This is England

2. Who is the story narrated by? What impact does the narrative voice have on you? How is Shaun represented? I guess you could say the narrator is Shaun. They language he uses and the way he talks really makes me realise that he is this tiny kid in this big scary world. When he says words like "frick" which would have been new slang for that era you just want to laugh and say "d'awwwww" You see him as this impressionable boy and as you slowly see him descend into these awful things like racism, sex and violence you just notice how young he is and you feel a longing for innocence. You see him at the beginning about to receive the cane which was the biggest form of school punishment and then you see him trying to beat up a guy 4x his age and strength and you start to see this cycle of violence that is present in his life. The impact is always greater when we involve children as we have way more compassion for them then we do people older than us or our own age! If the film was in the prospective of a character like Woody it wouldn't be as powerful of a statement due to the fact I'm more inclined to feel for a 12 year old boy than 20 year rapscallion!

1. What is the function of the iconography used in the title sequence of the film? How might it help you understand the film? In the opening cinematic of this film we see tonnes of landmark events and pop culture of the particular time it was set in like footage of Margaret Thatcher in a tank and rioting. It not only helps to set the tonne of the movie but it gives of loads of insights into what the whole era was about. It showed light fashions cross cut with scenes of violence cross cut with St. George's flag/Union Jack giving us information about the ideology's without saying a word. The clever little shot of skinheads fighting then a switch to a flock of sheep shows that there is a social commentary and symbolism on the way the director see's skinheads; as nothing but foolish sheep. We see scenes of violence against members of the Asian to show some more of the ideals of the skinhead community. Yet we're always brought back to these "cute" moments from society then like the Rubik's cube and space invaders, which is very effective to give me as an viewer a sense that it wasn't all bad! I loved the clever use of music in the background. I guess he decided to use a reggae song to also show different elements of pop culture back then but also because it was a stereo-typically "black" music which helps to mix in later with the acceptance of Milky's heritage but his loyalty to being British which I will speak more about in following questions. The sheep symbolise in the opening sequences the foolishness of some of the skinhead movement.


3. What do you think about of the depiction of the skinhead gang? What are there defining features?  Does the director glamorize or demonize the gang? The gang is portrayed as a dominate strong male aggressive group of people. They smoke and drink and loiter around giving off a lazy and bored vibe which can be very dangerous considering what being can make people do. The shaved skinhead look along with big sideburns, hats, Ben Sherman shirts and Doc Martens which was a bold fashion statement but like a uniform it made them all one and feel part of a collective group. Seeing that they are lounging around in the middle of the day shows they have no jobs which poses questions like can they even get jobs? are they purposely not in work? where would hire them? We see the group go and violently vandalise and destroy an abandon group of buildings, the director is very clever in the way he makes this vulgar pass time seem almost good as it unites and bonds the friendship of the group and Shaun. In my opinion the director both glamorizes and demonizes the skinhead group. He shows the positive impact they have on a lonely young boy but then again he shows the destruction they can cause!

4.What is Milky's function in the story? What does his name suggest?  Milky is a black member of the skinhead crew, like many of the earlier skinheads they were fine with black people and where happy to include them in their group and treat him like another other person . His name is a comedic and ironic gesture because Milk is white but he isn't, Whether the group gave him this name or he choose it himself it shows a level of acceptance of ones heritage but it can also be void of being the elephant in the room. When Combo tells his racist prison story the sound is cut off to show that the story itself is arbitrary but the reactions aren't not. As we see in the faces of all of his friends empathy and a large amount of "white guilt" because of the things that are being indirectly said about his race.

5. What does the gang mean to Shaun? What does Shaun mean to the gang? The gang means the world to Shaun, it's a place where he finally belongs.  After the death of his father he finally has a new male figure to look up to a model himself after. The group is a form of protection from the people that used to Bully him. They group gives Shaun a new sense of community inside the little crew they have made. Shaun owes the gang a lot. Shaun is viewed as a cute little addition to the group by them. They view him as feisty and lonely so they take him under their wing. After a while they stop seeing him as a play thing and more of a lad especially Smell who engages in carnal acts with him.

HOMEWORK

1. What is your view of how masculinity is defined in the film? The role of masculinity is probably one of the main themes that make up the entire film. For starters masculinity isn't only found in the male characters but within the girls too! They cut their hair, they take control of their own sexuality, they say no to big tough men, and if we go deeper we see the character of Smell dressing like Boy George, (an 1980's pop idol) which shows that she wanted her fashion sense to define more than the way she dressed. We see Combo this ex convict all tough and hard threaten a man with a machete and beat someone to death a real manly man but then we see him breakdown and cry his eyes out because a girl won't love him back, even though he may be considered masculine as hell there is always a soft core ready to be broken beneath the metaphorical make-up we all wear.

2. Discuss the theme of loss of innocence/coming of age. We can physically see from start to finish, a massive change in Shaun. Without a doubt at the end you can see no signs of the innocence he had right at the start. He was a child when we are first introduced to him and because of his involvement with becoming a skinhead we see the metamorphosis. We don't seem him lose it though, I feel it's more stripped away from him event by event, The death of his father? a layer gone. His first sexual act? a layer gone. Watching his friend beaten to near death? last layer gone. You realise that because of his transformation and all the lies he has been introduced to (race rallies) that because of the innocent nature he once had  is being manipulated to brainwash him to believe in these ideals he doesn't 100% understand. As for coming of age we see him hit some pretty important milestones like his first kiss and him getting his hair cut off all things that change and shape him and his future.