Set during the summer of 1983, This Is England follows 13 year old tough kid Shaun, played by newcomer Thomas Turgoose. Disillusioned with life after the death of his Father in the Falklands war, Shaun becomes involved with a teenage skinhead gang and earns his number one haircut and Doc Martens alongside his first real friendship. Far from living happily ever after, the group is soon divided by the return of Combo (Steven Graham), a respected yet overtly racist jailbird who introduces Shaun to the seedy skinhead underworld of violence, racism and the National Front. Thankfully, This Is England lives up to the hype and proves an enjoyable and original coming-of-age story with a twist. Based on his own experiences growing up, Meadows delivers an honest and insightful view of Thatcher’s Britain without playing into the hands of stereotypes so commonly associated with the 80’s. Still, the ironically flawless screenplay only comes second to the chilling performances of the group of actors well known within the Meadows’ universe. Graham’s fierce portrayal of racist Combo is almost as unforgivingly sadistic as Malcolm McDowell’s performance in A Clockwork Orange, and it’s easy to forget Turgoose had never even expressed an interest in acting before taking on the role of the films anti-hero. In amongst the gritty realism of the film are some truly touching and comical moments and although a film primarily about skinheads will not appeal to the masses, it goes far beyond the notorious fashion trend. Even though the character development does not stretch far past the main roles, all 100 minutes are essentially superb and the haunting final scene will not be forgotten in a hurry. This Is England is by no means an easy film to watch. The subject matter is as raw as the on-screen emotion, but in parts it is thoroughly heart-warming and Meadows successfully manages to create an incredibly moving film about dissatisfaction which is truly satisfying viewing. This is English cinema at its very best.
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Production Year: 1995 - Drama - Director: Ang Lee - Original Language: English - Classification: Universal - Starring: Emma Thompson, Alan Rickman, Kate Winslet, Hugh Grant, Greg Wise, Hugh Laurie, Robert Hardy
Production Year: 2004 - Drama - Director: Nick Cassavetes - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over, 12 years and over - Starring: Rachel McAdams, Ryan Gosling, Gena Rowlands
This Is England tells the story of Shaun (Thomas Turgoose), an 11 year old kid growing up ... more
in the North of England. Set during the summer holidays of 1983, it follows his journey from a shaggy haired ruffian grieving the loss of his father into a shaven...
THIS IS ENGLAND tells the story of Shaun (Thomas Turgoose), an 11 year old kid growing up ... more
in the North of England. Set during the summer holidays of 1983, it followshis journey from a shaggy haired ruffian grieving the loss of his father into a shaven ...
Advantages: Poignant, powerful, great performances, great setting Disadvantages: Not for you if you like beautiful film stars or if you don't like swearing
sonic0209 07.10.2007 (07.10.2007)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of This Is England (DVD)
Advantages: Good portryal of the subculture, well written, characters appear real, good setting Disadvantages: What is the actual message, poor casting the 'Shaun', unsatifactory ending
Davidhutt 11.05.2007 (12.05.2007)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: somewhat helpful
Review of This Is England (DVD)
Mar 3rd, 2009
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