your favourite British social realism film?

[robotoid97]

Room at the Top (1958)



The Angry Silence (1960)



The Entertainer (1960)



A Taste of Honey (1961)



Kes (1969)

[Gibbie]

name='Moor Larkin' date='03 December 2009 - 06:26 AM' timestamp='1259835966' post='360405']

I'd tend to agree. The ones that always tend to strike a chord with me are the ones that employ a degree of good humour, even if it is ironic. Most people in the midst of grittiness spend a lot of their time laughing (so far as I can remember.... from my gritty days ).





Kes has been mentioned and I'd include Alfie and The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner (off the top of my head). More recently, Billy Eliot seemed to emulate the past masters too. I must admit Room at the Top impressed me at the time I first saw it, although it is more about escaping grittiness than wallowing in it, as was Billy Elliott I suppose....





Perhaps the pre-supposed prevalence of drugs other than alcohol may have changed the face of modern deprivation. It's difficult for me to know without moving back to Kirkby.

For ages, I avoided Alfie as a mere lad film. But, I finally saw it and think it was one of the most brilliant films about social realism. It bridged British daily life with the fantasy world of the 60s. Michael Caine was a taker, but in the end, it was brilliant!



I agree. More recent so-called social realism films have mostly been about wallowing - and I think this has been for decades. It's a documentary, but I still think the Up series is the best reality film there has been in recent times.

[Rowdon]

As I've said elsewhere, I saw The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner last night. I'm not sure of films get much better. It makes serious points without ever taking its eye off the entertainment ball. And to echo Moor Larkin's point, while watching I was thinking how much harder Borstal-type social work must be now, because Col and the others were boys-gone-wrong, but weren't boys-gone-wrong with a smack habit, or alcoholics since the age of ten ...

[supermoo]

I think that the film This Happy Breed Is a good film. Give a real Idea of what society was about. xxx