3. Diversity makes a defining a ‘British’
film very challenging.
Some UK Film Council definitions:
◦ Films principally shot in the UK, using a British
crew/cast
◦ Film’s financed from within the UK
◦ Film’s that are set in the UK
◦ Film’s that address British Identity and Society
4. Range of definitions – 32 in total, but to
qualify as a British film only 16 must be met.
One is that the film represents/reflects a
diverse British culture, British heritage or
British creativity (so we don’t just make lots
of imitations of American films)
5. Yes:-
Director – Paul Greengrass is
British
Large section is filmed in
London, some studio work at
Pinewood
Largely British crew
No:-
Doesn’t reflect British themes or
concerns
Lots of other locations
Produced by Universal – Frank
Marshall and Doug Liman are
American
Universal are American owned
company
6. If
we can’t define, we can
recognise traits and
conventions of specific
trends and cycles:
enough to be
genres?
7. • Costume dramas: A
Room with a View
• Historical Epics: Pride
and Prejudice
• Literary Adaptation:
Remains of the Day
Merchant-Ivory –
winning brand of Heritage
cinema created by
producer-director team.
Normally a period piece,
set in Edwardian England
featuring lavish sets and
genteel characters.
8. ‘Kitchen sink’ stage/TV dramas of 1960s
Ken Loach: Kes, Raining Stones, Sweet
Sixteen
Mike Leigh: Abigail’s Party, Naked,
Meantime
Social issues explored in complex fashion but
often shocking and depressing.
9. First funded by television – especially
Channel 4 in 80s
Nick Broomfield: His Big White Self, Biggie
and Tupac, Tracking Down Maggie
Nature documentary sold around the
world – often turned into theatrical release.
E.g. Deep Blue (cinema version of The Blue
Planet) and Earth (cinema version of Planet
Earth)
10. Specialeffects industry developed
with Stanley Kubrick for 2001: A
Space Odyssey
Lotsof Sci-Fi filmed at Pinewood
and Shepperton studios: from
Alien to Harry Potter
11. Hammer studios was a British
production company that led the world in
horror during the 50s and 60s (although this
was partly through distribution deals with US
owned studios such as Warner Brothers).
Managed to have significant impact on
world market – famous for a certain style
of Horror that low budgets, but nonetheless
appeared lavish, making use of quality British
actors and cleverly designed sets.
12. First produced by Working Title films
Four Weddings and a Funeral – grossed £240
million worldwide
Sliding Doors, Notting Hill, Love Actually,
Bridget Jone’s Diary.
13. Fame of British pop music established UK as
leader in youth culture
Films capitalised on this: Quadraphenia
(Mods), Performance (Hippies), Human Traffic
(Ravers), This is England (Skinheads) and
Control (Indie).
Popular globally because Mods, Hippies,
Ravers, Skinheads from any country will want
to watch their own ‘subculture’.
Youthful ennui and sense of rebellion is
universal
14. Crime cinema has always been popular – Hell
is a City, Blue Lantern
Films like Get Carter were able to be more
downbeat and violent than American films
Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels started
a new trend in 90s for fast-talking cockney
gangster films: Snatch, Essex Boys, Gangster
No1, Layer Cake
16. ‘Heritage’ cinema
Literary adaptations
‘Urban Fairytale’
UK Film used to reinforce patriotism (for
domestic audience)
UK Film used as tourist marketing strategy
(for foreign audiences)
17. Conforms to US market’s stereotype of the
British – ‘Anglophilia’. Like cinematic tourism.
Reinforces nostalgic vision of Britain and
British values to domestic audience
‘Escapist’/positive representation of
modern Britain
‘Literary’ status – treated as ‘prestige’
films (for an ‘intelligent’ audience); book
franchises
(Becoming Jane, The Jane Austen Book Club,
Clueless – Austen as a genre)
18. Stereotypes of Britishness: polite, reserved,
aristocratic, chirpy cockney, honourable etc.
Concentration on upper middle class lifestyles
Nostalgic, romanticised vision of the past
Literary associations (adaptation, biography)
‘Heritage’ cinema – visual pleasure of sumptuous
costume and set design
‘Urban fairytale’ elements – romantic comedies,
sanitised images of Britain, mostly white middle
class characters, strong women supported by
close-knit friends
20. Opposite of Heritage cinema – critical of British
life, not reinforcing patriotic values
(Trainspotting: “It’s shite being Scottish!”
Challenging to audience’s comfort zones:
unflinching portrait of harsh reality of modern
Britain
Often shocking examination of dark side of
human behaviour; explicit sex, violence, drugs.
Deals with social problems (drugs, poverty,
violence, child abuse) explicitly but with
complexity
Often focuses on working or ‘underclass’
characters
21. Rival to ‘saccharine’ sentimentality of
Hollywood films – more daring and
shocking.
Liberal art-house audience who like cinema
to challenge their preconceptions and
comfort zones.
Makes middle class audiences feel secure by
contrasting characters lives.
Critical success – ‘serious’ film for more
‘intelligent’ audiences.
22. Claire Monk’s phrase for historical dramas
that don’t just ‘display’ the past, but
‘interrogates’ the past and our relationship
to it.
Questions how the past is represented.
Explores contemporary themes in
historical setting.
23. Still lots of authentic period mise-en-
scene
Often beautifully lit and shot
Well received by fans of historical films
But doesn’t shy away from ‘historical realism’
and the harsh realities of the past – not
romanticised.
So enjoyed by more ‘serious’ audiences.
25. Case
This is
Study:
England
(Shane Meadows, 2007)
26. Born in 1972 and lived most of his life in the
Midlands – the setting of all of his films.
His first proper feature-length film is Twenty
Four Seven (1997) and like many of his films
this was largely autobiographical and
focussed on incidents from his past.
His most recent films, This is England (2006)
and Somers Town (2008) have seen his
profile as a director grow and grow.
27. Tends to make films that have similar themes
(effects of violence, revenge) or characters
(loners, impressionable-yet-strong boys) that
reflect his own upbringing.
Similar setting – in and around the Midlands
area.
DIY approach to filmmaking – little or no formal
training.
Encourages actors to ad lib in order to create
the impression of real people and thus create a
better sense of reality.
Tends to work with similar actors (Paddy
Considine, Thomas Turgoose) and
screenwriters (Paul Fraser).
28. Originated in the late 1960’s, came from
mods who were welcomed into the reggae
clubs in London.
Here they discovered ska music and the key
components of the skinhead look.
The skinhead culture was taken up by black
and white working class kids working in
shipyards and factory lines.
29. Second wave of skinheads fused ska music,
like Madness and The Specials, with a new
punk genre, called ‘OI!’ music -
romperstomper, energetic music, charged for
fighting.
In the 80s teens from areas of high
unemployment looking for solidarity, who
were ignored by Thatcher’s ‘me’ culture, were
especially vulnerable to the advances of the
National Front.
30. ‘The skinhead, because of their aggression and outward
appearance, they’re almost soldier-like, were I suppose
almost handpicked to become soldiers for the National
Front. You don’t see the contradiction that you’re being
indoctrinated into the National Front whilst listening to
black music. When I first heard about the National Front,
the picture that was painted to me was a Churchillian
vision of Asian families rowing into the white cliffs of
Dover on boats, and that skinheads would be on the
beaches fighting to stop them entering your country. As a
twelve-year-old kid that’s quite a romantic image. It’s
almost like ‘what your granddad did.’
‘When you’re twelve and no-one in your town can get a
job, and someone comes up to you and says ‘these people
are to blame’ it’s easy to believe. I did for about three
weeks, some people still believe that as adults and that’s
frightening.’
31. ‘It’s not to do with colour so much, it’s to do
with identity and belonging.’
- Shane Meadows
32. Watch the clip.
How is ‘England’ being
defined? How is
‘Britishness’?
33. How do the connotations of the flag change
for Shaun?
What does this flag mean to you?
Having looked at the film do you think these
associations have changed over time?
Does the flag have specific group
association now?
Is the flag something to which you feel any
kind of allegiance?
Where do these ideas/feelings come from?
34. Question
Why do you think we see a
montage of the Falklands war at
the end of the film, just after
Milky has been nearly beaten to
death?
35. How is British national identity defined?
How is it problematised?
Is this an accurate portrayal of British life?
Is it nostalgic?
For a ‘historical’ film, how is it relevant to
today’s audiences?
How does it differ from other British films?
How ‘British’ is it?