source: The Wee Man

I watched it with my girlfriend the other night and thought it was a great film, you don't get many Scottish gangster films that make it to film, the only other one i can think of off the top of my head is 'A sense of freedom' the story of Jimmy Boyle, my girlfriend also loved it apart from not understanding the accent to well (she is form Sussex you know,There was everything you would expect to find in a gritty Scottish film. I have a lot of Scottish friends down south in London, and i have urged them to give it a go, i'm sure they will enjoy it as much as i do, i it was recommended by me from a friend so i gave it a whirl and thoroughly enjoyed it, would i watch it again... of course i would without question.

It was incredible to watch, but it put me off knowing that it was a true story, as it just seemed like a gangster fantasy. It was violent for no reason and slightly annoying at times. The main actor playing Ferris was brilliant. I almost felt myself acting his scenes after I watched it. He played the script off realistically and I really wanted to believe him. It's very rare that I'm on the edge of my seat. He was so intense, in the right way for this role. Great job, someone give this guy more work. Some of the accents were a little confusing. I'm pretty sure none of the actors were from Glasgow, but whatever, I'm sure anyone outside Scotland won't notice. I would've liked to have seen Ferris and his Dad act more together. Those scenes with just him and his dad were beautiful to watch. Fantastic acting! In some parts, I really caught a glimpse of working class Glasgow, however, I think it should've been portrayed slightly darker. It was a bit candy floss compared to "NEDS". I didn't feel like I was watching Glasgow. At times it could've been based in an old London setting. Overall, it's a great film to watch with the boys. It was intense but I could imagine it would be fun to watch it with others. It shouldn't have been portrayed as a true story as it may have been slightly more successful. But great film, decent acting and visually entertaining.

This film is truly awful. The lead actor is totally out his depth as a Glasgow gangland enforcer and the way the story was portrayed was nothing short of a pantomime in it's attempt to position the lead character as the hero. Does this film have any redeeming qualities? No! If you think you will see a good British gangster film full of big characters, violence, betrayal and other must have ingredients you are wasting your time. Do not bother to watch this, you will be angry at how amateurish it is.

Having watched a lot of recent Hollywood blockbusters and thrillers of which of which THE PURGE sequel ANARCHY was the most gripping and thought provoking I thought perhaps I should diversify my viewing a bit . THE WEE MAN is a low budget crime bio-pic centered around Paul Ferris who was something of a cause celebre career criminal from a couple of decades back where he was found not guilty of a double murder . Now I'm not a big fan of these type of films because they're not very good and always seem to have the production values of a TV Sunday drama but a change is as good as a rest and sat down to watch THE WEE MAN . Within a very short period I thought was watching a remake of another film - a Scottish remake of THE PURGE ! Supposedly set in Glasgow it presents the city as a lawless wasteland where murders , rapes , stabbings and scalpings are everyones favourite past time . It's no good calling the cops because they're too busy organising death squads to abduct and maim passer bys . Is it any surprise that young Paul Ferris grows up to be a criminal , but please don't condemn him because he only kills and maims other criminals who did something to deserve it - or that's what the film is trying to tell us . I'm from Edinburgh so there's no way I'd be sticking up for Glasgow unless that city deserved it and this film is so bad I feel the need to defend the majority of Glaswegians who are friendly happy go lucky salt of the Earth types You don't have to be a career criminal to think if there's not only serious exaggeration but downright lies are going on here , same as you don't have to have ever served a prison sentence to know that the screws aren't going to just open up a cell and let you commit murder to get rid of a rival That's not how things work in Britain , maybe in South America or some other third world prison but not in Britain Some people on this page have pointed out many factual errors so allow me to contribute something I know is totally incorrect - the scene where Thompson Snr gives Ferris a safe house in Rothesay . Cut to a scene where Ferris and his wife stop their car outside a mansion that later ends with a police raid . Thompson did indeed have a holiday flat in Rothesay that got raided while Ferris was staying there but that's all it was - a holiday flat in a tenement which coincidentally is the same Rothesay street I lived in for four years , not some sprawling mansion with landscapes of hills . The only thing you'd see from the window would be the tenement opposite . This factual embellishment sums up this truly dreadful ugly film . Some things might have happened in reality at the most basic level but not anything like is portrayed here with massacres taking place left , right and centre . No wonder no one in Scotland wanted to co-operate with the production and had to be filmed in England due to the way it insults Scotland and its greatest asset -its people

Really enjoyed Wee Man. It made it more interesting knowing it is based on the true life story of Paul Ferris. A Scottish gangster who was into crime at 17 and a main Glasgow gangster from the 80s. This story shows how he was bullied, betrayed, loyalties tried and the power gained and the terror maintained. With flash backs of the sound advice from his father he ignored. With the violence In and out of prison. I was unaware of these events until seeing this film. Don't remember if his terror made the news. This British gangster film is well worth a watch. The ending of the film left it open for a sequel. Will go and read the books now.

I read the book "The Paul Ferris Conspiracy" and really enjoyed it, it had a tang of truth about it and a compelling narrative. This adaptation though, it's a different story. Never in the book, or indeed during Ferris's actual life, did he witness a point blank murder while a little boy. Thompson barely ever spoke to Ferris the whole time he dealt with him, he always got others to do business for him. His early knife crime exploits...Ferris went to lengths to try to explain that they always slashed, never stabbed...it's the difference literally between life and death, no young lad would have tried to carry out a mass murder like that! The gunfight at the beginning - in reality it was two guys firing old farmer's shotguns at each other, the film turned it into a Mexican cartel war. The revenge attack was just movie rubbish, total exaggeration. The portrayal of Ferris himself was pretty good, and the Junior role was even better, although Junior barely ever got involved in violence himself. He was also a smackhead and more fond of wearing tracksuits then actual suits! Worth watching, but it's far removed from reality.

The heavily edited and revised story of Paul Ferris, Glasgow hard man gangster and his reform - maybe it's one-sided, but that's what makes it enjoyable as a drama. It's by no means a documentary! The tale of a bullied kid taking revenge on his tormentors, becoming as bad as those who bullied him and finally 'turning his back on crime' is well paced and well told, whether or not you are bothered about how true to life it is. Martin Compton's lead performance is really great, and all the usual Scottish suspects, and a few unusual ones, put in a good turn. The depiction of horrific violence is very well judged - shocking but not gratuitous. TWM transports you to a fantasy place and keeps you there, which in my book is the mark of a good movie.

Ray Burdis has been an entertaining talent to British audiences since the 1970's others may remember him from spoof cop series 'Operation Good Guys' or even the excellent film 'Love, Honor and obey'; either way he also directs and writes. This is his take on the auto biography of Paul Ferris the notorious gangster from Glasgow. Ferris is played by Martin Compston ('Sweet Sixteen', 'Sister' and 'Strippers vs Werewolves' - cant win em all) and as ever he really delivers. The film takes us back to Ferris' early days and the Glasgow of the 1970's when he was picked on by the Welshes for supporting the wrong team and as a result he claimed he developed debilitating psoriasis (in his book). His father tells him to be a lion and never a lamb and after being pushed too far he becomes just like them. Only a lot more violent. Thus begins his life of crime and violence. He gets sent to a detention centre and after a few more run ins at the age of just nineteen the local heavy Arthur Thompson ( locally called 'The Godfather') takes him on as an 'enforcer' and he takes to it like a duck to water, quite a lot of 'water' to be honest. Thompson is played by Patrick Bergin who always does great character roles and never really gets the recognition he deserves, still I digress. This then takes us on a spiral of violence that ultimately has to get out of control for all concerned. So is it any good? Well it depends on the knowledge of the viewer; as a film it is ruddy good but as a piece of fact based historical drama then there are many who say it about as accurate as that American film that found the enigma machine on a U Boat. The accents go from brilliant Glaswegian to a bit Edinburghish, which I am fine with and at least they are all Scottish. Portraying Ferris as a loving family man who was pushed into a life of crime is also a bit of a stretch, but that is following his book so it was always going to be a bit along the lines of 'I'm not a complete monster' as with the Krays brothers people always said 'they weren't all bad, they loved their mum'., well not much in the outstanding good will department, but it is a start. However I judged this as a film and I thought it was extremely good but not a keeper hence my rating but I wish Ray Burdis all the best in his next venture and it is good to see a film that

As a Glaswegian, I was certainly aware of the real-life main criminal characters in this film without knowing all the ins and outs of who did what to whom, when and why. I largely looked in vain however for actual Glasgow locations, although the notes here tell me that's because the local police refused cooperation, which isn't hard to understand, watching the film. The film itself is a tough, often violent look at turf wars in Glasgow and in particular the rival bosses fighting it out for control and centres on Paul Ferris, a very well known character in these parts. It tells his story using childhood flashbacks to demonstrate the influence of his old-fashioned tough-love father, his friendship with two childhood buddies, whose fates at the end of the film help convince Ferris to go straight at last and of course his introduction to violence amongst both police and thieves which helped lead him on his criminal path. The story itself of a gangster's rise and fall isn't original and doesn't really aim for any great dynamism or originality in the direction either. Its striving for realism is limited by the afore-mentioned substitution for Glasgow by London, the noticeable (but not unwelcome) tempering of the way brutal beatings-up and shootings are depicted, plus the character acting in the cast isn't completely consistent. Martin Compston is slightly restricted in his portrayal of the titular character Paul Ferris by his baby-face demeanour but otherwise carries off a tricky, if clichéd part with plenty of conviction. John Hannah as a scheming would-be kingpin and Denis Lawson as Ferris's father lend experience to their parts and probably stand out accordingly from the rest of the cast. One could argue that the film is skewered too much in favour of Ferris's viewpoint and indeed the criminal lifestyle and modus-operandi altogether with the police and prison officials invariably shown as corrupt, barbaric and above the law they supposedly serve. Nevertheless the story, though hindered by the intrusive insertions of flashbacks to young Paul, in a failed attempt to demonstrate the child being father to the man, has a kinetic energy which keeps you watching until the bitter end. Not an easy watch or even a great watch, but otherwise a good attempt at a contemporary true-crime story.