Marcus Pelham Film Poster Analysis - This Is England

Poster for This Is England

SYNOPSIS: 'This is England' is a story about a troubled boy growing up in England, set in 1983. He comes across a few skinheads on his way home from school, after a fight. They become his new best friends even like family. Based on experiences of director Shane Meadows'.

NARRATIVE: The poster immediately signals to the audience that the film is a representation of the 1980's, mainly through the tag line of 'Summer 1983. A time to stand out from the crowd' but also supported through stereotypical 'skinhead' costume. The title 'This Is England' is emphasized by adopting the colours of the Union Jack [ie. red, white and blue], also giving the audience a strong sense of it's English setting as well as the film's theme of the dangers of nationalism when bordering on jingoism.

Close up on characters depicted on the poster

The theme of an unemployed youth demographic and subsequent youth culture that followed in the 1980's is also communicated through the body language of the characters; all either signal nonchalance by leaning against the corrugated fence [see the green character] or anger through a confrontational stance [see the blue, orange and red characters]. This instantly presents the audience with the film's exploration of young people's attitudes in the 1980's. The way in which the characters are presented is also key to the narrative. In a similar way to the Animal Kingdom poster, the characters exude a sense of community [maybe even family] through their proximity to eachother. This idea of family is key to the film's narrative as well, with the 'trouble boy' protagonist [the gold character] fully integrated into this group of youth, despite his age. It also heightens the idea of anger, with this group of 11 youth all focusing their anger and frustration towards the camera. However, the way in which they are lined up can also refer to a police line-up, suggesting a criminal aspect to the narrative.


REPRESENTATION: There is a strong sense of class representation in this poster, especially that of lower/working class youth. Firstly, the group of characters position on the poster is in the final third of the poster, giving the impression of lack of importance or that the audience should disregard them. This subtle technique - and it's corresponding effect - allows the audience to identify the type of characters that the film concerns. This is supported through the background of the poster; not only do they stand in front of a corrugated fence [which suggests an urban environment] but two post-war council estates can be seen towering over them. These firmly place the narrative in a working class setting which, when combined with the costumes and expressions of the characters, inform the audience that this film is concerned with the working class youth in 1983. The idea of run down areas is also present in the font of the title and other text on the poster; even the text appears to be painted on without skill and had begun to peel.


GENRE: The poster suggests that the film is of the social realism genre as it is concerned with the representation of identifiable characters in an identifiable setting. The exploration of class is also a common theme of the genre, with it's main concern being to focus on real issues that people face - see About A Girl or Fishtank. In addition, social realism is a genre of film associated with the UK, with Britain's class system being an ideal theme to explore through the genre. The theme of crime is also present in the poster, with the aggressive body language, suggestion of youth gangs and the play on the imagery of a police line up all hinting towards criminal activity in the film. Also, by choosing to create a film exploring issues and themes in 1983, the director is able to point out to the audience the continued existence of such issues in a modern British society [ie. jingoism manifest through the BNP party].


AUDIENCE: The poster suggests that the target audience of the film covers a range of demographics. For example, the obvious reference to British [especially English] culture would attract the interest of the British audience, keen to see a portrayal of their culture. The choice to refer to the three film festivals [Toronto, Rome and Tribeca] the film has featured in suggests that the film is designed to attract an audience of sophisticated film watchers who do not exclude the range of films they watch to 'Hollywood produced' movies. In addition, the setting of the film in the early 1980's would appeal to adults who lived in that time, interested to see a modern portrayal of that time of their lives. However, a youth audience would also be attracted to the film, for the themes of violence and class systems that still exist in today's society.