Analysis of 'This is england '

Director: Shane Meadows
Released: 2006

the beginning of this opening sequence immediately captures the eye of the spectator, showing a clip of Magarette Thatcher, immediately bringing a sense of British life in the 80's Society to the film as everyone would know such an important figure in British society.

Shane Meadows continues this theme of showing a serious of clips portraying the life of Britain in the 80's for example, clips showings old fashioned TV's, run-down housing areas, graffiti, Rubix cubes - all imagery that relate to the 80's in some way - relating to the audience and their knowledge of this period in time.
It also cleverly potrays the contrast of people, social attitudes and behaviour by showing clips of Princess Diana's and Prince Charles' wedding and Magarette Thatcher giving out a speech which are contrasted against clips showing events such as riots, soildiers the falklands war on the war front, which also engage the spectator more as they are all real clips, when played together, help distinguish the difference of ways of life and attitude in the 80's.

The lack of editing makes a bigger impression of the film to the reader as they are all real footage so it may make it look less realistic, therefore less relateable to an audience. It also doesn't distract the spectator from the mise-en-scene, which focuses the spectators attention more on micro- elements such as costume, setting, behaviour etc.

Shane meadows doesn't involve any diegetic sound in this sequence, he only uses very upbeat music throughout the sequence, which in comparison to the lack of editing, also helps to focus the spectator on the mise-en-scene which is powerful enough without the music, and with it, it may be more chaotic and confusing when the sounds of the different clips are played because they are all quite short clips which may be harder to follow for an audience. The contiunous music relates to the continuous theme of aspects of british society in the 80's.