Stock and Snatch). Our 'hero' regular beats up people, including his own wife, leaving little sympathy for his plight. However, I still found it an interesting watch. I don't know how much of it is real. Yes, it is BASED on real events, but I got the impression that a fair amount of artistic licence had been taken with the film.If you have a strong stomach and you like British gangster films, you may like this. Special mention to Craig Fairbrass for portraying a particularly nasty villain - Joe Pesci, you have just met your British counterpart.http://thewrongtreemoviereviews.blogspot.co.uk/

"Rise of the Footsoldier" is a violent and very realistic British movie that shows the story of the British scum Carlton Leach (Ricci Harnett), who was a bully hooligan of a gang in soccer stadiums in the 70's and 80's and his rise to the position of one of the most feared gangsters on the streets of London and Essex in the 90's.Julian Gilbey made a realistic movie that is many moments seem to be a documentary, with stunning performances of the cast. However, criminals like Carlton Leach, Tony Tucker and Pat Tate are the scum of the society that should be forgotten indeed. My vote is seven.Title (Brazil): "Guerra entre Gangues" ("War between Gangs")