This Is England
- Submitted by: mimishorsmile
- Views: 607
- Category: Other
- Date Submitted: 01/26/2011 09:28 AM
- Pages: 3
- Report this Essay
“This is England”
This is England is a very powerful drama film that shows the terrible horrors of racism in 1983. The British director Shane Meadows shows through is movie the skinhead subcultures and captures the palpable anger of impoverished youth, without money or jobs or hope, seeking to blame society for their problems.
The skinhead culture was taken up by black and white working class kids, who bonded over a love of reggae, ska and soul music and who tried to find a kind of English identity, embracing a style formed by braces, suites, boots and Cromby hat atop heads shaved. “This is England” is based on experiences of director Shane Meadows and it’s a story about a troubled 12-years- old boy, Shaun that lives in England. The movie is taut, tense and relentless. It shows why Shaun feels he needs to belong to a gang, what he gets out of it and how it goes wrong. Without saying so, it also explains why skinheads are skinheads.
In the summer of 1983, after living school, Shane, wondering alone, meets a group of skinheads, Woody’s gang. Woody has some strong moral values, he is kind, supportive and unprejudiced and becomes the father-figure Shaun so desperately needs because Shaun real father died in the Falklands War.
With Woody and his friendly friends, Shaun discovers a new way of living: girls, parties and a new look. They give to the boy a new haircut (shaved hair)
and new clothes ( Ben Sherman shirt and Doc Martin boots).
Shaun gains, being with this group of skinheads, two extremely important things in his life, a friendship group and a role model, two important factors that influence a person’s behaviour.
The situation and atmosphere in the movie change with the arrival of Woody’s friend, Combo who sets himself the leader of the gang and who demands loyalty regarding his racist views. Woody refuses to agree and the gang splits. Combo manipulates Shaun into staying and deliberately takes on the...
This is England is a very powerful drama film that shows the terrible horrors of racism in 1983. The British director Shane Meadows shows through is movie the skinhead subcultures and captures the palpable anger of impoverished youth, without money or jobs or hope, seeking to blame society for their problems.
The skinhead culture was taken up by black and white working class kids, who bonded over a love of reggae, ska and soul music and who tried to find a kind of English identity, embracing a style formed by braces, suites, boots and Cromby hat atop heads shaved. “This is England” is based on experiences of director Shane Meadows and it’s a story about a troubled 12-years- old boy, Shaun that lives in England. The movie is taut, tense and relentless. It shows why Shaun feels he needs to belong to a gang, what he gets out of it and how it goes wrong. Without saying so, it also explains why skinheads are skinheads.
In the summer of 1983, after living school, Shane, wondering alone, meets a group of skinheads, Woody’s gang. Woody has some strong moral values, he is kind, supportive and unprejudiced and becomes the father-figure Shaun so desperately needs because Shaun real father died in the Falklands War.
With Woody and his friendly friends, Shaun discovers a new way of living: girls, parties and a new look. They give to the boy a new haircut (shaved hair)
and new clothes ( Ben Sherman shirt and Doc Martin boots).
Shaun gains, being with this group of skinheads, two extremely important things in his life, a friendship group and a role model, two important factors that influence a person’s behaviour.
The situation and atmosphere in the movie change with the arrival of Woody’s friend, Combo who sets himself the leader of the gang and who demands loyalty regarding his racist views. Woody refuses to agree and the gang splits. Combo manipulates Shaun into staying and deliberately takes on the...