Plot: Price & Sons, located in Northampton, is a fourth generation owned and operated family business specializing in quality shoes for men. The heir apparent to the company, Charlie Price, is not planning on taking over the company but rather move to London with his fiancée, Nicola Marsden, both who want to get as far away from the company and the close-mindedness of Northampton as possible. Charlie's plans change when Harold Price, Charlie's father and current company president, suddenly dies. In dealing with immediate company issues, Charlie learns that the primary contract on which the company had been working has long expired - something that Harold hid from everyone - meaning that there is no work and little prospect for work with their current line of shoes. Under the circumstances, Charlie feels he has no other option but to lay off several of his employees. Instead, Nicola wants Charlie to sell the business; she even finds a buyer, a property developer who wants to convert the factory into upscale condos. But one of Charlie's employees, a young woman named Lauren who would be one of those laid off, believes Charlie would be taking the easy way out by either of these options and that he is not looking out for the interests of the company's loyal and hard working employees. She suggests he change the business model and create another line of shoes in a niche market. Upon a chance meeting with a relatively large drag queen named Lola, Charlie comes up with the idea of specializing in fashionable women's boots made for the general heft of drag queens. There are many obstacles to converting the business to this new model including meshing fashionable design with the required functionality of the boots, and having a relatively conservative town, business and employees into supporting this change, especially with their target market being "unfamiliar" people such as Lola. With Lola's assistance, these changes are both advanced and hindered. Charlie believes that to make the company truly successful in this new model, he has to show the boots during the Milan fashion season using the target market, drag queens, as the models. Showing in Milan takes money, money which Charlie doesn't have. But more importantly, Charlie has to overcome some internal issues with himself to be successful in this venture.
Alternative Plot: After his father's demise, Charlie Price (Joel Edgerton) inherits the family business, a shoe factory in Northampton, England. He is not interested in shoes, and the factory is in such dire financial straits that he must lay off 15 employees. However a fortuitous encounter with a transvestite cabaret singer (Chiwetel Ejiofor) inspires Charlie to save the factory from closure by producing erotic footwear, much to the chagrin of the workers.
Rate this movie!