Scum

Scum

In Borstal, survival rules!

1979 · 96 min · ★ 7.1 · Drama, Crime

Carlin is a new reform school inmate with a reputation as a hard case. The authorities encourage gang leader Pongo to humble Carlin, but Carlin overtakes Pongo as Daddy of the ward. The guards institute a reign of terror and neglect, with Carlin emerging as an unlikely leader.

Directed by Alan Clarke · Written by Roy Minton

Your Rating

Cast

Trailers & Videos

Make it a double feature

3h 6m together

Both from Alan Clarke.

More from Alan ClarkeSee all →

Tales Out of SchoolTales Out of School · 1983
Tales Out of School
10.01983
SeriesDrama
Tales Out of School is a British anthology of television plays by David Leland: Birth of a Nation, Flying Into the Wind, R.H.I.N.O.: Really Here in Name Only, and Made in Britain.
Danton's DeathDanton's Death · 1978
Danton's Death
9.01978
MovieDramaHistory
Danton's Death is arguably the most dramatic and penetrating study of revolution ever written. Georg Büchner concentrates on that moment in 1794 when the Reign of Terror, already well established, spills over into a total blood-bath. The play, adapted by director Alan Clarke and Stuart Griffiths, both highly imaginative and closely documentary, shows how the great hero of the early phase of the Revolution, Danton, sickened by the excesses of the guillotine, which he helped to create, wants to call a halt. But Robespierre and Saint-Just, leaders of the Jacobins, with a ferocious puritanical zeal, spur on 'the wild horses of the Revolution'.
Man Above MenMan Above Men · 1973
Man Above Men
8.01973
MovieDramaTV Movie
Max Glanville, a judge whose attention wanders throughout a trial for criminal assault, makes an error in the sentence - which he has to correct. The judge sees himself as a protector of democracy, but his daughter, Susan, regards him as the greatest living argument for euthanasia.
Everybody Say CheeseEverybody Say Cheese · 1971
Everybody Say Cheese
8.01971
MovieTV MovieComedy
Comedy play about a seaside photographer, Henry Hunter, who goes to Margate every year to work, staying with his friends Frank and Hylda. However, he is getting older, and his trade is dying out as people have their own instamatic cameras.
Beloved EnemyBeloved Enemy · 1981
Beloved Enemy
8.01981
MovieDramaTV Movie
A cool hard study of 'the art of the deal' on a global scale. Sir Peter, the chillingly affable chief exec of big British multi-national UKM, learns that the Soviet Union's chief scientists are in London with government credit to spend. He's keen to flog them a tyre-production plant. based in the Ukraine, which will unshackle UKM from bothersome unions at home. But at the negotiating table, it fast becomes apparent that the Soviets are more interested in the laser technology UKM employs to vulcanise their tyres; and Peter starts to foresee a new future in military aerospace for his ever fiexible firm.
Alive from Off CenterAlive from Off Center · 1985
Alive from Off Center
8.01985
SeriesDocumentary
An avant-garde omnibus that features works by off-the-wall artists in many different disciplines.
ChristineChristine · 1987
Christine
7.51987
MovieTV MovieDrama
Christine is a pasty-faced teen in a windbreaker and ill-fitting striped shirt who walks endlessly from one friend's house to another, delivering heroin while their parents are absent.
Penda's FenPenda's Fen · 1974
Penda's Fen
7.51974
MovieTV MovieDrama
Through a series of real and imagined encounters with angels, demons, and England's pagan past, a pastor's son begins to question his religion and politics, and comes to terms with his sexuality.
A Follower for EmilyA Follower for Emily · 1974
A Follower for Emily
7.51974
MovieDramaTV Movie
Harry and Emily are two of the livelier residents of a London old people's home. When they decide to get married, things prove less simple.
Half Hour StoryHalf Hour Story · 1967
Half Hour Story
7.51967
SeriesDrama
18 short plays written especially for TV, an opportunity for up-and-coming directors such as floor manager Alan Clarke, who ended up doing 10 of the episodes. Some top ranking performers were attracted to the series.
ScumScum · 1977
Scum
7.31977
MovieTV MovieDrama
Carlin is a new reform school inmate with a reputation as a hard case. The authorities encourage gang leader Pongo to humble Carlin, but Carlin overtakes Pongo as Daddy of the ward. The guards institute a reign of terror and neglect, with Carlin emerging as an unlikely leader.
RoadRoad · 1987
Road
7.21987
MovieTV MovieDrama
A view of the inhabitants of a derelict road in Manchester, unsatisfied with their lives and routines. A young man locks himself away from the world. An older woman flirts with a soldier on leave. Two men invite two girls into an empty house.
Screen TwoScreen Two · 1985
Screen Two
7.11985
SeriesDrama
Series of single made-for-television dramas.
Made in BritainMade in Britain · 1983
Made in Britain
7.01983
MovieTV MovieCrime
16-year-old skinhead Trevor has no regard for authority, and would rather spend his time stealing cars than sitting in the detention centre to which he is sent. Social worker Harry Parker tries his best, but Trevor is only interested when there's something in it for him. The centre authorities try to conform Trevor to the norms of society, but he takes no notice, and would rather speak in a torrent of four-letter words and racial abuse.
Horatio BottomleyHoratio Bottomley · 1972
Horatio Bottomley
7.01972
MovieDramaTV Movie
Alan Clarke's standalone film first appeared as an episode of the BBC series "The Edwardians" and concerns notorious bon vivant, swindler, MP, public speaker, founder of the Financial Times and publisher of John Bull magazine, Horatio Bottomley.
ITV Saturday Night TheatreITV Saturday Night Theatre · 1969
ITV Saturday Night Theatre
7.01969
Series
Anthology series of dramatic works.

More Like This

The Boondock Saints II: All Saints DayThe Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day · 2009
The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day
6.02009
MovieActionThriller
Skillfully framed by an unknown enemy for the murder of a priest, wanted vigilante MacManus brothers Murphy and Connor must come out of hiding on a sheep farm in Ireland to fight for justice in Boston.
The Big Bird CageThe Big Bird Cage · 1972
The Big Bird Cage
5.61972
MovieActionCrime
Women rebel against slave labor in a filthy jungle prison where they feed sugar cane to a mechanical maw.
InvictusInvictus · 2009
Invictus
7.22009
MovieDramaHistory
Newly elected President Nelson Mandela knows his nation remains racially and economically divided in the wake of apartheid. Believing he can bring his people together through the universal language of sport, Mandela rallies South Africa's rugby union team as they make their historic run to the 1995 Rugby World Cup Championship match.
Henry VHenry V · 1944
Henry V
6.71944
MovieHistoryDrama
In 1415, in the midst of the Hundred Years' War, the young King Henry V of England embarks on the conquest of France.
ShrinkShrink · 2009
Shrink
6.22009
MovieComedyDrama
Unable to cope with a recent personal tragedy, LA's top celebrity shrink turns into a pothead with no concern for his appearance and a creeping sense of his inability to help his patients.
The Butcher BoyThe Butcher Boy · 1998
The Butcher Boy
6.81998
MovieComedyDrama
Francie and Joe live the usual playful, fantasy filled childhoods of normal boys. However, with a violent, alcoholic father and a manic depressive, suicidal mother the pressure on Francie to grow up are immense. When Francie's world turns to madness, he tries to counter it with further insanity, with dire consequences.
Law Abiding CitizenLaw Abiding Citizen · 2009
Law Abiding Citizen
7.42009
MovieDramaCrime
A frustrated man decides to take justice into his own hands after a plea bargain sets one of his family's killers free. He targets not only the killer but also the district attorney and others involved in the deal.
Little Lord FauntleroyLittle Lord Fauntleroy · 1936
Little Lord Fauntleroy
6.81936
MovieDramaFamily
An American boy turns out to be the heir of a wealthy British earl. He is sent to live with the irritable and unsentimental aristocrat, his grandfather.
Werckmeister HarmoniesWerckmeister Harmonies · 2001
Werckmeister Harmonies
7.92001
MovieDrama
A naive young man witnesses an escalation of violence in his small hometown following the arrival of a mysterious circus attraction.
South CentralSouth Central · 1992
South Central
6.71992
MovieCrimeDrama
During a 10-year sentence for murdering the leader of a rival South Central Los Angeles gang, Bobby Johnson finds religion and rehabilitation with the help of Muslim inmate Ali. Upon his release, Bobby returns home to find that his young son, Jimmie, has joined the Deuces, his old crew. Tensions rise as Bobby struggles to convince Jimmie to leave the gang that was his only family during the painful years his absent father spent behind bars.
Lady Sings the BluesLady Sings the Blues · 1972
Lady Sings the Blues
6.91972
MovieDramaMusic
Chronicles the rise and fall of legendary blues singer Billie Holiday, beginning with her traumatic youth. The story depicts her early attempts at a singing career and her eventual rise to stardom, as well as her difficult relationship with Louis McKay, her boyfriend and manager. Casting a shadow over even Holiday's brightest moments is the vocalist's severe drug addiction, which threatens to end both her career and her life.
The Garden of Sinners: Remaining Sense of PainThe Garden of Sinners: Remaining Sense of Pain · 2008
The Garden of Sinners: Remaining Sense of Pain
7.02008
MovieCrimeAnimation
July 1998 - After a group of delinquents is found dead in their hangout place with all their limbs twisted and torn off, Aozaki Touko receives a request to find the murderer and asks Shiki for help. The main suspect is Asagami Fujino; a girl who was the boys' plaything until recently, who Shiki believes to be "one of her kind".
CakeCake · 2014
Cake
6.32014
MovieDrama
After having visions of a member of her support group who killed herself, a woman who also suffers with chronic pain seeks out the widower of the suicide.
The Keeping RoomThe Keeping Room · 2014
The Keeping Room
5.82014
MovieWesternDrama
In this radically reimagined American Western set towards the end of the Civil War, Southerner Augusta encounters two renegade, drunken soldiers who are on a mission of pillage and violence. After escaping an attempted assault, Augusta races back to the isolated farmhouse that she shares with her sister Louise and their female slave Mad. When the pair of soldiers track Augusta down intent on exacting revenge, the trio of women are forced to take up arms to fend off their assailants, finding ways to resourcefully defend their home––and themselves––as the escalating attacks become more unpredictable and relentless.

Rate this film

Your ratings make Midnight smarter