This is England : anyone seen it yet?

[Feed Your Head]

Has anyone been to see the new shane meadows film? it seems that it is released in quite alot of Cineworlds except here on the I.W. no plans for it to come. wondered what the verdict is.

[skaville]

Saw it the other day. Disappointed with the ending but the rest of the film is ok. Decent music and proof that all skins are not nazi's. Bet the media dont write that though.

[jackthekipper]

saw it today & agree with skaville,not bad,but duff ending

[Feed Your Head]

one to wait for on dvd then?

[guppstah]

Seeing it tonight, will report.

[guppstah]

Powerful film, rings bells to us who were around at the time.

I seriously wonder what todays youngsters or an American audience would make of it.
Probably sit there scratching their heads for an hour and a half.

Definately worth a watch but don't rush to the cinema, well worth a trip to Blockbusters in a few months though.

[Devo McDuff]

Saw it the other week. My verdict is good but not great.

Quite a simple film, not much to it. Some funny bits and well acted, does tail off a bit towards the end though like others have said.

The bit where he is getting off with the girl about 3ft taller than him is well disturbing! Funny though.

Dead Man's Shoes by the same director is better, beltin' film.

[alps]

Dodi: For those that missed the link This Is England is being broadcast for free on this site
movies.nabolister.com/list.php?g enre=unset&movieorserie=0
Just click next until you get to the Ts and away ya go.
Enjoy.
this link is from dodi cloud 9 website it works, i watched the film and thought it was depressin but the sound track is good.

[jase]

Saw the film last weekend, found it quite disturbing really. Glad i didn't go to the cinema for it.

[Lucia]

Thanks Alps - watched it last night - enjoyed it, even though it did bring back disturbing memories of big hair (his Mum) and even bigger glasses.

[Spence]

I think it's brilliant. Amazing performances from unknowns and first-time actors, especially Thomas Turgoose. Typical of Shane Meadows to get that kind of naturalness, if that's a word.

[Lan]

good film, ending was a bit wierd and twisted but the rest was good

[madmike]

Anyone not seen it go to a site www.tv-links.co.uk download a small player and your off, have every film you can think of for feck all...... need at least 1 meg broadband!!!

Great music, acting, wardrobe...... sh*te ending!

[Devo McDuff]

Saw one of Meadows's earlier films the other night, 'A Room For Romeo Brass'.

Had Paddy Considine in it (his performance is astounding) plus the young black lad from 'This is England' but 10 years younger.

It's very much in the same vein as Dead Man's Shoes and This Is England and just as good, well worth seeing.

Excellent music as ever too.

[nat]

I have to say I was disappointed by it. I had expected to love it due to the music, being set in my formative years etc but found it a little contrived and I agree with the posters above about the ending. I must admit to being in the very small minority though as everyone else I know who saw it loved it.
Dead Mans Shoes, on the other hand, I thought was brilliant.

[Spence]

I've got the This Is Shane Meadows box set, with 24/7, A Room For Romeo Brass, Dead Man's Shoes and This Is England, plus extras and the short films A Northern Soul (starring Toby Kebbell) and Three Tears for Jimmy Prophet (starring the British De Niro, Paddy Considine).

Several people from Meadow's earlier films appear in This Is England. Vicky McClure, who plays the sister of Romeo Brass (Andrew Shim) is the gorgeous Lol and Shim is Milky in This Is England. They're also a couple in real life. Aaaahhhh.

The one thing I've noticed that lets down Shane Meadows films is Bob Hoskins' bloody awful attempts at a Nottingham accent in 24/7 and Romeo Brass. It's not the easiest accent to do I know, but he should have just done a Michael Caine and not bothered.

[oldbadmod]

Saw it a while ago, not bad, made me laugh alot, some parts were like my teenage years!

[mark]

I was a skin in the early seventies race wasnt an issue as much then lots of reggae and motown great times. I thought the film painted a very grim picture but it was the eighties .
I watched it with my 20 year old daughter it made her cry .

[elviswasamod]

just watched this is england for the first time ,know feelin a bit

depressed acting 7/10 music 5/10 ending 3/10

i thought it was a bit harsh and a bit cruel wish i didnt watch it

suppose am gettin old you only live once [ ENJOY IT LIFE THAT IS ]

[retrogirl]

;D I loved it, took me back!!! ;D OMG the hair, Luckily I didnt suffer from that as I was a skingirl ;D

[Feed Your Head]

I've got it on dvd. Really love the film. simple story telling.

[elviswasamod]

as i said i watched it yet i cant understand why they were so racist i grew up in the 70s 80s with lots of skins who were not like that i thought it made skins look bad yet they love .ska reggea roots music is that not hypacritical anyway i was a mod so i dont understand no doubt someone will tell me cheers ferdy shed of shame sc

[Spence]

Kev I think you're missing the point of the film. All the main characters are totally NOT racist. They listen to ska, soul and reggae, Milky's their mate, his girlfriend's white, no one even mentions colour it's so not an issue. It's only when Combo turns up after his stretch inside that things start to go awry. And even then the characters that aren't impressionable don't buy Combo's b*ll*cks, and they leave him to it. That's why the only ones that stay with him are the thick (Gadge and his dopey speccy mate) and the young (Shaun).

It's supposed to illustrate the difference between real skins and the right wing element that infiltrated the movement when the NF came along and gave it the bad image it probably still has with many less-informed people today. Also, it's a semi-autobiographical story written by Shane Meadows, which is why the main character's called Shaun.

Also, for those that think the ending's crap, it's supposed to symbolise Shaun getting over his dad's death, laying his memory to rest and separating his service for his country from the misappropriation of the nation's flag by right-wing fascists.

Hope this helps clear things up.

[elviswasamod]

thanks spence i understand that but i still think it made skins look bad and as i said i was a mod and still am at heart give me quad anyday and as mark has stated i also watched it with my 19 yr old daughter and she cried but thanks for explaining i still thought the film was ,i was going to say crap but it wasent i suppose i just didnt undestand there differences c u soon ferdy

[Feed Your Head]

Watching the making of dvd is very entertaining and thought provoking too. Sometimes i think with films like this, they should show the bits that are on the bonus features at the Cinema showings too. Once went to a John Woo tripple bill at the Prince Charles Cinema in London ( before he went to hollywood) many moons ago and they did something similar. put a different light to all three films which would have been just seen as hong kong shoot em up flicks.

[Spence]

The pre-production film of the cast getting their haircuts and costume's a real eye-opener, would you agree Eltjo?

[Devo McDuff]

spence said:

I've got the This Is Shane Meadows box set, with 24/7, A Room For Romeo Brass, Dead Man's Shoes and This Is England, plus extras and the short films A Northern Soul (starring Toby Kebbell) and Three Tears for Jimmy Prophet (starring the British De Niro, Paddy Considine).

Several people from Meadow's earlier films appear in This Is England. Vicky McClure, who plays the sister of Romeo Brass (Andrew Shim) is the gorgeous Lol and Shim is Milky in This Is England. They're also a couple in real life. Aaaahhhh.

The one thing I've noticed that lets down Shane Meadows films is Bob Hoskins' bloody awful attempts at a Nottingham accent in 24/7 and Romeo Brass. It's not the easiest accent to do I know, but he should have just done a Michael Caine and not bothered.

I'd say that's spot on, how I read it anyway.

A friend of a friend went to school with Shane Meadows. Said he was always the first to do everything, it shows in his films,

[retrogirl]

;D ;D ;D Hey Ferdy the scene has always been marred by that small racist faction! people see one skinhead and think that they are all the same! look at IOW in 86, the NF were there givin out leaflets, we use them for the camp fire (the leaflets not the NF), Meadows was tryin to get that point over! but sadly unless we teach everyone about the original skinhead movement they will remain ignorant!!! ;D ;D ;D

[Feed Your Head]

spence said:

The pre-production film of the cast getting their haircuts and costume's a real eye-opener, would you agree Eltjo?

Definately , Spence. And the way Meadows explains the history of Skinhead movement from the late 60's onwards: to be usurped by the NF and how the gay community addapted the look because of the NF nutters.
I'd recommend taking a look at the bonus DVD. Especially the buit where they rehearse the scene Tommo gets his had shaved lol.

[zeppelin]

I just got a copy of This is England in our local techno-supermarket. God knows what the Germans will make of it! The soundtrack was outstanding of course, but I think some people may have missed the point.
There is a racist sub-plot (which a lot of German skinheads will latch on to), but the main plot is that the music and the style ethos are bigger than the racist dogma spewed out by Combo, whose main problem seems to be that he is jealous of Milky's tight Caribbean family background, something he didn't have. That's why he beats Milky up, not because he'sblack!
I also found the ending very symbolic, because it shows England as we know it, and patriotism, and loyalty, and comradeship, and optimism, sinking beneath the waves. Whatever happened to "Rule Britannia"?
I'd just like to mention that I've never been a skin, always been a Mod, but it's the music that does it for me!