A great film by a great director
This is England tells the story of Shaun (Thomas Turgoose), an isolated 12-year-old kid growing up without a father in the north of England. Set during the summer holidays of 1983, we watch his rites of passage from a shaggy haired ruffian grieving...
- 06.April.2011
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- by: muddyclay
- muddyclay rated this movie
 9/10Amazing
A great film by a great director
This is England tells the story of Shaun (Thomas Turgoose), an isolated 12-year-old kid growing up without a father in the north of England. Set during the summer holidays of 1983, we watch his rites of passage from a shaggy haired ruffian grieving the loss of his father into a shaven headed tike whose anger and pain are embraced by the local skinhead fraternity.
The inspiration for this project came from Shane Meadows' own experience as a young skinhead growing up in the period in which the film is set.
Along the way, Shaun is bullied at school for his secondhand clothes and goes on to meets Combo (Stephen Graham), an older, racist skinhead who has recently got out of prison. As Combo’s gang harass the local ethnic minorities, the course is set for a rite of passage that will hurl Shaun from innocence to experience.
The film captures the mood of the time perfectly, as well as the allure of being part of a gang and the tribal suspicion of foreigners. Like all of Shane Meadows' films, the acting is faultless, with two particularly stunning performances from Stephen Graham and Thomas Turgoose - a kid who who was recruited from an amusement arcade to star in the film.
Well worth watching.
- 06.April.2011
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- by: muddyclay
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Changed the way I think about Skinheads. Also shows how one or a couple of decisions can pave the rest of your life.
- 27.September.2010
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- by: pibb55
- pibb55 rated this movie0/10
Changed the way I think about Skinheads. Also shows how one or a couple of decisions can pave the rest of your life.
- 27.September.2010
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- by: pibb55
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I loved the movie until it did a 180 mid-way through and became silly. I agree with another reviewer that there was no reasoning behind the villain. It seemed out of character for the boy to gang up with the skinheads and the ending scene was just...
- 30.June.2010
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- by: lintacious
- lintacious rated this movie4/10Disappointing
I loved the movie until it did a 180 mid-way through and became silly. I agree with another reviewer that there was no reasoning behind the villain. It seemed out of character for the boy to gang up with the skinheads and the ending scene was just ridiculous. American History-X is a much better movie of this taste.
- 30.June.2010
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- by: lintacious
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AN INTENSE AND GRIPPING FILM THAT IS RELENTLESS AND SHOCKING. While the topic of racism is what many will talk about, this film is about loneliness and a young boy searching for a father figure. Unfortunately that father figure is a complete...
- 23.March.2009
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- by: prozac pop
- prozac pop rated this movie8/10Great
AN INTENSE AND GRIPPING FILM THAT IS RELENTLESS AND SHOCKING. While the topic of racism is what many will talk about, this film is about loneliness and a young boy searching for a father figure. Unfortunately that father figure is a complete hateful madman with pain that actor Stephen Graham captured unlike many actors could. Not many negetives about this film except that one particular scene was VERY brutal but it was important to the storytelling of this film. A haunting film that is a must see and highly recommend.
- 23.March.2009
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- by: prozac pop
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Quite a powerful film. The story is simple, without any real twists or turns..which is refreshing; also, this straightforward story really allows us a chance to breathe inside a world we are not really familar with (at least, not many of us). The...
- 20.March.2009
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- by: sethdellinger
- sethdellinger rated this movie0/10
Quite a powerful film. The story is simple, without any real twists or turns..which is refreshing; also, this straightforward story really allows us a chance to breathe inside a world we are not really familar with (at least, not many of us). The actors really shine (I wish I knew their names, I'd give specific props); their collective abilites to play human characters while also communicating a certain hard-edged 'toughness' is beyond admirable. Most notable is the child actor (who carries the film) and the leader of the pack (the guy who returns from prison). these two actors convey such rich and varied inner lives that I came to truly love them. This film can be rough to watch at parts (although it is not gruesome, gory or gratuitous by any means) but it is richly rewarding. I only gave it four stars due to the opening and closing montage scenes, which attempt to blow the film up into something larger than it is; this film is not about England on the whole, or some large backward-looking politcal screed; it is a small film about a small group of friends, and should have been treated as such.
- 20.March.2009
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- by: sethdellinger
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"This Is England" concerns an 11-year-old boy during Britain's Fauklands war, in which his father is killed. The lonely kid is picked on, but tough. He's adopted by bunch of friendly skinheads who become his new family. Things get out of hand when a...
- 19.March.2009
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- by: Vic
- Vic rated this movie6/10Okay
"This Is England" concerns an 11-year-old boy during Britain's Fauklands war, in which his father is killed. The lonely kid is picked on, but tough. He's adopted by bunch of friendly skinheads who become his new family. Things get out of hand when a skinhead psycho who's been in prison returns and takes over the gang, leading it to the dark side of racism and violence. The film is affecting and enjoyable, even if some elements of the plot are predictable and hard to believe (like the boy's romance with a cartoonish skinhead girl much older than he is). Sound is not Dolby 5.1 and there are no DVD extras.
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Amazing movie, opens up with the world of a boy who is bullied and then expands into the theme of 1980s Nationalism and Skinhead movement. Powerful moments and plot turns that left me with my mouth wide open.
- 18.March.2009
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- by: bigfuzzybear
- bigfuzzybear rated this movie10/10Must See
Amazing movie, opens up with the world of a boy who is bullied and then expands into the theme of 1980s Nationalism and Skinhead movement. Powerful moments and plot turns that left me with my mouth wide open.
- 18.March.2009
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- by: bigfuzzybear
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amazing
It is considered to be one of the best British movies in the last decade and I can certainly see why. This dramatic movie is truly great, the kid acts like he's a veteran actor and does his part exceptionally well. The movie has many disturbing...
- 21.September.2008
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- by: barak gilon
- barak gilon rated this movie8/10Great
amazing
It is considered to be one of the best British movies in the last decade and I can certainly see why. This dramatic movie is truly great, the kid acts like he's a veteran actor and does his part exceptionally well. The movie has many disturbing scenes, the director is out to comment on the futility of war and the hypocrisy of British society in general. Not easy to watch and at times even difficult, this movie is a bleak dramatic masterpiece.
- 21.September.2008
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- by: barak gilon
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