Explore how one or more of mise-en-scene (including lighting), performance, cinematography, editing and sound construct meaning and provoke response in a film extract.

For this task, I have decided to study Stephen Graham's performance and the use of sound in Shane Meadow's This Is England. I have chosen to analyse Stephen Graham's performance in This Is England because I feel he delivers a very epic performance. I believe his character shows the younger generations of what glorious Britain used to be like back in the '80s and how people thought of other cultures.

Graham plays the character of Combo who is a man of about 30, known at first only by the character of Woody. Everyone sees him as one of the original, proper skinheads. He is seen as a role model to the rest of the characters because of his age and from what Woody tells them. His age gives him the respect and authority. In This Is England when Combo is first introduced we find out that he is racist and very patriotic, as one of the characters has black ethnicity, and racial insults are directed towards him. I think it is quite interesting that Meadows has included a racist in this film as it highlights to audiences just how racist some people were and that back in the ‘80s, racism wasn’t such highly considered as a contemporary issue. Although the insults aren't actually aimed literally at Milky (the black character), as an audience we know that he is aiming the insults at the black community. We find from this that there are certain characters of the group who are also racist or follow his views because of their reactions to the story he is telling. The characters are a bit uneasy after their first experience with Combo, knowing he has offended one of the characters and you can see that when he turns up at the cafe where they're all sat. There is almost an awkward silence just as he walks in, as if they are fearful of him. Combo tries to enforce his views and leadership over the skinheads and this forces a split between Woody’s group. Shaun (the youngest member of the group) decides to go with Combo instead of Woody's apolitical skinheads.

A bit later on the film, Combo becomes depressed after Woody's girlfriend Lol rejects him. Combo claims that he has loved her ever since they had a drunken one night stand years ago. Due to his depression he buys some cannabis off Milky. This leads to the party involving Combo's group and Milky, which I have chosen to study. One thing that is important about Combo's character is his image. He presents himself as an older skinhead with strong political views about England and immigration. Looking at his costume you can tell this alone, because he wears everything that fits to the stereotypical skinhead. This compromises of chequered shirts buttoned up, jeans and Dr Martens boots. As at anytime in an era, there will always be social groups and I think Meadows has gave them these outfits to show what social groups were evident in the 80’s. This helps to show the audience of what Britain was like back then, especially to younger generations who weren’t born in that generation. It is noticeable that at the party he is really enjoying himself socialising, and with him being under the influence, there is a mellow tone about. Upon first entering we hear Combo acknowledge Milky as ‘Milks’ which is a nickname which only he has used. I think Meadows decided to do this so that audiences think that Combo has changed and generally likes him. You can see from his facial expressions that he is enjoying himself, that he loves socialising. Although this could be because of the drink, his attitude towards Milky changes; it seems like he actually doesn’t mind being in his presence. His tone is very light-hearted and warming, which is quite different to the Combo that we have been watching all the way throughout the film. His body language suggests that he is very relaxed and is genuinely have a good time drinking with his group and Milky; that he is overcoming his depression. However, there is one moment in this scene which suggests that something might happen to Milky. This is when Milky first walks in and Combo asks whether anybody has a problem, and it takes Banjo longer to answer than the rest. This connotes that he’s hesitating about saying it is ‘no problem’ for milky to be here. I found this quite ambiguous, that it’s no problem for Milky to be in their presence but also it could suggest that Milky will be no problem to deal with, as if they’re going to hurt him and he’ll be helpless. You can see in this scene that the tone has lifted but there is still an element of fear, and this is purely from his accent. In modern culture there has been the prejudice that scousers or Liverpudlians are quite dirty and scruffy, and with Combo being scouse you still feel on edge watching him, that something might happen. I think Meadows chose to use Stephen Graham because of his accent. His accent is Liverpudlian and people in the audiences commonly associate this with ‘chavs’ or people who cause violence so we assume already without Combo even doing anything that he is a bad character or that something will happen involving him. His interaction with the props and set make us truly believe that it is his house, that he has made himself ‘at home’. This is clear when you can see him laid out on a sofa, with his back against the wall, as if he does that regularly. You can tell by looking at Combo that he is comfortable as his character, and we genuinely believe that the other characters are his friends, and it isn’t just acting. We notice whilst watching this scene, that the tone has changed as there is a silence in the room, and Combo’s voice becomes quieter. This is then assured when Combo asks Milky about his personal life, asking ‘so how many uncles have you got?’ This escalates further and further with Milky telling Combo about his family, and childhood. It almost seems as if Milky is bragging about his family and this infuriates Combo. You can see the real emotion in his eyes that he is nervous (this is clear from him biting his nails) and jealous of what Milky had had, because he wasn’t as fortunate.  Combo looks a little uneasy, and viewers get the impression that something sad is going to happen due to the introduction of some soft melodic music. Following this, it is becomes so clear that the tone has changed and something is going to happen to Milky when Combo says ‘you’ve go’ everything you, haven’ ya?’ in his Liverpudlian accent, highlighting his jealousy.  His facial expressions begin to change and he begins to direct racial insults towards Milky. Everyone recognises that someone is going to happen to Milky and everyone but Banjo seems concerned for Milky’s wellbeing. Combo’s body language suggests that he is irate and is ready for a fight. His interaction with the characters changes, he seems much more aggressive and antisocial. His face starts quivering showing that he is feeling quite emotional. You see that the tone of the party has completely changed when Combo says ‘you’re a nigger aren’t you?’ showing his discrimination and prejudice for people of his ethnicity. Combo continues to insult him and then starts to beat him up as Milky smiles at one of the insults. Everyone in the party sees this to be wrong, except Banjo who’s smiling. Banjo then stops laughing as Combo takes his anger out on everybody else. I think this is a really good performance from Graham as it’s showing the tension that has built up and his hatred for the black community.

 In the end though we discover that this scene in the film shows that Combo is envious of Milky because he has everything that Combo didn’t and it is not actually about race. Combo’s racism is caused by ignorance, confusion and frustration and this gets in the way when he realises that Milky has more in his life than he does. You get this sense that all the black community have everything due to what Milky says and i think this is what makes Combo so racist. Combo then tries to help Milky, and you can see he feels remorse and guilt for what he has done. This is made clear when he starts crying, showing his confusion. The music at the end helps to make this scene really emotional. I think this is a really gripping performance from Graham as it is showing the mental instability of some people. This performance helped audiences understand about the hatred for the black community and views on immigration, and why a certain selection of people hates asylum seekers and immigrants.

The other micro-element i am going to talk about in this scene is the element of sound. I think Meadows effectively uses sound in this scene to make it more emotional. At the very start of the scene there is some use of diegetic sound of ‘Gadget’ singing something after playing a game with the others. The shot then changes with the camera looking at the door as Milky and Combo walk in. Suddenly the sound of Gadget singing or chanting stops and this shows that they  fear of Combo, or that he has the highest authority of them all and they should look up to him. The abrupt cut of sound indicates the intrusion of the two characters and already shows the unease of bringing Milky back to his flat. I think Meadows chose to this to highlight Combo’s superiority amongst the group and as an audience we understand that he is one of the most powerful characters in the film.

As Milky and Combo walk through the door, the sound of the door slamming is quite loud and this signifies the end of the fun and enjoyment which the others were having. As an audience we see that they are clearly a disturbance and that it’s unusual for Milky to be there. It almost sounds like Meadows has amplified the sound of the door slamming so that we understand there is an unusual intrusion.

After everyone assuring that Milky will be ‘no problem’, Combo says to everyone ‘that’s good, that means we can all get stoned’. After this line some music kicks in, almost incidental and it relates to the mood and atmosphere of the party. The reason it’s almost incidental is because it adds to what is happening. However, this music actually does belong to the scene. As an audience we all have a vague idea of how being stoned must feel like just from what we hear and we understand that being ‘stoned’ makes you relax and feel quite lackadaisical so Meadows’ use of music here is almost perfect. It is really quite slow and chilling with a strong bass-line which helps to add to the atmosphere.

Another interesting sound in this sequence is when Gadget is sent outside because he is too hot and once he has left, Combo starts laughing at the state of Gadget which he then gives Milky a high-five and this indicates to the audience that there is unison between them now, and that what happened in the past is forgotten. I thought it was clever of Meadows to include this because we are consistently being shown the friendship or the supposed friendship between Milky and Combo. It almost seems to be unnatural and some audiences might actually realise that Combo is faking the companionship and that something will happen to him.

The soft soul-like music stops and i thought this was really significant that something might occur. Meadows may have included this to make it clear that Meggie is rummaging through the cupboards looking for food. Again the audience assume that this is normal for someone to be hungry after being ‘stoned’. However though, what i think the real reason for the stop in music is to connote that something might happen between Milky and Combo and that the friendship and companionship was just a hoax.

Milky then starts to talk about his family and how fortunate he was, and also he glorifies his childhood with his family. This then sees the introduction of some low melancholic incidental music. You can see the emotion in Combo’s eyes, and it is noticeable that he is envious of Milky. The music suggests to an audience that something quite brutal or depressing might happen. It is clear that the mood and atmosphere has changed between the characters as it is really quiet without much conversation. This is when the beating of Milky starts to happen and the music continues to play to show how bad the beating is and what is happening is wrong. For a brief moment the music stops and this allows you to hear Combo crying and feeling guilty for what he has done. The camera looks at Shaun and there is the ambient sound of Combo crying in the room next to Shaun. As an audience we see that both the characters are upset about what has just happened. As the music has stopped, it connotes that the beating has stopped and he won’t be hurt anymore.

Seconds after that music has stopped there is some more incidental music except it has changed. Still though the music creates the same sort of impression that something tragic has happened. I think Meadows chose to place this music here to suggest that Milky might have died or that he is seriously injured. It suggests to audiences that some people when under the influence just don’t have any control over their mannerisms and what they are doing; that some people don’t know when to stop.

I think Meadows’ use of sound in this sequence is quite breathtaking and it helps us as an audience to feel real emotion for what has happened to Milky. Also it helps us to understand that envy, jealousy and discrimination don’t give us the right to hurt someone. The music is really quite fitting and makes us feel sympathetic but also it questions our own beliefs of what’s right and wrong and that everyone in the world should have equality.