Scum
G.T.O. Films Ltd. | Release Date: August 20, 1980 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
78
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 11 Critic Reviews
Positive:
10
Mixed:
1
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
90
Village VoiceAlan Scherstuhl
One of the great films about boys and violence, about the allure and horror and inevitability of young toughs seizing power by smashing some skulls — and replicating, in their own private hellscape, the societal structures that have ground them down. Read full review
80
EmpirePhilip Thomas
It has lost none of its power: Scum is, in the final analysis, horrific. Read full review
80
The GuardianPaul Howlett
This grim picture of borstal life packs a real punch. And kick, and headbutt. [13 Feb 2010]
80
Los Angeles TimesJustin Chang
In Scum, one of only three features he directed for the big screen, Clarke finds a bleak beauty in an institution devoted to controlling, yet also propagating, all manner of human ugliness. Read full review
80
The New York TimesBen Kenigsberg
If some of the plot seems familiar, the intelligence with which Mr. Clarke dissects the flaws of Britain’s “borstal” system is not. [15 Jun 2017]
80
Time OutStaff (Not Credited)
A toughened docudrama (schools of BBC/old Warners/Corman) that carries the same force as the improvised weapons Ray Winstone uses to bludgeon his way through the Borstal power structure. Read full review
75
The A.V. ClubMike D'Angelo
A straightforward prison flick, basically, honoring all of the genre’s many conventions, from the sadistic screws to the wars between rival cell blocks to the innocent who gets brutally gang-raped. Read full review
75
The Film StageMike Mazzanti
Scum lives up to its title to this day, its manic energy balanced with an assured and naked openness that creates a searing level of realism and, as such, savagery. Read full review
75
Slant MagazineBudd Wilkins
One of director Alan Clarke’s most uncompromising docudramas. Read full review
75
TV Guide MagazineStaff (Not Credited)
The performances are mostly good, and the direction and editing work wonders in the tight gray interiors of the juvenile prison. Not for everyone, but worthwhile viewing for the not-easily-shocked. Read full review
60
VarietyStaff (Not Credited)
Given that Scum, a relentlessly brutal slice of British reform school life, is strongly directed by Alan Clarke, and acted with admirable conviction, it is a pity that the hard-hitting screenplay is more passionate tract than powerful entertainment. Read full review
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