I.D. tells the story of four policemen on an undercover assignment in East London. They are supposed to infiltrate the notorious hooligan firm of (non-existing) Shadwell Town Football Club. At first they are not particularly interested in football or Shadwell but they gradually learn to appreciate the particular atmosphere that is only known to football fans. John is the most fanatic of the lot. He is slowly turning into a proper hooligan. And it seems that choosing between the job and Shadwell becomes more and more difficult.

I.D. is one of my favourite films and it is definitely my favourite football-related film. It shows us what is going on in and around an unfashionable London football ground on Saturday afternoons. The character development that the main characters experience is wonderfully portrayed by the cast.

I saw this film on Dutch television for the first time. I had a very hard time finding this film on video in Holland. In fact, I never succeeded but I was delighted when I noticed that every High Street video retailer in England had a copy in stock. A must-see

I'd heard a lot about how good this film was over the years but watching it now I find it pretty bland and dated. It's the tale of undercover police infiltrating gangs of football hooligans and one of them who gets too close to his subjects and ends up embracing the lifestyle, which is fair enough in itself, but it's the kind of thing I always think works better as non-fiction. This fictionalised account features irritatingly self-centred characters, which is a pity when they're acted by genuinely interesting performers such as Lee Ross (the best role in the film),Sean Pertwee, Warren Clarke and many other familiar faces. There's a lot of rowdiness and drunken behaviour, but with unlikeable cast members and a general grungy feel, it made me depressed more than anything else.

The film itself is much better than most football hooligan films, it gives an honest account of football related violence at it's peak in the 80's throughout the UK; without trying to glamorize the criminal activity associated with it. All the parts are well acted and believable, and the overall production is done well. However, if you are watching this film under the pretense that it is based on a true story please take it with a pinch of salt. I read the book 'Running With the Firm' which is the true account of what actually happened to James Bannon (John) during his undercover operation, and while the characters and overall plot are the same, there are some significant story changes to make the film more entertaining, some slight in their changes, to others completely made up. The ending is also drastically different to what actually happened in real life.

Overall the film is quite good and worth a watch for any football fan who is sick of seeing badly acted over dramatic films such as Green Street, but as is usually the case, the book is much better.