This is England

The title… The title implies that the film is a honest and true to life representation of life in England in the 1980’s. The font resembles the font of army dog tags. This has been used as the main character’s (Sean) father was killed in the Falkland’s war. The font is white and non cursive therefore it appeals more to males. The content means that it appeals to young males (18-25 years of age).

In the opening to “This is England”, archive footage is used for example Princess Diana and Charles’ wedding which occurred in 1981. Footage of the controversial Margret Thatcher has also been used. She famously served as prime minister during the 80’s.

Archived footage The archived footage means that editing is very basic and this is typical of films of the social realism genre. Throughout the opening sequence; Jump cuts are frequent and continuity editing is not used (it is common however in big Hollywood blockbusters). The scenes contain things such as "skinheads", rock stars and the riots. All these give the idea to the audience that this film is set in the 1980's due to the style, cars, hairstyles , clothing etc. The film doesn't establish a protagonist as there are only shots of the 80's in the opening sequence.

Camera work When Sean wakes up he gazes at a framed picture of a man in a army uniform. He gazes at this image for an extended period of time and this suggests that he longs to see him. The framed image suggests that the man in the picture is someone who he looks up to and admires (potentially for bravery- the uniform indicates that he served in the armed forces which typically means that someone is brave and courageous) We do not immediately learn who this man is but we learn later that he is Sean’s dead father who died in the Falkland’s war.

Camera work continued Close ups are used to show how Sean feels. In the scene in the school playground he notices people looking at him and talking about him. He knows why this is occurring (we assume he is bullied frequently)and looks down at his flared jeans which appear to be hand-me-downs due to size of them (Sean lives in poverty).

Close ups mixed in with a shot reverse shot allow us to see the interaction between the “mod” skinhead and Sean. We see that the other boy is smirking and is mocking him. He is directly staring at Sean. The audience assume that this is an attempt to scare him. Sean is clearly bothered and intimidated by his behaviour (which is shown on his face). The audience can visibly see that the other boy has a bigger frame and he looks older.

Music/ non-diegetic sounds The song that is used in the opening sequence is called “54-46 was my number”. It is a reggae song and this challenges what the film is about because it describes the culture in Jamaica. However, it emphasises the culture of the time. At the time, reggae music was very popular amongst young people in Britain.

Jamaican Reggae music in a British film???

The context of “This is England” In the 1960's and as demonstrated in "This is England" in the 1980's; there was a youth subculture. They called themselves "skinheads". The culture was heavily influenced by West-Indian (Jamaican) "rude boys“.

“What are Rude boys?” you may wonder

What are Rude boys? Rude boy culture sprouted up among young men in Jamaica during the early 1960s, when the country was still under British rule. Even after Jamaica gained its independence, conditions of high unemployment, overcrowding and general unrest continued. This led to the emergence of the rude boy as large numbers of males in their teens and early 20s became, in the words of historian Garth White, “increasingly disenchanted and alienated from a system which seemed to offer no relief from suffering.” He adds, “Many of the young became rude.” Many of the young, in turn, embraced the term. Rude boys liked to look sharp and dress expensively.

This subculture originated in London amongst working class youths This subculture originated in London amongst working class youths. It then spread to other places in England. They had specific fashion trends, music and a lifestyle. They ranged from clean cut "mods" to punk and hard-core clothes.