Review of This Is England (2007) by Paul S — 27 Sep 2011

Ideologies, whether political or religious are, after all, created by man and are unfortunately vulnerable to man's foibles. This is all too evident in the film This Is England, where manifestos become fodder to the people who act upon them.

The film uses the Falkland War as a backdrop - one of the more ridiculous wars in recent memory. Good and loyal Englishmen died trying to keep a bunch of rocks halfway across the world in British hands - never mind that having those rocks has absolutely no value to the Brit populace.

We see an 11 year old boy, Sean (in a wonderful portrayal by Thomas Turgoose) whose father was lost in battle. Being fatherless and frequently bullied at school, he is looking for a place to belong, and perhaps, in a larger sense, looking for a father figure. As the film progresses both are provided. First he is befriended by the leader of a local gang, who appreciate the boy's moxy and quick wit. The gang members are all in their early to mid twenties and do typical bad boy stuff like smashing up the interiors of abandoned housing projects - hooliganism that really isn't hurting anyone.

But the gang and its leader have a past, which is eventually revealed when the leaders "mate" comes back into town after a 3 year prison stay. It then becomes known that the gang are (or were) skinheads, not the Americanized, Nazi loving brand, but more of a nationalist movement (in fact, there is a meeting in the back of a bar with posters urging support of the Nationalist Party). Combo, the ex con (a very strong performance by Stephen Graham), claims that the skinheads are pro English, and not bigots (he reasons that the problem lies in all the Pakistani immigrants who are either on the dole or are taking jobs for cheap, thus robbing hard working English blokes of a decent wage).

Combo woos Sean into staying with his more hardcore version of the gang, while his mentor tells Combo that he's not buying the hype. Sean is duped by Combo who tells him that he's got to stand up and make his father's death have meaning.

Eventually a father/son bond develops between the two, only to be shattered when it is revealed that Combo isn't who he purports to be, leading to a heartwrenching and powerful closing scene that reveals a certain inner strength and gives gravitas to the title.