British Social Realism Themes

Film: Submarine (2010)
Theme: Sex
Synopsis: Socially awkward 15 year old Oliver Tate plans to lose his virginity before his next birthday, he then falls in love with Jordana while his parents relationship becomes 'rocky' because of his mother's ex-boyfriend.

The main theme of this film is sex, and this is denoted by the dialogue between Tate and Jordana. ''Are you asking me to come have sex with you?'' connotes a young love between the two, and maybe a first love for both characters. Tate talks about intimacy between the couple, connoting they are very much comfortable when they're together but also helps the audience see the characteristics for each character. Sex is an uncomfortable subject for most teenagers to talk about to their partners and in general, which is heard through Tate's uncomfortable tone of voice and the fact that he stammers and repeats himself when he talks about having a free house. The juxtaposition between the two characters is close, connoting the comfortable relationship they have, which is also ironic because the conversation they have is an uncomfortable topic to talk about. The theme is  typical of the BSR genre, as it has been touched upon in other films like Spike Island between 'Tits' and Sally, as a first love and losing their virginity for the first time. I could use this theme in my opening sequence to show the love and relationship between young British teenagers and the struggle with parents and peers have with sex and being in love.

Film: Yasmin (2004)
Themes: Religion/Rebellion
Synopsis: Yasmin lives two lives in two different worlds: in her community, she wears Muslin clothes, cooks for her father and brother and has the traditional behaviour of a Muslin woman. She marries illegal immigrant Faysal to facilitate the British stamp in his passport, and then plans to divorce him.

There are two main themes to this film, as Yasmin rebels against her Islamic religion. The themes are denoted by the establishing shot to two Muslim men in their traditional clothes walking towards the audience. This connotes the film will be about religion. At 0:31 there is a glimpse of a sign with Arabic writing on it, connoting the building is a place of worship, which is a mosque. The shots of the location where this film is set, all contain Muslim characters who wear religious clothing, connoting the area is a very Islamic area of Britain. Rebellion is seen when Yasmin is in the middle of changing her religious clothes behind a big stone wall in the middle of a field where nobody can see her. Yasmin dresses in tight boot cut jeans and wears generalised 'western' clothes, she then takes her headscarf off and chucks it in the backseat of her car. This connotes Yasmin feels trapped inside her religion, and once she is away from her home, she can be free and wear/dress in whatever she wants. I could possibly combine these two themes, like in this film, and have a young teenager who feels pressured by their community and parents to lead a sacred religious life tied down to one religion, but truly they feel they feel connected to a different religion, and so this causes rebellion.


Film: Billy Elliot (2000)
Themes: Aspiration & Escape
Synopsis: Billy is an 11 year old boy, fathered by a widowed minor and his brother and grandmother. He doesn't like his boxing lessons in school and love to ballet dance. When his family find out,  Billy gets in trouble, but Mrs Wilkinson carries to work with Billy on his ballet, after realising his potential, and then bags him an audition with the Royal Ballet School.

The main theme in this film is aspiration and escape. Billy loves to dance and he aspires to be the best he can be. He wants to escape the boxing life his dad encourages him to lead, and he wants to dance. Everything in Billy's life revolves around dance and he won't back down against his father and brother. Dancing is what makes Billy happy and his secret lessons with Mrs Wilkinson pay off, to help improve his skills. Billy's best friend Michael, calls out from on top of the wall of his backyard, 'OI! DANCING BOY' which connotes Billy's love for dance, that he even is nicknamed as the dancing boy. Escape comes into the film, because Billy gets on the bus and travels all the way to London to pursue his dream, and escapes his hometown of County Durham. Billy's opportunity like this in a British Social Realism film is rare, as happy endings aren't always a thing. I may explore these themes in my opening sequence by having a passionate teenager, who will do anything and everything to fulfil their dream and escape the daily grind of their wasteland hometown life.

Film: Dead Man's Shoes (2004)
Themes: Violence
Synopsis: Richard returns home from military service to a small town in the Midlands. He has one thing on his mind: revenge. Payback for the local bullies who did some very bad things to his brother.

The main theme of this film is violence, and this is shown as Sonny gets out of the car and walks up to Richard in a patronising manor and the juxtaposition between the two characters establishes bad blood between the two. One denotation for this scene is when Richard says, 'If I were you, I'd get in that f**king car and get out of here, man' in an angry tone, with an angry facial expression. This connotes that there is an increases in tension between the two characters, and that Richard is about to do something dangerous and violence, so the violent tendencies are shown through facial expression and tone of voice. Richard talks about 'slicing his neck' when talking to Sonny, and he imitates this with his finger, hence the violent theme. Both of the men are very angry. The theme is represented as an every day, normal occurrence, as the conversation talks about threatening, and as they are located in almost an alley way, which is roughly where gangs and violent criminals hang out. I could possibly explore this theme, by having a leader of a gang, and showing their past and childhood as flashbacks, and how that has impacted them to be who they are today.

Film: London To Brighton (2006)
Themes: Parenthood/Prostitution
Synopsis: Joanne and Kelly are mother and daughter, at 3:07am they burst into a toilet which is covered in graffiti. Kelly then goes out and sells herself for a train fare to start a new life down South with her daughter. 

The main theme of this film is Prostitution. You can see this when Kelly leaves Joanne locked in the graffiti covered bathroom. They have
both bruised and battered faces, connoting they have been involved with a dangerous person, and they have been assaulted which is a common situation around the prostitution theme. Kelly then goes to a chicken shop and gets cheap food, connoting bad poverty, and relating back to why this mother sells herself. She does the prostitution to get money for a train fare to Brighton with her daughter, Joanne. The opening sequence of this film is in a connotes a rough area which is covered in graffiti and it's a dirty. Joanne is left on her own, in which connotes a bad mother, which is not necessarily true, as Kelly does anything to protect her daughter, and prostitiution is the only way the two girls will ever get any money. The theme is explored in this film as if it is a normal, everyday standard for underclass women to do it to support their children, and try to create the best life possible. I could potentially use these themes to show the psychological effects prostiution has on a young woman, and how she deals with the effects.