Bad things happening to good people

A little something about the movie This is England...

Shane Meadows movie about skinheads in early 80's England is a bracing smash in the face. The acting is top notch, the cinematography is grainy and unrepentant; the kind of sickly depressing stuff the BBC was pumping out in the 70's. A friend of mine said the look of British films of that era would actually make him sick to his stomach. This is a celebration of that anti-aesthetic movement.

It's a guys movie if there ever was one. Similar to John Tutuorro in 5 corners or many or Joe Pesci in Good Fellas the director puts front and center a character that is a ticking bomb. You just know something bad is going to happen to one of the good kids in this movie. It just stressed me out so much I could barely watch it.

The character I speak of is a real twisted fuck who's fresh from behind bars. He's about a decade older than the rest of his gang and prison has sure turned him into a four-star white supremacist. He's got all sorts of unresolved issues with the nice skinheads and a real thing for one of their girlfriends. He gets a few good monologues in before he starts his violent rampage.

One of the few sympathetic characters was Woody, the Skinhead who chose not to be a racist. They don't see eye to eye as you can well imagine. So, he's ousted and the white power dude is the defacto leader of the gang. If Woody would have had more screen time I would have really gotten into this movie. This is the point where I was gonna turn it off. Then Meadows throws in this added bonus: it's the Wood man's girlfriend that the ex-con is after. Let the love begin.

Don't get me wrong I can understand why people like this movie. I just don't like the way I felt at the end of it. I love Von Trier, Haneke, Park Chan Wook and Bergman so I guess if the pill is forced down my throat by an artist I can handle it more. "Oh god that is so violent but look at the framing"...kinda thing.

I guess the documentary realness of it hit me too hard. Meadows, you won but am I really envious of the prize?

The 12 year old kid who is the actual lead in this film really didn't do much for me either. It's true I'm not a big fan of movies through the eyes of kids but that's not really why I didn't like this film.

I'd have to say the little bit of hope at the end didn't make up for all the shit I was put through.

I feel I have to watch a few episodes of Dr. Katz to really purge myself of the mean little bastard of a tale.