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This Is England (2007) DVD Review
This Is England (2007) DVD Credits:
This Is England (2007) Directed by:
Shane Meadows
This Is England (2007) Written by:
Shane Meadows
This Is England (2007) Cast:
Joseph Gilgun, Stephen Graham, Kieran Hardcastle, Frank Harper, Jo Hartley, Vicky McClure, George Newton, Jack O'Connell, Andrew Shim, Thomas Turgoose
This Is England (2007) Released by:
Not available at this time
Region:
1
This Is England (2007) DVD Release Date:
13th November 2007
Our Rating: Extras Rating:

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This Is England (2007) Synopsis:

Set in Uttoxeter, England during the 1980s, "This Is England" tells the story of an 11-year-old boy who shaves his head and falls in with an older neo-Nazi gang after his father dies.

This Is England (2007) DVD Review:

This is England works on two very distinct levels, although they flow together so seamlessly that they seem as one. From the opening credits of real footage in England during this often forgotten time in British history it is obvious that writer/director Shane Meadows is attempting to evoke the essence of this period. Meadows is able to capture the feeling of the time with music, style, popular art and a dozen other nuances that make This is England his most impressive film to date, but on the surface it is simply a very touching as well as daring coming-of-age tale. Much of the success of this relies upon newcomer Thomas Turgoose in the lead role, and this young actor is able to capture the emotional intricacies as delicately as Meadows handles the time period. The combination of incredible talent and a worthy director is something be marveled, and this is England is impressively moving despite the difficulty in the subject matter.

Turgoose plays 12-year-old Shaun, an unfortunate young boy who is picked on three times on the last day of school in 1982. He is unable to wear the flashy clothes which are in style, and his oversized pants are the cause for much of his troubles, but what really sets him off is when another boy uses his father’s recent death as a joke. Without a male role model or even a friend aside from his caring yet unhelpful mother, Shaun welcomes a new group of friends that accept him despite his inability to fit in. These friends are a group of local punk-loving skinheads in his small coastal town in northern England, and they are a family of their own. When Woody (Joe Gilgun), an older teen in the group, feels sorry for the lonely young boy who is always picked on, Shaun is accepted into this family. Although Shaun is skeptical that anyone would truly accept him, he gladly accepts the friends and years of being picked on allow him to fit in easily with the rambunctious group of teens. Even when the group begins troublemaking and vandalism Shaun follows along without much argument, happier to belong with a group of friends than alone. They show Shaun how to dress, introduce him to girls and partying, and all seems well until Combo (Stephen Graham), an older and vehemently racist member of the group is released from prison. Suddenly Shaun is dragged into a darker and more violent world, forcing him to choose between his loyalties and returning to loneliness.

Combo returns with an instant need to be at the top of the gang, and he does so by making sure everyone feels welcome before telling them his beliefs about the country. With 3 ½ million unemployed in England Combo turns to the local Pakistan community to place the blame, seeing their existence as nothing more than an intrusion into his country. Determined to do more than talk, Combo gives everyone in the gang an ultimatum to either leave or join his war on the streets. Convinced by his words Shaun stays with Combo even when Woody and many of the others leave, and eventually the racist skinhead becomes a father figure to him, leading him deep into a new world this particular summer of his childhood.

From the opening sequences letting us know we are being brought into a piece of history, This is England is a realistic and stark portrayal. What is more important is the implications of this historical time in England on the world today. The issues remain the same and these parallels stay consistent throughout the film up until the closing shot, at which point filmmaker breaks reality to remind us we are watching a film. The context in which this is done is nearly a plea to audience members, a dual reminder that while this is a film, the history is very real and to repeat it would be a real tragedy.

The DVD contains a fantastic amount of features with Shane Meadows talking extremely candidly about his inspiration for the script and his process for directing. There is a rough interview with the director as well as a commentary track in which producer Mark Herbert and Thomas Turgoose join him. The interview has some incredible insights about Meadows experiences as a skinhead that led him to make the film. There are seven deleted scenes including an alternate ending. Some of the scenes are just alternate sequences and others don’t advance the plot much. There is also a making-of featurette and two impressive essays laid out in the special features. One of the essays is about Falkland War and the other is about skinhead culture.

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This Is England (2007) DVD review written by: Ryan Izay

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