Rise of the Footsoldier

Rise of the Footsoldier follows Carlton Leach, a young man from Essex whose talent for violence lifts him from the football terraces to the upper reaches of organised crime. Beginning as a feared figure among a club's hooligan following, he moves into the door work and rave security of the late eighties and early nineties, then into a criminal circle that spreads fear across London and Essex. Spanning roughly three decades, the story traces how each step up brings greater danger and how the world he has entered turns on those closest to him.

Julian Gilbey directed and wrote the screenplay with Will Gilbey, working from a true story. It was Gilbey's first feature as director; he went on to make A Lonely Place to Die, Plastic and Summit Fever. Ricci Harnett plays Leach, with Terry Stone, Craig Fairbrass, Roland Manookian, Coralie Rose and Neil Maskell among the main cast, part of a credited cast of 21 and crew of 66. Produced by Mike Loveday, David Shead and Ian McIntyre for Carnaby International, Hanover Films and Splice Post, the film had a budget of about 4 million USD.

Released in the United Kingdom in September 2007 and running 119 minutes, the crime thriller drew a much colder response from critics, whose rating stands at 2.9 out of 10 from six reviews, than from audiences, who rate it 6.3 out of 10 on TMDB from 243 votes. It launched a British gangland series.