Author Archives: Jessie Chen

Since Teresa had mentioned the references to earlier films, I just wanted to add that the opening scenes in this film were pretty similar to those in Full Monty. There’s the playing of scenes that are not part of the film itself, and we can tell because the scenes are a bit fuzzy unlike the rest of the film. But whereas in Full Monty the film showed the great times at the peak of the steel mill industry followed by the harsh reality of what had followed, This is England showed the whole situation in the opening clip. We saw good times that were immediately followed by some of the tragedies of the war. I think that there’s a sense of continuity since the music didn’t even stop or change like I thought it would; the upbeat tune continued to play until it faded into the beginning of the film.

I guess thinking about opening scenes in movies and opening sentences in texts has gotten to me and become permanently imprinted in my mind. The first words in the excerpt for Black Swan Green are “Do not set foot in my office.” This is a rule that Jason (and his sister and apparently mother) are required to follow. I feel like this sentence really sets up Jason’s life to appear rigid, structured, and out of his control. There are so many situations where Jason is a follower of rules and has no authority to change or affect his situation. He can’t go into a room in his own house, he can’t control his stutter, and he can’t say what he wants to say to his friends and family. These are only a few of the many sitations where he has no power at all.

I really like the scene around minute 24:00. We see the true contrast between Billy and the strikers. The boundaries of masculinity are pushed to the limit here because the change in scene is so drastic. At one moment, we see Billy in his ballet class surrounded by little girls and Ms. Wilkinson. It is a serene environment with peaceful piano music playing in the background as Billy and the other girls practice their dance routine. Then in the next moment, we see Billy’s dad and boxing teacher at the strike. They are gathered in a mob-like form to protest a bus-full of people going to work in the mines. The men in the crowd are dirty and loud miners who portray the traditional image of masculinity; they are being physically restrained by the police, which plays up the idea that men are extremely physical. Both the visual scene and the audible sounds are also darker than what we see in the gym. There is less light and there are police sirens blaring in the background.

I just noticed a parallel between Rents’ relationship with Hazel and his use of heroin. As we were discussing in class, heroin is an unacceptable thing to be dependent on, but there exist other socially accepted ones, such as Rents’ mom’s vicodin, or Begbie’s alcohol. But there’s a bit of irony here because although Rents’ relationship with Hazel may seem socially acceptable, he talks about all the ways in which it is not normal, despite how it seems to the external world. Perhaps he is drawing a comparison to say something about the socially accepted drugs?

And I’m also curious about the use of the word “us” when Rents refers to himself. He’ll begin talking in the first person using the word “I” and “me,” but will then use “us” all within the same sentence.  Has anyone noticed this and care to explain? Maybe there are situations where he takes on two personalities?