THIS IS ENGLAND
Xenophobia, Tribalism, Racism and Self-Hate in Thatcher's Britain, circa 1983
The PopcornReel.com Movie Review
By Omar P.L. Moore/July 27, 2007
For in a dark western countryside
There is no place you can hide, no sir
Do not get ob-sterical
Can you work a miracle
Cool it
Use your head wisely
Rest up in your pork self
Keep a cool head
Don't get excited
-- from Desmond Dekker's song "Keep A Cool Head"
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Legendary reggae singer-songwriter Desmond Dekker, who died last
year in England, penned and sung those lyrics decades ago. In those lyrics
Mr. Dekker was most likely talking to Combo (Stephen Graham), a racist skinhead
who explodes onto the scene midway through Shane Meadows' film "This Is
England". Combo, for all his love of reggae and ska music, probably didn't
have Dekker's song ringing in his ears in 1980's England, a place and time where
riots and social unrest, racial and otherwise, choked the fabric of British
society, where class war, the Falklands War, record unemployment, and a renewed influx of immigrants
from distant shores were a fact of life, and the heavily-admired and
heavily-hated British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher barely escaped an
assassination plot in Brighton at the Conservative Party's convention.
English football hooliganism was running especially rampant with underground
organized mobs like the ICF (Inter City Firm) the violent group that ran under
the radar as "fans" of West Ham United football club at Upton Park.
Against the backdrop of the introduction of the CD, the Rubik's Cube, the 1981
wedding of Lady Diana Spencer and Prince Charles, Chopper bikes, and TV puppet
personality Roland Rat were the waning years of 2 Tone Ska music, a mixture of
reggae, soul and rock beats. It was an era that quintessentially defined
what it meant to be British, proud, working-class, angry, rebellious and
powerless, while acknowledging an integration of the best that black music from
the Caribbean and London had to offer, influencing millions of white youth in
England in much the same way that rap and hip-hop does today the world over.
A harmony of sorts between many black and white teens and young adults was borne
through this music, especially the music of The Specials, The Beat (known
elsewhere as The English Beat), Madness, and Bad Manners. "Rude boys", new
mods, skinheads, new punks, "natty dreads" and all manner of social and cultural
identities came alive through such music. Suspenders (or "braces", as they
are known in England) were "in", as were Doc Martens boots (with or without
steel-capped toes.)
So it is with all of these elements in mind that "This Is England", which opens
today in New York City at the IFC Center (and will open in San Francisco and
other U.S. cities on August 10), arises. A young, impressionable 12
year-old boy, Shaun (Thomas "Tommo" Turgoose) has sought the protection of
neighborhood skinheads from the Midlands, specifically Nottingham, in north
central England. Constantly picked on (mostly for his attire) and mocked
cruelly about the death of his father in the Falklands War, Shaun finds refuge
in a fun-loving band of skinheads who are as merry as Robin Hood's men, but as
prankish as (but more destructive than) the men (and women) that funnyman Benny
Hill kept company with. Woody (Joe Gilgun) is Shaun's family, when Shaun's
mother Cynthia (Jo Hartley) is not stewarding him.
But with Combo's arrival -- he has just been released from a three-plus
years-stint in prison, the definition of family swiftly changes, and "This Is
England", which up to this point has been a calm, funny, breezy nostalgic foray
into some of the harshest days of 1980's Britannia, becomes fierce, cold-eyed
and pulsating. An ardent member of the racist-"there-ain't-no-black-in-the-Union
Jack"-National Front (NF) organization, Combo is of the breed that permeated
England back then -- and still does to a lesser degree as the British National
Party (BNP), which has at least one seat in Parliament at the House of Commons
in Westminster. Combo is a racist who wants anyone that doesn't look like
him to go back where they came from. He makes the "mistake" of telling a
story about a black man who had denied him a precious dessert, spewing an
epithet in presence of Woody's good friend Milky (frequent Meadows collaborator
Andrew Shim), a young black man who is part and parcel of the ska beat music
that thrived throughout the Seventies and Eighties in England. "Just
slipped out, no offense, man", Combo says.
You can get with
this . . .
. . . or you can get with
that.
Thomas "Tommo" Turgoose, in both of the left-hand side photos
as Shaun, does "gets with" both, in "This Is England", directed by Shane Meadows. At
top right, first row of photos, is the nicer-friendlier type of skinhead,
including Milky (Andrew Shim, second from left), and Woody (Joe Gilgun, second
from right.) On the right hand side photo immediately above this caption
is Combo, a racist skinhead (Stephen Graham) whose volatility is dangerous and
electrifying in this film. (Photos: Optimum Releasing/UK Film Council via
IFC Films)
Meadows skillfully brings the tensions, which range from fraternal to sexual to
racial, to a boil and by the end, "This Is England" has become a shattering and
powerful experience that leaves you shaken to the core. The film achieves
what "Do The Right Thing" did so well almost 20 years ago: the ability to shock
and display the most delicate and complex nuances of human behavior, as well as
the ability to challenge audiences. At times scary, Mr. Graham's
performance is the heart of this film. He is frightening to watch at
times, playing the role of Combo much too well, some might think.
Nevertheless, Mr. Graham is simply excellent as Combo, weaving complexity within
a lacerating and polarizing persona filled with anger, fear and self-hate that
makes his character as figuratively tragic as any around. Mr. Graham packs
a visceral punch matched by few big-screen actors this year.
Combo, who has been most seductive and appealing to the lonely and isolated
Shaun, is as much an enemy to himself as he is to anyone whom he fears or
declares war against. And he isn't all one thing or another, either.
Most revealing is a moment early on where Combo calls out Milky's friends,
including Woody, on something that they did or did not do. It is this
moment that spells out what is so interesting and riveting about "This Is
England": the dualities, hypocrisies and contradictions of human behavior that
make more than a few scenes of this film ironic.
Despite the terrifying presence of Mr. Graham's character, the real star of Mr.
Meadows' riveting and intense film is Thomas Turgoose. Just 13 at the time
of this film, his debut feature-film role, Mr. Turgoose possesses a confidence
and swagger as Shaun, even if he has to take his lumps from the older kids who
cowardly waylay and beat up on him. He may be out-sized, but he's never
over-matched. Shaun makes a decision that he will attempt to rectify by
the end of the film, and the empire of hate will either sink or swim with him.
Shane Meadows' screenplay is broken into three stages and Mr. Turgoose, who lost
his own mother Sharon to lung cancer about two months after the completion of
filming in 2005 (the film is dedicated to her), figures prominently in all
three. There is childhood ribbing and teasing, the advent of puppy love
and adolescence, and peer pressure and harsh adult lessons. The three
situational structures are resonant, and the dialogue and the events are
authentic in all respects. When, like this reviewer, you lived through
this period in England, it is an experience that brings back memories of an
exciting, fearful and volatile time. There's plenty of food for thought
and indelible characters in Mr. Meadows' drama, like Lol (Vicky McClure), Milky,
Woody, and Boy George-Culture Club look-alike punk-type Michelle (who is
nicknamed "Smell", and played by Rosamund Hanson.)
Turgoose won the Most Promising Newcomer Award at last November's British
Independent Film Awards ("England" won best British Independent Film and a
special prize at the Rome Film Awards) and has a look in this film that reminds
one of former British prime minister Winston Churchill and echoes a younger
Adrian Boothroyd, the 36-year-old manager of the English football club Watford,
a club formerly chaired by Elton John. There's plenty of solid ska beats
and sounds that those growing up in England during that period will remember,
which richly adorn Mr. Meadows' film, including the lilting rendition of "Louie
Louie" by Toots And The Maytals, and The Specials' "Do The Dog". (One
Specials song which should have been included in the film's soundtrack is the
song, "Why", released as a b-side to the smash hit "Ghost Town" during the very
year that this film takes place.) There are such tunes as Ludovico
Einaudi's contemplative "Ritomare" and "Fuori Dal Mondo" among others, and there
is Percy Sledge's classic "Dark End of the Street".
"This Is England" is affectionate, heartfelt and unforgettable. Mr.
Meadows lets his characters roam, terrify, love and laugh -- but he never lets
the actors who play them get out of hand. The acting is strong all the way
around and no one flies out of orbit. There are lessons to be learned in
this electrifying work, and they will be deeply ingrained in audiences who watch
this powerful and compelling film unfold.
All you have to do when watching is keep a cool head. A critic's
challenge: can you remain calm and implacable while watching "This Is England"?
"This Is England" is not rated by the Motion Picture
Association of America, but it contains persistent harsh language, including
racist epithets, sexual content and dialogue, drug use, violence and one brief
disturbing image near the end of the opening credits sequence. Some may
feel that the Nottingham English accents heard during the film merit subtitles,
but none are present. The film's duration is one hour and 38 minutes, and
opens today in New York, Los Angeles, and in the English towns of Warwick, St.
Albans and Birmingham. "This Is England" opens in San Francisco and other
U.S. and English cities on August 10. The film enjoyed the bulk of its
theatrical run in England in May and June.)
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