Bullet boy

Director: Saul Dibb

Year: 2004

Genre: Drama

Bullet boy is a film set in hackney - london and it follows an 18 year old boy just as he comes out of prison and the impact he has on his family.

he is dropped straight back into a world of crime and after missing a meeting with his parole officer he has just one more chance to stay legitimate or he will go back to jail. however he is dragged into doing some illegal things by his friend, out of loyalty and guilt. soon he is in too deep and his, his family's, and his girlfriends lives are in danger.

as an older brother he is a very strong positive influence on his little brother cutis and his illegal actions rub off on curtis. after curtis finds his gun and shows his friend, he accidentally shoots him. the family home is raided by the police, and eventually ricky is shot in revenge of his firends actions.

i think this film makes a very strong statement about crime, and how it effects more than just one person.

Sweet Sixteen

Director: Ken Loach

Year: 2002

Genre: Drama

Sweet Sixteen is a British film, documenting the life of liam. a Glaswegian school drop out 15 year old. We join the film where he is making trouble for the police, this scene helps to establish his character and class. we are then shown his extended family and learn thaty his mother is in prison. we can see that he is heavily bullied by his grandfather and his mothers boyfriend. this means that we immediatley feel sorry for him although the first shot established him as a trouble maker.

throughout the course of the film liam is faced with many decisions to bring himself out his rut and prove himself as a usefull man, however these decisions are not without cost.

No Country for Old Men

Director: Coen Brothers
Year: 2007
Genre: Drama/thriller

no country for old men is a film about an average trailer-trash man who stumbles upon millions of dollars, and a psychopathic killer who is trying to find him. the film mainly follows these two characters but there is an interesting side plot about a county sherrif who is investigating the crime scene where the money was found.
The narrative in this film is interesting, as i believe the Coen brothers designed it to be. it is a linear rarrative in that the story procede's at a steady pace, and no part of it is repeated from another persons point of view. however the story does document a plot but from three differet perspectives. at a first impression the story line is confusing, but the directors have cleverly asnwered some of the viewers questions about one plotline, in another.
however the part of the narrative that i think is interesting is that the plot lines of both characters but the sherrif, are very directly linked in places like gun fights and phone calls. but the sherrif never meets either of the other main characters but is still linked to them indirectly. for example the sherrif never has any direct contact with the other two main chracters. but he is linked to the trailer trash man by his wife asking the sherrif for help.
eventually the man is killed, ironically not by the psychopath and the plotline ends with his wife. the other two plotlines are not tied up as both characters end up not completing their goals. this film in brilliantly made and although it doesn't provide the viewer satisfaction of knowing all that went on, or a happy ending, it still has significantly meaningfull veins running through it.

Enemy at the Gates

Director: Jean-Jaques Annaud
Year: 2001
Genre: Drama, History, War









Enemy at the gates is set in 1940's Russia and follows a russian soldier called Vasilli Zaitsev (Jude Law) as he becomes a symbol of hope for the russian war effort.

In one of the early scene's we are introduced to commisar Danilov (Joseph Feinnes) as he is fleeing from a german tank. He takes cover and hides in an old town square where he meets Zaitsev. This scene is a turning point for the whole film. Not only do the two main characters meet, but it is where the main character proves himself to the audience.
In order to escape the two must take out a german patrol. As he takes the officers out one by one a foot soldier see's him and starts to take out a grenade. This adds suspense because Zaitsev is firing whenever a bomb drops to disguise the shot. Therefore he is taking them out without the others noticing. If the foot soldier opened fire then he would be out numbered and killed. The suspense is made by the fact that we do not know if zaitsev will reload fast enough to kill the soldier before its too late.
Also at the point at which the shot is fired thefilming is in slow motion. This adds effect and maximises the effect on the audience when the bullets hit their targets. This is furthur enhanced by the fact that the sound of the gunshot is extra audible and shocks the audience.