Contemporary British cinema since 1995

This article considers the working practices of British cinema's only major female film producer during the early-to-mid post-Second World War era, Betty E. Box (1915–99). Via reference to her extensive archive at the British Film Institute and the films Campbell's Kingdom (1957), The Wind Cannot Read (1958) and Hot Enough for June (1964), the article charts how Box initially envisaged multi-generational casting for roles that were eventually taken by long-term collaborator Dirk Bogarde. It considers the manner in which she approached the diplomatic complexities of location shooting, with particular focus on Ralph Thomas's military romance The Wind Cannot Read, the first British film to be shot in India for twenty years at the time of its production. The reasoning for Box's ongoing absence, as a female creative figure, from scholarship addressing British cinema, and film production more generally, will also be addressed.

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E. Anna Claydon, The Representation of Masculinity in British Cinema of the 1960s: ‘Lawrence of Arabia’, ‘The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner’ and ‘The Hill’

Journal of British Cinema and Television ◽

10.3366/jbctv.2007.4.2.408 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 4 (2) ◽

pp. 408-410

Author(s):

Andrew Spicer

Keyword(s):

Distance Runner ◽

Long Distance ◽

British Cinema ◽

The 1960S ◽

The Hill

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Restrained Airs: The Diegetic Surface and Nondiegetic Depth of British Film Music

Journal of British Cinema and Television ◽

10.3366/jbctv.2019.0493 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 16 (4) ◽

pp. 429-443

Author(s):

Paul Mazey

Keyword(s):

Film Music ◽

The World ◽

British Cinema ◽

Film Making ◽

The Way

This article considers how pre-existing music has been employed in British cinema, paying particular attention to the diegetic/nondiegetic boundary and notions of restraint. It explores the significance of the distinction between diegetic music, which exists in the world of the narrative, and nondiegetic music, which does not. It analyses the use of pre-existing operatic music in two British films of the same era and genre: Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949) and The Importance of Being Earnest (1952), and demonstrates how seemingly subtle variations in the way music is used in these films produce markedly different effects. Specifically, it investigates the meaning of the music in its original context and finds that only when this bears a narrative relevance to the film does it cross from the diegetic to the nondiegetic plane. This reveals that whereas music restricted to the diegetic plane may express the outward projection of the characters' emotions, music also heard on the nondiegetic track may reveal a deeper truth about their feelings. In this way, the meaning of the music varies depending upon how it is used. While these two films may differ in whether or not their pre-existing music occupies a nondiegetic or diegetic position in relation to the narrative, both are characteristic of this era of British film-making in using music in an understated manner which expresses a sense of emotional restraint and which marks the films with a particularly British inflection.

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‘Good enough for a spot of lippy anyway’: Rape and the Body Politic in My Brother Tom

Journal of British Cinema and Television ◽

10.3366/jbctv.2013.0139 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 10 (2) ◽

pp. 358-373

Author(s):

Louise Wilks

Keyword(s):

Sexual Abuse ◽

Female Body ◽

Body Politic ◽

The Body ◽

Sexual Violation ◽

Female Protagonist ◽

British Cinema ◽

Hollywood Movies ◽

Contemporary Cinema ◽

Rape Narratives

The representation of rape continues to be one of the most highly charged issues in contemporary cinema, and whilst many discussions of this topic focus on Hollywood movies, sexual violation is also a pervasive topic in British cinema. This article examines the portrayal of a female's rape in the British feature My Brother Tom (2001), a powerful and often troubling text in which the sexual violation of the teenage female protagonist functions as a catalyst for the events that comprise the plot, as is often the case in rape narratives. The article provides an overview of some of the key feminist academic discussions and debates that cinematic depictions of rape have prompted, before closely analysing My Brother Tom's rape scene in relation to such discourses. The article argues that the rape scene is neither explicit nor sensationalised, and that by having the camera focus on Jessica's bewildered reactions, it positions the audience with her, and powerfully but discreetly portrays the grave nature of sexual abuse. The article then moves on to examine the portrayal of sexual violation in My Brother Tom as a whole, considering the cultural inscriptions etched on the female body within its account of rape, before concluding with a discussion of the film's depiction of Jessica's ensuing methods of bodily self-inscription as she attempts to disassociate her body from its sexual violation.

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