Read this review...

...of Sexy Beast from Eye Weekly and compare it to this review from Film 4.

Essay question: "To what extent is Sexy Beast a successful British film?"

Consider the following: genre, characters and themes, style (including camerawork, editing and sound), box office/DVD sales, awards and criticism/reviews, representations (gender & class).

Use notes taken in class and personal research work to inform your answer. Use quotes where appropriate.

And the Oscar goes to...

So the Brits didn't fare as well of they might have at the recent Oscars... Never mind, Dame Helen still grabbed the gold statuette for Best Actress. The Best Actor Oscar also went to a British film. This time to Forest Whittaker for his powerhouse performance in Kevin Macdonald's The Last King of Scotland.
Should we really worry about overseas recognition for British films? Should they be made to compete internationally? Should we stick to making films about what it means to be British for a British audience? Your comments...

Welcome...

...to the Thurston Community College Contemporary British Cinema blog. Here you will find useful links and posts relating to the topic which is part of the broader OCR Media Studies Unit 2735 - Media Issues and Debates.

As the title of the unit suggests the best way to do well in this exam is to have a fair grasp of a range of issues and debates surrounding Contemporary British Cinema. In order to do this you need to read widely, view lots of films, think critically, show personal engagement and debate the issues. Remember, this is a synoptic unit so it draws on ALL of the Media Studies Key Concepts.

Posting your own ideas to this blog is an excellent way of engaging with the issues and developing and forming your own opinions. So get clicking and post your comments; or I'll set Don Logan on you!