A bleak, but heartbreaking coming-of-age tale that resonates with truth. Read critic reviews
Sweet Sixteen
2002, Drama, 1h 46m
89 Reviews 5,000+ RatingsWhat to know
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Movie Info
While Liam (Martin Compston) waits for his mother to be released from prison, he aggressively resists the demands of his stepfather and grandfather that he use his mother as a drug mule. Liam dreams of a better life for her, and decides that when she gets out of jail he will take her far away from their family and their former life. However, this plan requires money, so Liam gets it the only way he knows how -- by stealing his stepfather's drugs and selling them on the street.
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Rating: R
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Genre: Drama
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Original Language: English
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Director: Ken Loach
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Producer: Rebecca O'Brien
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Writer: Paul Laverty
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Release Date (Theaters): wide
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Release Date (Streaming):
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Box Office (Gross USA): $304.7K
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Runtime:
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Distributor: Lionsgate Films
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Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby SR, Dolby Digital, Dolby A, Dolby Stereo
Cast & Crew
Critic Reviews for Sweet Sixteen
Audience Reviews for Sweet Sixteen
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Sweet Sixteen. Sounds like a chick flick (nothing wrong if you like that genre; it's just that I'm not into that kind of movies in general). Now, the title itself is enough to prompt me to click on 'NOT INTERESTED'. (Off topic, but Shakespeare didn't know shit when he coined "What's in name?") But when it came as a recommendation from one of the friends here (by mvieaddict, to be specific), & the review (which I fortunately didn't read fully. She's given away how it ends. I know it's predictable, but still.) mentioned that it's a crime related movie, I was inclined to check it out. And having just watched it, I'm glad I did. It's not 'American History X', but it's close to that. It's relatively realistic & way better than most of the crime dramas I've recently seen. It has some truly great intense moments. It's not a tearjerker, but the way the relations are portrayed is quite touching. It made me care for the protagonist even after knowing that what he's doing is quite unethical. That's where the movie scored for me, because generally I don't get that kind of a feeling for such characters (or the characters I can't relate to). It takes a sneak peek into the life of a boy who wants to lead a sound life with his mom who's currently serving time in jail. But that's not not quite easy. He resorts to crime to make his dreams come true. And pieces start falling in their place for him. But alas... well, you already know what kind of ending you're supposed to expect with this type of movies. I'd not give away what exactly it is, just in case (yep, of late, I've decided not to give out big spoilers as far as possible). The actors were all new faces to me, but everyone performed well. The movie wouldn't have been so effective otherwise. Surely recommended. EDIT: Just because someone asked, I felt I should clarify it once & for all. I mentioned 'American History X' because the movie reminded me of it while watching it. There's not much resemblance between the two. When I said "it's close to that," I meant in terms of greatness, & not plot-wise. So there.
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Ken Loach's movies are known for their intensity of showing the society differences of the British class. I saw that in Bread & Roses, Carla's song and AE fond kiss, but Sweet Sixteen was more dramatic and emotional. Here the director portrayed some sad lives going into violence and crime and the way he presented the bad situations of these people were just memorable. Liam the lead character, a 15 year old boy who life had treated very hard, was selling heroine cigarettes on the street, who he had stolen from his mother's boyfriend. Liam's older sister Chantelle, who hated her mother,for being a heroine junkie and in prison was a very touching part of the story.The mother, for whom all the effort was done for her to keep her straight, got a nice house from Liam ,which he bought of drugs money.But when she got out prison she remained the disappointment she always was, and gave this movie a dramatic ending.
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Such a dark movie but it's good and the acting is good for amateurs.
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I've never heard the "C" word so much in my life! Even so, my heart went out to this 15 yr old Scottish boy in Sweet Sixteen. His mom is due to be released from prison the day before his sixteenth birthday. He's doing everything he can to make a home for his family. Not much available for a young lad except crime. This movie had me interested until 3/4 the way through...then it disconnected from the audience somewhat.
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