Short Analysis of BFI Southbank Films

Cubs (2006)
Director Tom Harper
Cast Harry Eden, Ashley Walters, Tara Hodge, Jared Garfield
Duration 10 minutes

Cubs has a very cunning twist on a very British sport. When watching this short film for the first time my first impressions were that the narrative was going to be gang related then later I was to realise it was about a British sport that I wouldn't have associated with a younger urban generation with. I also though this because the actor Ashley Walters has been in films such as Bullet Boy and Life and lyrics both of which involve gun crime so I associated his usual roles with this short film however I was to be mistaken.

Wasp (2003)
Director Andrea Arnold
Cast Nathalie Press, Danny Dyar
Duration 24 minutes

Wasp is shot in Darford and is an Oscar winning short film. It shows a day in the life of a single working class mum trying to provide for her children. Her immediate concerns are to feed her children and pay the rent. She is to bump into a old flame who she manages to score a date with. His initial opinions of her is that she's pretty carefree and fun person to be around however he is unaware of the extent of how hard life is for her.

The lighting is very grainy and has a yellow tone to it creating a very gritty style to this British film. The working class mum is seen wearing her pyjamas as she goes out to have a fight with a local mum. The fact she wears this connotes that she doesn't care about the way she looks or how she is represented. Later she goes out wearing a short mini skirt which shows her bum and nickers which isn't stereotypical clothing for a mother of four to be wearing. The kids clothes are dirty and not to mention that they looked like they haven't washed in days. The locations used in this film is a council estate connoting that she hasn't got much money and she is likely to be living off the doll. The location they live in is really dirty and grimy and makes it seem like it's a struggle to even survive. The other location used is the local pub which really creates the image of all the local commoners gathering together and getting drunk. Some of the props include a baby and pram which makes her children look like kids it really shows their innocents. The audience get the impression that this women should not be a mother and these children should no have to live like this. Despite this she is constantly reminded of the kids even when shes on a date with a guy when being approached by him before hand she always looks back to her kids. In a way this connotes although she may not be a perfect mother deep down she still cares for her children. The mother often blames the eldest child for the problems that arise this is because she realises that the eldest is doing a better job then her and this puts her to shame which she doesn't like.