British Social Realism Timeline

This post will explore the past decades of British Social Realism films, trying to establish if the conventions are the same or if they have changed in recent times. 

1950's 

Look Back In Anger 

A 1959 film directed by Tony Richardson which had a fairly low budget of £250,00 but in the box office, it regained this money as it made $1.1 million (£689,387). 

BSR Conventions Denoted:

The titles in this film are the same as all typical BSR films, they're are transparent and run along with the image. The location is real, it wasn't filmed on a set, you can tell this as when he comes out of his room and into the other mans room at 6:26 - 6:35, it looks like a real house. Also from the location, you can tell that they live in industrial England. In this same gif, you can also see the camera work. This shot here looks very professional and smooth, the person handling the camera did this very well. They've followed the man with the camera as well as panning to the other room.

Gif showing it's a real house

Within terms of production design, the props in the room (e.g they hang their clothing in the room on a line to dry) connote that the couple aren't exactly rich, so it follows the typical story line of following the underprivileged. 
 One of themes that is made clear in this clip is Masculinity. At 8:01 you can see that the women is ironing the clothes while the man is sitting there reading his newspaper. This theme pops up a lot in BSR. This also relates to the characters, as the man is seen dominant while the woman is more weak.  In the screen grab below, you don't see the womans' face due to the over the shoulder shot. This also can relate to the womans' role as in this shot she's not very important otherwise her face would have been shown. 

8:01 - Two men reading the newspaper while the woman irons.

     There are also some things that aren't typical of BSR in present times. For example, the costume is very smart, it doesn't look very ripped or damaged, it looks fine. Also the dialogue is very scripted, it looks almost unnatural. 

1960's 

Poor Cow 

A 1967 film, directed by Ken Loach, which was based on a novel of the same name written by Nell Dunn. It had a budget of £210,00 and made $1,400,000 (£877,402). 

BSR Conventions Denoted: 

The location is similar to BSR films now as the clip shows lots of flats that all look the same, it's basically an estate. This also means that it's a real life location and not a set, as at 1:15 - 1:35 they have a shot of them on roof and you can see the other houses in the background. 

Shot of them on the roof.

The props connote the typical type of family they are - underprivileged. At 2:19 there's a shot of them in the room, but there's not much there, just a couch and a table. Also the wallpaper is quite grim. The framing on the screen grab below is done very well. As you can see, their eyes are on the top third, which follows the rule of thirds. 

The theme in this film shown from the clip is mainly childhood. From the clip it doesn't look like film will be very negative as it's just a clip of a family spending time together. Although it does show the typical characters, the woman is seen putting up the washing, but saying this, you do see the man taking care of kid which is not majorly seen in BSR films now. In terms of sound, in this clip there is very little dialogue, it's just a range of shots that are strung together with music. The music is non-diegetic for the most of the clip, but towards the end it becomes diegetic as you see the man singing the same song that has been playing in the background previously.

1970's 

Bronco Bullfrog 

A black and white film directed by Barney Platts-Mills, it was his first full-length feature film. It was reported to have a budget of only £17,000. 

BSR Conventions Denoted:

The location of this film is in the city, which is typical of BSR films, it's located in an urban area, this is shown from 1:04 - 1:15 by the denotation of the city buildings and the motorway. The gif below is taken from 1:10 - 1:15, connoting it is an urban area.

The main themes represented in this clip of film are violence, crime and rebellion. Violence is shown from 2:06 - 2:10, as the character gets beat up and is thrown to the ground. Crime is connoted from 2:12 - 2:14 as you can denote one of the characters hitting something with a metal pole, then in the next shot, four boys kick open the door to a shop and burst in. It suggests that they're breaking and entering. 

Gif showing them breaking into the shop.

The theme of rebellion is clearly connoted from 1:30 - 1:39. The girls mother asks her 'where do you wanna finish up then?' to which the girl replies ' with him, not stuck with you.' The mother then says 'you wanna finish up with a boy like that', this conversation connotes the theme of rebellion as it's clear to see that the mother doesn't like her daughters boyfriend very much, but the girl is going against her mother and still says she's want to be with him. 

1:35 - the mother and daughter are having a conversation

Denoted in the gif below is a pan. The clip shows limited camera work especially with movement, apart from in this one shot with a pan. The shots are predominately all midshots with some establishing shots and about one close up.

Taken from 0:27 - 0:31

1980's 

Rita, Sue and Bob Too 

A 1987 British film directed by Alan Clarke, set in Bradford about two teenage schoolgirls who have a sexual fling with a married man. According to IMDB it made a gross of $124,167 in the USA. 

BSR Conventions Denoted:

Denoted through out the whole clip, is a man who is clearly an alcoholic. He himself connotes the whole theme of Drug abuse, but more the alcohol side of drugs. Denoted in the clip, in every shot of  him, he's either stumbling when walking, or slurring his words when talking, it's clear to see he has a problem. Also in the screen grab below, you can see him raise a baseball bat, to his daughter, while saying ' your mum's a lying bastard an' all, and i'll wrap this around your fucking neck'. This abuse language as well as him having a baseball bat in his hand, connotes the theme of abuse. From the dialogue you can connote that there is a large amount of verbal abuse, but there could also be domestic abuse. 

Screen grab showing the man with the baseball bat in his hand.

Another theme connoted in this clip is racism. At 6:25, the father says 'you keep out of this you black bastard.' to the Asian man in the room. Then proceeds to tell him to get out and if he comes back he'll 'smash his black brains off his black head'. This clearly connotes the theme of racism, as the father is telling this man to get out because he's 'black'. He repeatedly uses the word 'black', connoting how he feels that this man is different to him. The father feels like he has to point out that the man sitting before him is different. 

6:25 - their reaction to the father being racist towards him.

    The father in this clip (Bob), is connoted as the archetype of the failing man. In every shot, he's drinking and abusing others. This could also connote him as the weak but aggressive man as he's picking on people that are weaker than him, such as the Asian man. But he's mostly connoted as the failing man. This is also connote as at 6:01, the mother says 'you've done a days work in years', connoting how he isn't providing for his family, he's failing to be the man of the house. 

The gif above taken from 0:45 - 0:50, denotes the man walking along a street with a flat building behind him. In the background of this building, you can just make out that there are others like it. This connotes the typical location of BSR films - an estate type area. It's not a very posh area, but just common. 

The gif above is taken just a couple second after the gif that's above this one. This shows very good camera work, as they've used one track to do this whole scene. They must have stopped in between but the editing makes it look like it's one continuous shot.

1990's 

Trainspotting

A 1996 film directed by Danny Boyle, based on a novel by Irvine Welsh with the same name. The film is ranked 10th out of the top 100 British films by the British Film Institute. This link here shows how it did in the box office, with a budget of about $3,500,000.

BSR conventions denoted:

The main theme connoted in this clip is that of violence. In the gif below,you can see a man that starts to kick a boy and then he gets out a knife. This clearly shows violence and maybe an anger issue as all the boy did was look at the man while he was taking his shot, but the man overacted and is now beating him up. This gif also can connote the archetype of this violent man. It connotes him as the weak but aggressive man, he feels like he has to hit people in order to make himself feel big which in seen in the gif. 

Gif taken from 2:17 - 2:22

In the whole of this clip, there is no music what so ever. It's solely dialogue, which is mainly swearing. This connotes the type of area they live in is probably harsh as from a 3 minute clip, they swear about 25 times.   

    The screen grab below denotes the costume of the characters. Denoted is very casual clothes; t-shirts, jeans and denim jackets. This connotes that the people aren't very fancy, they're everyday normal people which are typical of the BSR genre. Also the props in this shot; the empty beer glasses and the cigarette in his hand also connote the rough area. They drink a lot and they smoke.

Screen grab from 0:08 denoting the costume.

In terms of camera work, I really like this shot that is shown in the gif below. It's one of the first shots in the scene and the way it's filmed is really interesting. It starts off showing lots of people near the bar, then zooms out and tracks back to where the main characters are sitting. It emphasises that in this room, they are the most important people.

2000's

This is England

A 2006 film written and directed by Shane Meadows, based on his experiences. It had a budget of about £1,500,00 and made £207,676 in it's opening weekend.

BSR Conventions Denoted:

One of the clear themes denoted in this is Racism. From 3:07 - 3:23, the white man repeatedly uses the word 'nigger', a derogatory word used against black people. He continues to say this, while the boy  just sits on the bed not saying anything. The man then provokes him to start a fight, but the boy still does nothing. Starting at 3:43, the man starts to beat up the boy in a very graphic manner, also connoting the theme of violence. While beating him up he repeatedly says 'I fucking hate you' and also uses the word 'nigger' once again. This connotes the theme of Racism in a very explicit way, it's the worst form of Racism. 

Gif from 3:52 - 3:57, shows him punching aggressively.

   The main character in this clip, Combo, is connoted as the weak but aggressive man. Denoted is him picking on the black boy because of his race as he repeatedly uses a derogatory term against him and then beats him up. He makes himself feel and look bigger but beating him up. 

Screen grab from 3:25.

   The location is set in a small room, shown in the screen grab above. Denoted are two beds, a sheet for a curtain and some little posters. The wallpaper looks very old and ruined. This connotes that they aren't very rich, they're poor, which is typical of the characters that BSR films follow. 
 The sound in this clip is mainly dialogue, but at about 1:09, non-diegetic music starts to play in the background softly. This is done as the boys speech is about his dad and how he respects him and the music adds to sentiment of his speech. When the shots come in of Combo hitting the boy, the music starts to get louder and fast paced, it stands out as before it was very slow. The music continues to be fast paced until he stops hitting the boy, then it slows down again. I think this was very clever the way the music was edited as it highlights the important part of this scene, the fight. 

  The costume and props in this clip connote that they're typical every day people. With regards to costume, they aren't wearing anything fancy, its everyday clothes. Using the same screen grab from 3:25 above, denoted is a man wearing a white vest and jeans, a little boy wearing a shirt and jeans and then another boy wearing a white shirt and trousers. The costume isn't anything over the top and fancy. The props in this room are fairly ordinary, but they help set the class of the people. The blankets look old and they're also very dark colours, connoting the darkness of this scene. There's also an England flag hung on the wall, which foreshadows the title. 

2010's 

Ill Manors 

A 2012 film written and directed by Plan B - mainly known as a musician. The film revolves around 8 characters lives which are narrated by songs that Plan B has written. The clip below shows one characters life. 

There are many themes shown in this 3 minute clip such as; Drugs, Drug Abuse, Childhood and Parenthood.

This screen grab from 2:15 shows how Drugs is a theme. Denoted in the shot is the man on the right making the drugs and the man on the left is giving him money that he made from selling drugs. Drugs is a common theme used in many BSR films. 

   From 2:00 - 2:08, denoted is a shot of the boys mother lying dead on the bed with a needle in her arm. This connotes the theme of Drug Abuse as in the music in the background, the narrator says she died of a Heroin overdose. 

2:08 - the boy lying next to his deceased mother.

Childhood is also a theme in this short clip, but in a typical BSR way. It's not so much about the childhood, but the absence of the childhood. In the screen grab below, denoted is a little child sitting on a chair in a basement, this is no place for a child of his age. It also looks like it's late at night, he should really be at home or sleeping, but he's in the basement of some strangers home. 

1:01 - shot of the boy in the basement

The fact that he's in that basement alone, while his mother is upstairs with the man, also connotes the theme of Parenthood. The father is absent while the mother isn't being the best parent she can be. She's left her child alone in a basement while she's upstairs with a man. In the song at 1:22, it says 'what an environment to raise a kid, 'round crack dealers house', the music emphasises the point that she's not a good parent, she's struggling. 

The location of this clip, is mainly just in the basement. A basement is underground, dirty and usually where bad things happen. Denoted in the screen grab below is a dimly lit basement that looks dirty. It has dirty quilts on the right and a couple of chairs. It connotes the genre of film as BSR follows characters that aren't perfect and all clean, it follows the 'basement' type of people. Like a basement is the scary, unknown part of the house, the people that BSR films follows are the scary, unknown part of society. 

0:54 - shot of the basement

I found the music in this clip very interesting as the non diegetic music narrates the shots on the screen and this is the first time I've seen this been done.The soundtrack - written and performed by Plan B, who is also the director- goes through step by step whats going on in the clip. In the screen grab below is a shot of man who looks quite smartly dressed, so you would think he is a pleasant character. By the soundtrack in the back repeatedly says 'Mr Drug Dealer', connoting he is a drug dealer. It makes it clearer for the audience to see who this character is as appearances can be misleading. 

0:04 

0:22 - shot of woman sitting down

0:26 - shot of man sitting at table

Denoted in the two screen grabs above of the man and woman is the costume of this film. The women is wearing a plain blue shirt with shorts and a hat, while the man is wearing a white polo with trousers. Both of these costumes aren't very fancy and expensive, they're everyday clothes, connoting that these characters are every day people. 

In what ways has British Social Realism evolved over the last sixty years?

In my opinion, I think BSR has evolved in many different ways over the last sixty years but mainly in terms of tone and issues in the film. For example, the things that have stayed the same are; the themes - nearly all BSR films have an element on Poverty in them, be it in 1960, with Poor Cow, or in 2012 with ill Manors, Poverty is a recurring theme. Another thing that has stayed the same is the location, most BSR films are set in urban areas, the city, but as of recent, most of the films are set in even more urban areas, like estates or flats. The sound has evolved hugely over the last sixty years, but that is mainly due to it being a whole new era, music develops as time goes on. Even then, in past BSR films, the music in the background wouldn't have lyrics, it was mainly a backing track that would go over dialogue. But now, lyrics have become more heavily involved, like in the film ill Manors, the lyrics play a major role in narrating the story. The music now a days in BSR films is mainly the genres of rap and grime. In terms of dialogue, I think it's stayed the same, there's obviously changes in the way the characters speak, but the amount of swearing and aggressiveness in the speech is the same. The tone of BSR films is one thing I think that has evolved dramatically. In the past the tone was serious, but with a bit of light heartedness, it wasn't serious in every single shot. Since the 2000's, I think the tone of BSR films has become much more intense and the films show a lot more that would have been previously held back. Like in Rita, Sue and Bob too, Bob is clearly an alcoholic, but from the clip, you never see him actually put his hands on either women, but I think if there was a more modern version of this film, this would have happen as the directors now try to put across a more serious approach. They want people to take something away from the films. The issues in BSR films have also evolved. There's a repeated issue of having to get by and carry out their mundane tasks across the decades but as time evolves other issues play a bigger part. Some of the major issues now are; drugs, gang violence and peer pressure which are all put on young peoples shoulders, where as before it would've been elder people struggling with money troubles or a related matter. The issues have been more graphic in terms of what they are and how they're presented. Overall I think BSR films now make the audience that watches them think more about the issues faced by the society around them.