Sixty Six (film)

{{Infobox film

| name = Sixty Six

| image = Sixty six UK poster.jpg

| caption = UK Theatrical release poster

| director = Paul Weiland

| producer = {{plainlist|

Tim Bevan
Eric Fellner
Elizabeth Karlsen

}}

| screenplay = {{plainlist|

}}

| story = {{plainlist|

Paul Weiland
Taylor Gathercole

}}

| narrator = Maximilian Law

| starring = {{plainlist|

}}

| music = Joby Talbot

| cinematography = Daniel Landin

| editing = Paul Tothill

| studio = {{plainlist|

Working Title Films
StudioCanal
WT² Productions
Ingenious Media{{cite web |title=Sixty Six "A True...ish Story" (2006)|work=British Film Institute|url=http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b8b6cf68b|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171029185001/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b8b6cf68b|url-status=dead|archive-date=29 October 2017}}

}}

| distributor = {{plainlist|

Universal Pictures (through United International Pictures;{{cite web|title=Sixty Six (2006)|website=BBFC|access-date=23 March 2022|url=https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/sixty-six-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc00mtm1odi}} international)
StudioCanal (France)
First Independent Pictures (United States)

}}

| released = {{Film date|df=yes|2006|11|3|United Kingdom|2008|08|01|United States}}

| runtime = 93 minutes

| country = {{plainlist|

United Kingdom
France
United States

}}

| language = English

| budget =

| gross = $1,873,144

}}

Sixty Six is a 2006 biographical comedy-drama film about a bar mitzvah which takes place in London on the day of the 1966 FIFA World Cup Final, based on the true life bar mitzvah of director Paul Weiland.

Plot

Bernie Reubens, a young Jewish boy, is about to have his bar mitzvah. Initially, he meticulously plans a lavish reception to upstage that of his older brother Alvie, but as the family's finances lurch from one disaster to another, the family is forced to lower Bernie's expectations and stage the bar mitzvah reception at home in North London. When England reaches the 1966 FIFA World Cup Final, held on the same day, most of the guests make excuses not to come to the reception so that they can watch the game. In the end, Bernie's father saves the day by driving Bernie to Wembley Stadium to witness the end of the match.

Cast

Gregg Sulkin as Bernie Reubens
Helena Bonham Carter as Esther Reubens
Eddie Marsan as Immanuel "Manny" Reubens
Peter Serafinowicz as Uncle Jimmy / Mr Reubens, Sr. / Football Commentator
Stephen Grief as Uncle Henry
Catherine Tate as Aunt Lila
Stephen Rea as Dr Barrie
Geraldine Somerville as Alice Barrie
Maria Charles as Mrs Glitzman
Vincenzo Nicoli as Leo

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rating of 65%, based on 52 reviews, with an average rating of 6.00/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Likable but overly sentimental, Sixty Six has snatches of sharp dialogue but is ultimately too predicable."{{cite web |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/sixty_six |title=Sixty Six (2006) |work=Rotten Tomatoes |publisher=Fandango Media |access-date=14 February 2021 }} On Metacritic, the film holds a score of 57 out of 100, based on reviews from 11 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".{{cite web |url=http://www.metacritic.com/movie/sixty-six |title=Sixty Six|work=Metacritic |access-date=22 November 2017}}

The Hollywood Reporter praised the film, saying "Although the subject might sound specialized, the picture is engineered with such skill that it transcends the ethnic details to become a universal story of a boy trying to find his place in an inhospitable world."{{cite magazine |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/film/reviews/article_display.jsp?&rid=11351 |title=Film Review: Sixty Six |magazine=The Hollywood Reporter |date=2 July 2008 |access-date=28 February 2009 |archive-date=15 July 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090715111402/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/film/reviews/article_display.jsp?&rid=11351 |url-status=dead }} Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times reviewed the film as being "enlightened by Bernie's impassioned narration and by a gallery of small comic details."{{cite news |date=27 August 2008 |first=Roger |last=Ebert |url=http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080826/REVIEWS/808289986/1023 |title=Sixty Six (review) |work=Chicago Sun-Times |access-date=22 November 2021 |archive-date=29 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120929225904/http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20080826%2FREVIEWS%2F808289986%2F1023 |url-status=dead }} The New York Times described the film as "A dolorous comedy that leans heavily, if inoffensively, on ethnic stereotypes."{{cite news |url=https://movies.nytimes.com/2008/08/01/movies/01sixt.html |title=Movie Review: Sixty Six (2006)-A Struggle Toward Manhood |newspaper=The New York Times |date=1 August 2021 }}

References

External links

[https://web.archive.org/web/20171029185001/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b8b6cf68b Sixty Six] at BFI
[http://film.britishcouncil.org/sixty-six Sixty Six] at British Council–Film
[http://lumiere.obs.coe.int/web/film_info/?id=26220 Sixty Six] at Lumiere
{{IMDb title|0493450|Sixty Six}}
{{mojo title|sixtysix|Sixty Six}}