Younger people –

Younger people, represented as naïve and innocent, such as Shaun can be seen to be easily influenced into getting involved with things they don’t know much. With Shaun joining the skinhead movement at a young age shows this as it shows he wants to be apart of something which he can have friends out of, such as the earlier gang, who treated him nicely (Such as woody, Smell and milky).

another example of this Naïve nature to be included can be shown through the scene where Pukey questions Combo on if he truly believes the rants and slurs of the EDL members. When combo, gets upset by this, it results in him kicking him out and abandoning him on the road. pleading Shaun and the others to stay with him, his reaction shows the sadness and creeping fear of loneliness as they drive off, leaving him. This fear of missing out and need to be in company can be evidently shown here.

Older people (parents/authority figures) –

Older people, such as Shaun’s mother are shown as taking the path of least resistance when it comes to swaying Shaun off his path. Possibly due to him having little friends, and wanting him to have company due to the loss of his dad, we can see how allows him to get involved with the gang, which eventually takes a sour turn.

Another representation of older people can be immaturity, with such examples being Combo, Meggy and Banjo showing child like behaviours at a much obvious older stage of life. This is evident with Meggy trying to defecate on the shop floor. Combo threating children for simply playing football and Banjo for his following of these behaviours.

working class people –

This is England represents the working class people as having complex and emotional lives. This is represented by LOL, speaking to combo about a mistake it was to sleep with him at a young age and how she regrets it.

English people –

English people in ‘This is England’ are represented as questioning their allegiance to their country. Shown through Shawn’s story arch of mixed emotions towards it, we can eventually see his disgust with it as he throughs the flag he once proudly displayed into the sea.

Another example of this mixed opinion can be seen with Combo’s views on the Falklands war, stating that its a pointless effort and that England’s stupid for committing men to it, it eventually reveals his hypocrisy as he is later shown to show immense pride in his country by attending an EDL meeting.

Asian/Black people –

Represented as threatened, abused and unwelcomed by aggressive nationalists, Asian and black people are shown to be an output of hate that the main characters express their angers out on. Since they are the minority, characters undergoing a loss like Shaun or mentally unstable like Combo take their anger out on them.

Men –

Shown to be in their 40s – 50s or younger in their teenage to early adulthood years, men are represented as patriarchal bullies, picking on each other in a survival of the fittest mindset.

Women –

Mainly seen as teenagers, women are represented inclusively with the boys, not slotted for the male gaze but having their own involvement with the story line, such as LOL’s past with combo, Smells caring relationship for Shaun or Shaun’s mum caring for her sons feelings towards his sadness over his dads death.

use of sound: Shane meadows used sound to show the passage of time, we see this in combos montage

Shane Meadows also uses editing, there are several montages in the movie, an example would be Shaun’s montage at the beginning of the film where he is alone, and in combos scene, where they commit crimes against minorities, this allows us to see Combo’s true character, as well as Shaun being guided down the wrong path

use of sound: Shane meadows use of sound is used to invoke emotion within the viewer

Mise en scene:

set design: The set design in This is England shows that it is a run down area that Shaun lives in, we can see this because of all the abandoned areas, and graffiti.

Costumes: the costumes in This is England represent what the people wore at the time, immersing the viewer, the Skinhead “uniform” is used to represent the bonds between the gang, Shaun’s acceptance as in the beginning of the film he wears different clothes to others showing he is separate, and with the uniform he is with other people and has a sense of belonging

Film Stock and aspect ratio: In this scene, Shaun’s mum is confronting him about his new haircut, outfit and behaviour, and the aspect ratio is smaller, showing how Shaun feels while being confronted

Cinematography:

In the film there are lots of camera angles and shots one example is the high angle shot towards the end of the film, that shows combo above shaun, milky and Banjo, showing him as above them in the scene

Young people: In this is England, young people are usually shown as very impressionable and easily manipulated, we see this with the characters Shaun and Gadget who both idolize combo despite him being a bad influence

older people: in the film, older people are shown as not liking change, this is shown with Shaun’s mother, who does not like his change in behaviour, which could also link to her not wanting him to grow up, and combo who does not like the change in diversity in England since he went to prison

working class people: in the film, working class people are shown as unable to afford luxuries that others can, like certain shoes, we can see this when Shaun wants a specific pair of boots, but his mum gets an alternative option instead

Asian / black people: Asian and Black people are shown to be discriminated against constantly in the film, and are shown to be powerless against their oppressors, this is shown in the shop scene, where combo threatens the life of a shopkeeper.

Men: men are shown as role models to the main character shaun, and what a man “should” be and how men should behave, we see at the start shaun views woody as a role model, but then when combo comes into the story he begins to view him as a role model.

women: women are shown as independent, this is seen with Shaun’s mum who is raising Shaun by herself, as well as Lol being a strong character in the regard she did not feel threatened by combo, despite knowing he was physically stronger.

Young People are represented as being vulnerable and easy to influence. For example, Combo manages to convince Shaun with little to no difficulty to believe in his racist ideologies.

Older People are represented as both being responsible concerned about the younger generation, as well as being represented as unwilling to move on from the past and wanting things to remain how they used to be. The examples of these are Shaun’s mum, who gets worried after his head is shaved, and Combo, who refuses to accept the fact people of different races can and should be treated like human beings.

Working class people are represented as being isolated and excluded because of their social class. This is shown through Shaun at the beginning of the film, where he is constantly bullied by other people because of materialistic things like the size of his trousers.

English people are represented to be quite nationalistic and proud of their origins, although they dislike the Prime Minister. This is seen with Combo’s right-wing gang, who carry around the English flag with them everywhere and treat it as if it were a god.

Asian and Black people are represented as being helpless and defenceless against racists, as many people in the time setting still held discriminatory beliefs, and acted violently towards people of non-English descent. Examples include the young boys playing football and the shopkeeper, who are intimidated by Combo and listen to what he says in order to stop themselves getting hurt.

Men are represented as being aware of masculine ideologies of what they ‘should’ look and behave like. This is seen primarily when Shaun begins to cry after Combo attacks Milky, to which Combo shouts at him, stating that “men don’t cry”.

Women are represented to be powerful and unafraid, acting as a countertype to stereotypes of women in the 80s. An example of this is when Lol rejects any kind of relationship with Combo, even though she knows what he is capable of and the likes of Woody are afraid of him. The fact he is older than her and is male would create the stereotypical expectation that he’d be stronger, although we see him get upset and powerless once she leaves.

first filming: Friday 17th November

Got the majority of shots filmed on the day, however I found that lighting was an issue, especially with the day light changing throughout the day, meaning I would have to reshoot some shots the next session. Also we had an actor missing on the day, meaning we could not shoot all of the shots.

after editing, I found shots that needed to be reshot because some looked choppy and found it better if they were one continuous shot.

second filming: Wednesday 22nd November

Finished filming the rest of shots, however was very restrained with time due to lack of availability previous days, and limited time with the room. Unfortunately the natural lighting was a bit too dark, but it was the only time I had.

children: children are presented as innocent venerable and malipuitive (think of Shaun at the start of the movie) it shows the fact that they need someone to look up to like how shaun worships combo as he docent have a dad

older people: in this is England older people are presented as protective and loving. we see this when Shaun’s mother gets angry at the skinheads for shaving his head but thanks woody for protecting him from bullies.

working class people: in this is England we see working class people as

English people: in this is England English people are presented as patriotic and are stereotyped. we see this as the activities the skinheads do is play football and go hunting.

black people:

Asian people:

men:

women:

sound: in this is England during the montage where Shaun is being taught by combo how to be racist there is minor piano music which makes the scene and shows the downfall of how Shaun has been turned from an innocent little kid to a horrible racist

editing: there are clips at the beginning that show the good and bad parts of England and what time the film is taking place.

mise en scene: in the scene where combo is giving his speech we see this take place in a dingy dirty flat. this shows us that the film is taking place of a rundown place of England and that combo lives a rough lifestyle (eg the mattress on the floor)

cinematography: Here we see a pov shot of combos as he is attacking milky. he is close up to the camera so we can see his facial expressions are full of rage and the high angle shot shows he has all the power

i think the film was decent, however not without flaws, id given it a 7/10.

the most memorable scene for me was when combo attacked Milky, because it was sudden and unexpected. And also a very emotional scene