This is England '86

In 2006, English writer-director Shane Meadows (A Room for Romeo Brass, Dead Man's Shoes) reasserted his standing as one of Britain's hottest talents with the semi-autobiographical This is England. Based on his childhood experiences in the Midlands, the 1983-set drama was a thoughtful coming-of-age drama. Imbued with angry anti-Margaret Thatcher sentiment and authentic social realism, This is England skilfully essayed the experiences of a bullied child Shaun (Thomas Turgoose) and his relationship with a group of multi-racial, apolitical skinheads - which is fractured with the arrival of the increasingly intolerant ex-con Combo (Stephen Graham).

Incorporating file footage of then-PM Thatcher and the Falklands War, Meadows' film beautifully illustrated the relationship with ideology and racism. The affirmative and positive group is tainted by the advent of hard-right nationalism and bigotry, and Combo's politics eventually lead to a fragmentation of Shaun's company of friends. Meadows communicated this disintegration with tremendous restraint and - as a result - his film warranted some of the best reviews of its year. Certainly, the film was much more responsible than several similarly themed films about disenfranchised cultures, which often resort to traditional movie tropes like fight scenes and Henry V-like speeches to compensate for their absence of true psychological insight.     

Following smaller endeavours like the Turgoose-starring Somers Town and the mockumentary Le Donk & Scor-zay-zee, Meadows worked with Film4/Channel 4 to develop a sequel to England in the form of a four-part television series. This is England '86 picks up with most of the same characters (and cast) around three years after the events of This is England. Combo has been imprisoned and Shaun has become detached from his former friends, who - in the first episode - are celebrating the imminent wedding of the kindly Woody (Joe Gilgun) and Lol (Vicky McClure). Fate, however, intervenes for a second time and Shaun soon reconnects with the group after the couple's botched wedding.     

Broadcast in September 2010, the series is more of a collaborative effort than the original, which was solely written and directed by Meadows. Jack Thorne co-wrote the four episodes with Meadows, whilst Tom Harper directed the first two episodes (Meadows filmed the final two eps).  

This is England '86 surprises not only because of its outstanding quality or its natural transition to the small screen, but because it is an even greater achievement than its predecessor. Unwilling to simply regurgitate the original's political themes and Shaun-focused story structure, Meadows and his collaborators instead adopt an ensemble format, resulting in an unusually intelligent and unconventional sequel. Shaun is still a major character, but - this time - he shares focus with Woody, Lol and their childhood friend, Milky (Andrew Shim).

Meadows gives the supporting characters a chance to develop into more fully rounded human beings. Most of the characters are rich in comedy and pathos, and the filmmakers skilfully flesh out their struggles away from the previously central Shaun and his arc. Woody and Milky are no longer simply Shaun's friends and defenders, but a pair of long-time friends struggling with trust issues. The group's joker Gadget (Andrew Ellis) is given added dramatic and comic depth with a subplot involving his short-lived relationships with a single mother and her child.

McClure's Lol, though, most obviously benefits from the series' longer format. Meadows previously gave hints to Lol's relationship with the much older Combo. However, in This is England '86, he is given greater reign to explore Lol's abusive childhood, focusing on her violent, sexual relationship with deadbeat father Mick (Johnny Harris) and how it negatively impacts upon her and her relationships.    

Meadows should be applauded for attempting something this audacious: exploring different thematic concerns than the original. In This is England '86, Meadows focuses on forgiveness and transformation. The filmmakers place their characters into complicated, anguished situations and question whether they are capable of change and escaping their self-destructive patterns. This is not entirely grim: in fact, Meadows incorporates ample upbeat humour. (In the first and third episodes, Perry Fitzpatrick gives a hysterically funny performance as a moped-riding bully, who blames Shaun for his failings with women). However, the film eventually darkens into an unsettling tone, in which forgiveness becomes increasingly unlikely for some (and previously troubled characters find the potential for possible redemption).

Meadows - who has worked with some of these young actors multiple times - shows incredible trust in their capacity to handle sequences so complicated and challenging. McClure, in particular, handles these difficult transitions with dimension and Graham - in a late, but a thematically important role - give the series its most powerful and convincing moments. However, the entire cast is good, and Meadows does an excellent job in getting naturalistic responses from the ensemble in multi-character scenes, giving each character an individual beat.  

Rich and multi-dimensional, This is England '86 is an outstanding sequel, enriching the original's achievement with greater character development and depth.