Textual Analysis on Five Social Realism Intros

Skinhead

Micro elements from the technical category of camera shots, angle, movement and composition, are employed in this extract. A social type, namely, a skinhead, is being represented.

Nazi symbol

Slouching Police helmet

Class and status is the key representative area focused on the extract. The young skinhead is put on trial, but seems to be in control of himself and his peers, despite it meaning to be he who has a lower status.

Does not seem unnerved or pressurized by his peers or current situation

Has to be told to stand up

Stature is still slouched

Voice of a judge is heard

The technical elements of location, lighting, and colour design are employed. The location is a court room, which links to the young skinhead being put on trial before his British peers, representing class and status.

Court room

Policeman (High authority) Member of the court

The lighting is very poor, and the colour Low key lighting design is plain, showing the low class and status of this area of Britain. Both of these technical elements are used to represent regional identity, to show the time period of the film. These technical elements lead us to realize that the location must be in Britain. Plain colour design

We feel particuarly interested as to what is going to happen to this skinhead, due to the consistent movement of the camera, which the protagonist continues to walk towards as it backs away from him.
Hand-held camera Tracks movement

These micro elements combine, and also work independently, to address issues around the key representative area of class and status, by showing us how the lower class is looked upon during this period of time.

Through character codes, such as the control the protagonist has over himself and his peers, they communicate the lack of professionalism given, through lack of control. This undermines the status and control the police, judges, etc., have, affecting their influence on decision making and the affect they will have on the lower status.

Example of a jump cut

Cuts from this scene

In this extract, micro elements from the technical category of editing are employed. There are continous cutaway scenes in this introduction, whilst some clips are jump cuts. They are employed to construct a specific representation of a place, namely, England.

To this scene

To this sceneand so on

All these scenes represent England

Regional identity is the key representative area focused on in the extract. Issues of violence and protest, which accompany the patriotic, powerful, and determinative regional identity of your country, are powerfully depicted and explored.

Policemen restraining a protestor (violent protest)

Civilians protesting (peaceful protest)

Location, lighting, and colour design are all being employed. The location is designed to show areas of the country, and notable known things such as Prince Charless and Dianas wedding, which link to show what Britain is, and how it should be looked upon. This refers to the title This is England.

Buckingham Palace

Soldiers of the UK

Representative of England

There is a plain colour design, and poor lighting, which both show the time period of the film, and this again links to regional identity. The arrangement of technical elements makes us feel interested in what happened during that time period, and feel concerned for what was occurring.

Poor lighting

Plain colour designs

In the extract a lot of micro elements from the mise-en-scene are being used to create a specific representation of a low economic background and rebellion.

Youth is a key representative area in the extract, and this is shown throughout the extract, as the film focuses on a teenage girl and the different relationships and reputations she has with her community.

Young male adolescents watches on

Headbutts fellow female

Issues of violence, rebellion and social class are depicted through her relationships with the different people in her life and the effect they have on her.
Violent towards other girls

Technical elements Heavy eyeliner/mascara being deployed construct a representative. For costume, there is pasty skin and pallid skin tones to create a sense of the location the civilians are in. Make-up is very natural.
Pallid skin tones

Pasty skin

Tall buildings
(Flats)

There are many different set designs used and they all show signs of low economic background; mostly with the use of tall buildings of flats and damaged property,
Create the feeling of an unhealthy environment

Train

Caravan

Cars

Horse

Bag

Litter

Props are used effectively throughout to show the age of the girl, her interests and also the quality of her belongings to highlight her economic background. They also show the state of the environment. The lighting is bright outside as if it is summer and dull inside, this encodes the time of year that this film is set.

Overshadowing of buildings Sunbathing

The arrangement of these technical elements highlight the theme of her low economic social class and the effect this has on her quality of living and her relationships with others.

Independently and combined with each other these micro elements address the issues of the key representative area of a low economic class and status.

In this extract, micro elements from the technical category of mise-en-scene, camera and sound are employed. They are employed to create a representation of a particular social group, namely, a solemn drug addict.

Cigarette represents drug usage

The key area of representation in this introduction is physical ability/disability. Issues of personal hygiene and depression together accompany the strain on the body from long periods of drug use, are powerfully depicted and explored.

Slumped/slouched body position

Wide-spread legs

Costume and makeup, colour design, and set design are all employed in this extract. The characters makeup, including his tired eyes, untreated and unkempt bread and pasty skin, are used to create the image of a hard-core drug user.

Half-closed eyes

Unkempt/untidy beard Unshaven beard

This pairs with the characters dirty costume, including his undone shirt and yesterdays underwear, and this arrangement of costume calls a lack of hygiene into caution as well.

Signs of fatigue
Unbuttoned shirt

Yesterdays underwear

More evidence of drug use is shown by the camera slightly out of focus, moving on first couple of shots-that shows some of the effects of drugs and calls the characters mental health into question as well.

Out-of-focus camera Can also be representing the protagonists point of view shot

More signs of an addiction problem can be seen in the colour and set design-dull pasty walls, sheets thrown over the sofa and mouldy floorboards-dirtiness and untidiness are all things we associate with drug use. In the brooding low key lighting and the mouldy, musty colour palette there is evoked a sense of the sadness and pity of the protagonists situations.

Pasty walls

Low-key lighting

Dirty floorboards

Independently and in combination with each other, these micro elements address issues around the key representative area of physical ability/disability, by delivering to us a harrowing visual rendering of a life in ruin and an environment in decay.

Together with character codes such as the protagonists stasis, vacant gazes and sloth-like movements, they communicate the mental breakdown of a capable professional and the physical consequences of addiction, which include fatigue, lack of energy, inertia, and lethargy. These aspects of addiction undermine the health and well-being of the user, and affect their ability to live properly and work efficiently.

Youths

In the extract Sweet Sixteen, micro elements from the technical category of mise-en-scene are employed. The specific representation being represented is youth and low economic background.

Class and status is a key representative area within the extract. Issues of illegal smoking, drug use, teenagers used as vices, poverty and a victim of violence are all being explored as this shows us the impact and effect on the young teenagers. Props such as cigarettes create a negative impression on the teenager but also his troubled side.

Exchanging of cigarettes/drugs

Costume, make-up, set design and props are all employed. Certain technical elements give us a representation of a low class youth. The makeup, which includes pale skin, dark hair, and dark eyes all represent teenagers struggles life.

Consistently wearing a hat inside or outside

Dark eyes

The costume, which is tracksuit bottoms, a hoody and a hat, present his class and status but also create the expected stereotype of a chav. The lighting, which is low key, gloomy and dull, creates a pitiable atmosphere. Set design, such as the estate and scattered litter is chosen deliberately to give us a negative and isolated atmosphere but also is used to fit into the boys issues and struggles.

Low-key lighting

Hat
Hoody

Obscene gestures/movements

Gloomy/dull atmosphere created by customers/barmen

Micro elements of mise-en-scene present key issues by the issue of illegally smoking. This is shown through the use of props, like the boxes of cigarettes. This communicates an addiction and a habit but also a way to get easy money. The issue of being a victim of violence is shown by a bruised and battered body, as it communicates the neglect from his family but also his poor health.