This is England

Shane Meadows, UK, 2007, 100 minutes

Sean is an angry young man. His father was killed in the Faulklands war and he and his mother have had to move to a grotty council estate. He is picked on at school by bullies and at the local corner shop.

Things changed when he is adopted by some friendly local skinheads led by the paternal Woody. He finds affection and a set of father figures with his new friends who introduce him to the delights of smashing up empty houses, kissing and Doc Martins.

This is turning out to be the best summer holiday ever. But when Woody's friend Combo is released from prison and forces his way into the cosy little group the situation is dramatically altered.

This is the early eighties, unemployment is high and Combo blames immigrants for this and the Falklands war. Sean is already bitter about the Falklands and is seduced by the racist rhetoric of Combo and the National Front and the vicious England that they propound. Instead of shrugging off insults they start being violent, against the Pakistani corner shop owner who banned Sean from his shop and society in general. Finally things go too far and take a tragic turn, Sean has learned a lot but in a very hard way.

The early eighties were depressing for the country as a whole. Unemployment and despair were rife. The skinheads seem as much a part of the ugly landscape of the council estate where the action takes place as birds seem part of the countryside, as a part of nature. They are driftless and with nothing to do they are easy targets for the National Front hate mongers. To quote New Model army again:

Shane Meadows knows this world well and presents skinhead life to us in a clear and unsentimental way, the good (the camaraderie and fun) and the bad (the restless violence) alike. The performances are magnificent, Stephan Graham is perfect as the bitter and eloquent Combo. But Young Thomas Turgoose is stellar as Sean. He displays a talent well beyond his years in portraying Sean.

Shane Meadows has portrayed the less than glamorous English Midlands throughout his career and this is one of his finest films. Actually this is is one of the best films of 2007 so far. A far cry from the cuddly and fluffy images of England, or the uniformly depressing view of life that British films so often are, it is funny and disturbing in equal measure and is a must see.

Review by Louise Oliver
Written for EUFS Programme Autumn 2007