Contemporary British Film Culture - Essay Example

Contemporary British Film Culture by The of the The of the School The and where it is located The Date Contemporary British Film Culture Introduction Art has surely played an important role in the life of the humanity. It might be regarded as an effective way to express one’s creative potential and reach almost infinite number of people spreading ideas and raising various concerns. As technology progressed, so did art. A good example is the emergence of cinema: in spite of the fact that the process of shooting and showing films was invented relatively recently, this form of art has been extremely popular. One might even point out that it was able to gather all the advantages of literature, music, dance, visual art and other forms and combine it into a specific powerful message that is later sent to the audience. While some directors may be focused on producing films that deal with some unrealistic issues and rely on special effects, other find a particular joy in creating films that depict the reality as it is and highlight the problems that real people experience in their daily lives. This paper will analyze two films that might be seen as prominent examples of British realism: This Is England (2006, Shane Meadows) and Kidulthood (2006, Menhaj Huda) exploring different aspects of it is providing that social realism is extremely important to contemporary British film culture. In order to do so, the analysis will include the political and social dimension that the films in question should be seen in, the connection between the issues raised and the British traditional culture, the focus on low and tabooed themes, the function of the films to express important ideas, the brutality of the realism shown as well as the necessity of realistic ethos, the trend of films that are shot for the youth to show the actual affect of drugs, the rejection of narrative conventions to a certain extent to create a unique impact on the viewers. Expression of the politically suppressed and neglected groups The first and one of the most important aspects that contribute to the significance of social realism in the contemporary British film culture focuses on the ability of such films to let different parts of the population express their views on the screen. Indeed, generally they are silenced in the social discourse because of various reasons and the public might be close to thinking that they almost do not exist if there is no “the bringing of hitherto neglected groups, hitherto unsaid truths, hitherto unexpressed attitudes on to the screen”(Murphy, 1992, p. 35). Nevertheless, when directors are courageous enough to let these people articulate their ideas freely, the rest of the population is able to hear this small minority. For example, in the film that is titled This is England there are several scenes that are dedicated to showing the position of white nationalists. Thus, one of the main characters, namely Combo, delivers a passionate speech about what he thinks is right and encourages you skinheads (originally, apolitical) to join him. Later they attend a meeting of British National Party. It would not be a mistake to suggest that this party is being hardly represented in the government, but it surely reflects the position of a part of the population that should be taken into account. As for the second film that is titled Kidulthood, the directors were willing to let the children who come from the low income households speak for themselves. Indeed, it may be rather easy to say that there is a problem in these neighbourhoods and it can not be solved. However, it is not solved because the public does not want to pay attention to the issues that these people face. The directors showed that students who are in their young teens have to deal with situations that make them mature. The connection between the film and the British culture The importance of social realism might also be seen in that sense that it represents various peculiar aspects of the British culture in general. In other words, often the themes that are being highlighted in such film are the product of the development of this country and are explicitly British since they could not have happened anywhere in the world, “falling within the category of native cinema” (Mather, 2006, p. 16). For example, the main characters of This is England are skinheads. While nowadays the latter term is primarily used to depict people who are racist and are involved in aggressive acts towards foreigners, originally, the culture of skinhead had nothing to do with the politics. The film in question is remarkable since it shows that this subculture was actually tolerant of people who come from other ethnic background: Milky, one of the members of the group in the film, was Jamaican, but still was regarded as a skinhead. Another important point that should be taken into account is the multicultural society that was advocated by the British government and the coexistence of people who belong to different cultural background in the same social environment. One would make a mistake suggesting that the former film is about the white part of the population and the latter is about the black part. In reality, both films shows that there is no strict division between white and black on the grass root level: the original skinheads liked soul and reggae music and felt unity with their black counterparts; the film Kidulthood shows that black children make friends with white ones and there even interracial couples formed. In other words, the films show that in real life British does not mean white by default. For example, when Milky is directly asked whether he considers himself to be Jamaican, he denied to be Jamaican. The depiction of low themes If one takes a look at the social realism in a broad perspective, one will be able to see that is serves a peculiar function: it may be seen as a valve that lets the society release its steam to a certain extent and harmonize the pressure on the outside and the inside “which has often taken them out of their comfort zones” (Hunter & Porter, 2012, p. 1). Of course, the contemporary British society in not an ideal one and faces many problems, but when the audience is not able to examine them through aesthetic lens, there is a certain pressure that is built up and which can gradually lead to negative circumstances. For example, in the film This is England the main characters are engaged in aggression that is targeted against the Pakistani: they write offensive graffiti, intimidate the children and finally rob a shop that is owned by a Pakistani. As for the second film, it contains explicit scenes when the minors are engaged in abuse of different substances. Moreover, this kind of behaviour is shown throughout the film in order to show how miserable this makes them. In addition to that, two female characters are also depicted doing drugs. Nevertheless, the most controversial scenes are the ones that show them being engaged in sexual behaviour with older men. One might question if this should be shown on the screen. Social realism would note that the answer should be affirmative. Indeed, the sexual actions that are performed by the minors and their abuse of drugs are a horrible social phenomenon; however, it will not be dealt with if the public simply closes eyes on it. There is no doubt that nobody wants to watch that in particular; however, depiction on the screen is the first step to initiating the discussion about the problem. Articulation of ideas that are significant for the society If one considers the phenomenon of social realism in art, one will be able to see that the public often puts emphasis on the second element of it, namely realism, often forgetting about the first one. Nevertheless, this genre is extremely significant as it highlights the themes that are crucial for the development of the society in general because of “the central position that the concept of cinematic realism holds in the British cinema” (Taylor, 2006, p. 2). This can be easily seen on the example of the films in question .Thus, This is England reflects on the role that nationalism plays in the society. It would not be a mistake to suggest that being proud of one’s past and one’s present is rather important for a citizen; however, the desire to develop the society should not cross the limits that were spelled out by the legal system. This means that what skinheads wanted to achieve as surely positive, but the means that they chose were negative ones. The second film raises a considerable number of question that focus around social integration of the characters. One would make no mistakes pointing out that if the children in school were given a chance to enter a different strata or at least leave the troubled community that they were living in, they could become good citizens. In addition to that, it is suggested that they were willing to integrate into the society, but the conditions distorted this desire: many are forced to be engaged in criminal activities in order to earn money to survive. This means that if people are casted away from the centre of the social environment, they inevitably become marginalized and are often engaged in deviant acts which almost destroys their ability to return to the conventional lifestyle. The extent of realism in the films Some might argue that the way the reality is being depicted in the films in question is brutal; however, it is a general standard for this genre which a “distinctive tone and themes of brutal realism” (Spicer, 2002, p. 194). Indeed, this brutality might be regarded as a necessary exaggeration in order to show the gap between the mainstream films that portray the society from a positive perspective and the reality that is being conceals. For example, in This is England the main characters insult the immigrants, intimidate them and even assault one. All this is shown to present the scope of the problem. The similar effect is achieved when the directors of the second film depicted minor doing drugs. It is quite understandable that these images are rather disturbing; nevertheless, their brutality is required to trigger the awareness about the issues that must be solved by the society. Appeal to realistic ethos The exaggerated brutality of depiction is largely conditioned by what the scholars might call realistic ethos which “the majority of British films pay little regard to” (Murphy, 2007, p. 84). Indeed, in order to justify the scenes that might upset a considerable number of people and which might be found unacceptable by other people, the directors had to find evidence that what they show actually exists. This means that social realism should not be seen as a genre of art that distorts the actual state of affairs in order to direct the attention of the public to the nagging problems that are being ignored. Of course, there is some dramatization of the events, but the spirit of them is, unfortunately, taken from the real life. As a result, the stories that were told in This is England and Kidulthood could have happened with minor variations which means that they should be taken into account by the society. Films about drugs and crime for youth The history of the British cinema features a considerable number of examples of films that deal with various deviant topics that were directed so that the young would not choose this path, contributing to the emergence of an array of “youth-oriented dramas in which crime and/or drugs were central” (Monk, 2000, p. 160). Indeed, there even were situations when some films were deliberately rated lower so that a larger audience could see them. Indeed, one of the lessons that the audience, especially young people, might learn from This is England and Kidulthood is that living any extremely life style has negative consequences. For example, the group of skinheads was marginalized. In spite of the fact that some of them remained faithful to their original values, others were engaged in criminal activities and one was almost killed in a brawl. The second film also shows what horrible situations the main characters had to go through in order make the right decisions. Social realism is a showcase of working class characters The connection between social realism and the ideology of the working class is obvious: this genre focuses on people who come from the bottom of the social ladder and, unfortunately, they often belong to the class in question. However, it is the narration that turns ordinary people into real heroes with “masculinity under printing the tradition of working class realism in British cinema” (Hill, 2004, p. 108). In spite of the fact that they might be seen making mistakes in the end they are portrayed as positive people teach the audience and important lesson. For example, Shaun in This is England originally is fond of the nationalistic ideas and uses English flag as a symbol of his struggle against the foreigners. However, after he realizes that the same struggle is being waged by people who hurt their friends and can hardly be considered to successful in the conventional sense, he throws the flag understanding that this extreme struggle brings more harm than good. The privileged connection to reality In the previous paragraphs it was pointed out that the directors often justify the depiction of various controversial scenes with their desire to reflect on the reality. However, some might argue that nearly every genre of art, except for abstract or surreal, tried to depict the reality as it is. The scholars would argue that social realism claims to have “a privileged relationship between an artwork and an external reality” since the directors often do their best to reconstruct the actual conditions of the social environment on the screen (Hill, 2000, p. 17). For example, the film that is titled This is England was shot in 2006; however, the action of it takes place in 1983. In order to create the atmosphere of those days, they authors used documentaries and choose a setting that would resemble the old times; the characters were dressed and acted in a way that was traditional for the 80s. With all this in mind, the directors wants to enhance the convincing power of their message in order to show that the story that they are telling is based on actual reality and more some fiction. The critique of the legal system The society is able to function properly only if all the members follow the conventional rules and regulations. However, if some of them are reluctant to do so, the social environment will force them to obey with the help of various institutes. Nevertheless, the reality shows that often people find a way to get away from the punishment and carry on conducting their illegal activities “highlighting the imperfections of it” (Bruzzi & Gibson, 2007, p. 326). Indeed, the characters that were depicted in This is England and Kidulthood are shown to break the law multiple times, but there is no punishment for that. Thus, the aggressive group of skinheads is depicted robbing a store, but none of them is arrested by the police. The minors drink, use drugs and run away from the cab driver, but the police do not take any of them. All this shows that the directors wanted to put emphasis on the ineffectiveness of the current law enforcing agencies. The modernity and realism In spite of the fact that the two films in question depict the times that are several decades apart, they all bear features of the modern times that are being shown, bringing “documentary and fiction to an unsettled relationship” (Leach, 2004, p. 48). For example, in This is England one of the characters is depicted as a follower of the New Wave style of music. In 1983 it was considered to be very modern and popular and the directors were able to recreate this atmosphere even though the film was shot in 2006. In Kidulthood one of the characters is shown to be playing GameBoy – a console that used to be very popular prior to the contemporary consoles. All this leads to the understanding that social realism always makes sure that the conditions that the conditions are being depicted in the correct manner. The peculiar narrative conventions Finally, one should also note that the films which belong to social realism often reject the conventional narration and produce their own vision of the way the story should be told, “departing from the tradition” (Forrest, 2013, p. 163). For example, the main character of This is England, namely Shaun, is a son of soldier who died in the Falkland War. However, this information is revealed gradually and sometimes unexpectedly. Thus, the film starts with a documentary footage of British soldiers, there are scenes when they are shown to be transporting the corpses. Afterwards, a photograph of a British officer that is place next to a bed is shown. For almost a half of the film, there is no connection made between the two; however, ultimately Shaun says that his father died in that war and the audience understands the significance of the opening footage. Conclusion Having examined all the points that were brought up in the paragraphs above, one is able to come to the following conclusion: socials realism possesses a tremendous significance to contemporary British film culture and this can be seen in different aspects. First of all, this genre allows the groups that are commonly silences to speak out loud. In spite of the fact that the public may not like what that it will hear, this process is quite important since it facilitates the dialogue between different parts of the society. In addition to that, social realism often draws on the features that are peculiar to the British culture. For example, the skinhead movement which is now widely spread all over the globe originated in England and was different from its current form. In addition to that, such films usually reflect on the social issues such as multiculturalism and the inability of certain groups to integrate in to the society. Of course, the genre in question highlights some themes that many people will consider to be controversial. However, this is primarily done to direct the attention of the rest of the society to the problems that are being ignored. In other words, the brutality of realism is justified by realistic ethos and the privileged connection to the reality. Moreover, the heroes that are depicted in such films often belong to the working class and their behaviour shows the fallacies in the current legal system. Finally, social realism usually departs from the conventional structures of narration. References Forrest, D 2013, Social realism art, nationhood and politics, Cambridge Scholars Publishing, Newcastle upon Tyne. Hill, J 2000, British cinema, past and present, Routledge, London. Hill, J 2004, The trouble with men: Masculinities in European and Hollywood cinema, Wallflower Press, London. Hunter, I & Porter, L 2012, British comedy cinema, Routledge, Abingdon. Leach, J 2004, British film, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. Luckett, M 2000, Fashion cultures: Theories, explorations, and analysis, Routledge, London. Mather, N 2006, Tears of laughter: Comedy-drama in 1990s British cinema, Manchester University Press, Manchester. Monk, C 2000, British cinema of the 90s, BFI Pub, London. Murphy, R 1992, Sixties British cinema, BFI Pub, London. Murphy, R 2007, European film noir, Manchester University Press, Manchester. Spicer, A 2002, Film noir, Longman, Harlow. Taylor, B 2006. The British New Wave a certain tendency?. Manchester: Manchester University Press. Read More