Bene Cumb The film gives an alternative and "non-tourist" view over Glasgow area where drugs, alcohol and violence are daily part of life and struggle through this is impossible without outside support. Autumn grayness accentuates the daily gloom and moments of hope are too brief - and always associated with a "catch". Ken Loach is a gifted director and the plot intensity is excellently exploited, but the script itself is too lopsided to me.As for the actors, Martin Compston as Liam outperforms all the others; he is really great in portraying a soon-to-be 16-years-old "ned" as they say in Scotland. Other characters are too briefly on screen and at times incomprehensible (e.g. Pinball). Sweet Sixteen could be a strong warning film for teens, but due to hard language it is forbidden to minors in most countries... It is no family film anyway.

widescreenguy a junkie mother in prison, a father who deals in heroin, and a 16 yr old who steals the heroin so he can sell it instead.'gritty' say the reviews. and about as entertaining as a piece of gravel in your shoe.I was hoping for a bit of comic relief, ie the 60s brand of Benny Hill type of bawdy humour or some political satire but none were forthcoming. just grime and crime from the title sequence to the closing credits.thank gawd for free movies at the library, a measly dollar to rent this crud would be too much.something has happened to British film makers, it started way back with kubrick's clockwork orange and has continued to deteriorate.blech. the good news is this one cured me of curiosity then next time some low class shenanigans are portrayed. enough already. where can you get decent movie entertainment today? indie products somehow think the shock value adds value to their product. about as much as shock therapy.I'm usually forgiving in my reviews but there is very little to praise in this hour and a half of faux reality. it might be reality for some 16 year olds in Britain but I have no interest if that's what they do with their day. how in blazes do people like this expect to MAKE SOMETHING of their lives? not by following the habits portrayed in this knock off.

conveyed If I had to summarize this film in as few of words as possible, I'd say this: Sweet Sixteen is basically about a teenager who tries desperately to please his emotionally - and oftentimes physically - absent mother. It's about how very young people come to be criminals and drug dealers and the like. In a word, they either learn it from their parents, or they learn it from their friends, who in turn learn it from their parents. Or a combination of both. I liked this movie for the same reason I didn't like this movie -- it's very honest. I've always lived in nice places my entire life, but I have family members who this movie is basically exactly like how they live/d their lives and got involved in all sorts of bad things. It hit a little too close to home for me to like it very much. It may be necessary for people who want to know why some young people are so destructive, but if you already know the answer to that, you won't gleam any new philosophic insights from this movie. All in all, it's not a bad film, but the honesty and the intensity disturbed me a little bit. If you're bored or feeling like a melancholy movie or just randomly want to hear some heavy Scottish accents, I'd recommend it, but not if you know people who began screwing up their lives at a very young age, because then it'll just leave you sad. It doesn't really offer any solutions.

quibix This film is eerily similar to another movie, set & shot half-way around the globe. Check out, "Once Were Warriors", a New Zealand production that addresses many of the same issues. "Once Were Warriors" is about an inner-city Maori family that's forced to deal with the exact same social issues, such as impoverishment, dysfunction, violence, all of it. Jake, one of the lead characters in, "Once Were Warriors", resembles the, "Sweet Sixteen", character, Liam, in that both these guys will stop at absolutely nothing to see their agendas through. Jake, like Liam, charges into situations to get things finished, come hell or high water. They both eventually lose out, because they went entirely too far. Like "Sweet Sixteen", "Once Were Warriors" isn't a sweet, heart-warming family movie! Still, it's well-made & definitely worth seeing.