This Is England (2006)
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A troubled boy finds himself caught in the orbit of a radicalized skinhead gang in 1980s England.
The story
In July 1983, Shaun Fields is a troubled 12-year-old boy living with his widowed mother in the East Midlands. Alienated and frequently antagonized at school, Shaun finds himself in a fight on the last day of the term. He subsequently encounters a gang of young skinheads led by Richard "Woody" Woodford. Woody, who feels sympathy for the boy, invites him to join their group. As Shaun is initiated into the gang, he begins to bond with the members and their leader, a charismatic but unstable man named Combo, whose radical views begin to influence the group's direction and the lives of those involved.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
In 1983, 12-year-old Shaun Fields, an alienated boy in the East Midlands, is invited to join a skinhead gang led by Woody. The group includes members like Milky, Pukey, and Gadget. After being initiated, Shaun bonds with Woody and his girlfriend, Lol, while also pursuing a relationship with a New Romantic girl named Smell. The dynamic shifts when the gang is joined by Combo, a charismatic but unstable man with sociopathic tendencies and radical nationalist views. Combo manipulates the group, eventually causing a split where Shaun and several others choose to follow him. Under Combo's influence, the group engages in escalating acts of intimidation and violence, including a brutal assault on Milky, who is left in a coma. After a period of internal turmoil and the realization of the violence they have committed, the group fractures. The film concludes with a somber moment where Shaun, reflecting on his past and his father's death, discards a gift from Combo on a beach.
- First release year
- 2006
- Runtime (minutes)
- 102
- Production countries
- United Kingdom
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Shane Meadows
- Writers
- Shane Meadows · writer
- Cast and characters
- Thomas Turgoose · Shaun Fields; Stephen Graham · Andrew "Combo" Gascoigne; Jo Hartley · Cynthia Fields; Joe Gilgun · Richard James "Woody" Woodford; Vicky McClure · Frances Lorraine "Lol" Jenkins; Andrew Shim · Michael "Milky"; Rosamund Hanson · Michelle "Smell"; Andrew Ellis · Gary "Gadget" Flowers
- Genres
- drama; coming-of-age
- Themes
- radicalization; identity; subculture; racism
- Tone and mood
- gritty; somber
- Premise and plot tags
- coming-of-age; historical drama
- Franchise connections
- This Is England
- Content notes
- violence
- Reception
- The film received critical acclaim and was praised for its portrayal of working-class youth in the 1980s.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 86 · scale: 100 · review count: 23
- Awards and nominations
- Best British Film · British Academy Film Awards · 2007 · won
- Production trivia
- The lead actor, Thomas Turgoose, was 13 at the time of filming and had never acted before.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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