This Is England - a mini review

 

The film, This is England takes an unblemished look at race, homophobia, and class in the UK during the '80s. The film follows the story of a young lad who lost his father in the Falklands war and is bullied by kids in school. He meets up with a rag tag group of young skin heads who provide him with a family and protection and confidence. His mother notices the care they give her son and gives her blessing for him to be looked after by them.

Unfortunately, an old member of the group is released from prison and changes the dynamics of the group. He's filled with rage against the brown skinned as well as ultraviolent. He slowly alienates the members of the group but the young lad sees something in him and decides to stay by his side.

The film goes through the gradual deterioration of the social support of the group and the increase in racist attacks by the group. It culminates in a very upsetting and irrational attack that ends very badly. The ending is left a bit vague in that one is not clear on whether a murder has taken place or not. According to a summary posted on the film at wikipedia, a murder has taken place. Yet at the end of the film, the boys mother says the victim will be OK.

Either way, the attack is upsetting to watch and both the boy and the viewers are left feeling changed.

Personally, as the brown skinned kid in a group of mostly white people growing up, the film resonated with me. It reminded me of why I developed a very keen awareness of peoples read of me. Growing up, I often wondered whether 'friends' could tell that I was gay in addition to obviously being of color. I also had to consider whether there would be any negativity resulting from these realizations. Basically, any exchange with friends growing up had me wonder if I was going to wind up as Matthew Shepherd did. Sad but true. Fortunately, I never had any very bad experiences but needless to say I was hyper cautious about who I associated with.

The film shows my worst fears played to their end. I highly recommend the film as it shows the complexity of race, class, and politics intermingling to create our reality every day.

Here's a trailer:

If you get a chance, do check the film out. You'll be rewarded with a story that doesn't insult your intelligence and leaves you thinking.

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