Made in Britain (1982)

Director Alan Clarke always had a knack for spotting raw , young British acting talent . He gave breakthrough roles to Ray Winstone in SCUM and Gary Oldman in THE FIRM and in 1982 gave an unknown actor called Tim Roth the lead in this television drama from David Leland . Somewhat surprisingly it took a few years after these breakthrough roles for these three actors to become better known but the star quality all of them showed is in luminous abundance and that's all down to ClarkeRoth plays Trevor a 16 year old Nazi skinhead and what Leland's script is superb at is not portraying Trevor as some sort of misunderstood youth who is just in need of a mere cuddle but in need of some harsher measures . It makes the ironic point that bleeding heart liberals are incapable of understanding that in dealing with violent sociopaths then perhaps draconian solutions themselves bordering on fascism may be needed Indeed Leland's script is replete with irony . Trevor painted not so much as a demon but as someone who sees himself as being merely more honest than society demands lives his life in an honest way . He is racist and wears his racism as a violent badge of honour because it's only hypocrites who don't do this . Appearing in court his caustic attitude and lack of remorse is again a badge of honour . After all it's very cowardly to show repentance and sorrow when you're in court facing serious charges especially when you're not sorry in the slightest . The only difference between Trevor and the average teenager is that Trevor's resentment and anger at the world manifests itself by actions . Remembering my own teenage years wanting to strike back at the oppressive and hypocritical and frankly BS nature of society there is an aspect of recognition that means I could empathise with Trevor and like SCUM this television play was a very memorable for any teenager who saw it . Anyone who puts a concrete slab through a jobcentre window instantly becomes a hero to an umemployed teenager MIB does have the cajones to point out that some people are beyond redemption . You can condition people all you like but at the day some people will be always be racist ( Regardless of their colour ) and violent thugs . To their way of thinking it's the rest of society who are the bad guys because society is contradictory and ruled by hypocits and cowards . The only thing these people respect is a bloody big stick which may shock the bleeding heart liberals but is perhaps the only solution to the problem . If MIB is making the point that the solution is that there are no solutions it does so brilliantly . If there's any reason to be sad watching this it's only to lament how gutless British television has become in the 21st Century . 30 years ago Britannia ruled the television airwaves but not anymore

To those of you who gave this movie a good rating, you can go on all you want about how the characters shocked and captivated you all you like. I was bored out of my freaking mind, not to mention disturbed.Nothing about the performances were memorable. Nothing about the characters enticed me. It was 70 odd minutes of cursing, spitting, growling. The character of Trevor was hardly intelligent or resourceful. He was just a dumb sack of feces that liked to toss bricks, and kick and spit like a mongrel. His lines were not clever, in fact everything about him was pathetic. There was no mood, the lighting was flat, the way it was shot and directed was as stiff and drumming as the social workers and councilors in the movie.If you want to experience human (and cinematic) garbage in all its glory, go ahead, waste your money and life and see this movie.

The movie doesn't emphasize to the reasons that led anti-hero Trevor to this situation but shows the uncontrollable anger of a young man who's dealing with everything that surrounds him (historically that time was very tough for the English people due to Thatcherism). Obviously the director is attending to the English viewers so some may misunderstood his well-meaning intentions. Trevor has no any political relation with fascism or Nazis. Try to remember that scene where Trevor says to his black "fellow" Errol that he's leaving because he has to find his mates. There are no mates! His not going to find his mates. He has create in his mind a pseudo-world of fighters against society no matter what kind of fighters they are, no matter what's their political background. He have to express that anger in a way that has no matter what truly represents. If you see Trevor looks much more with an anarchist than a Nazi (it's not accidental that the intro song is from the anarchic band "The Exploited"). Even Errol is so confused in that confusing time in British history that he's willing to do harm to his homeopaths that is Paki's. Yesterday I saw the film "This Is England" which is close to the main subject of "Made in Britain". It is also a masterwork and i recommend to everyone!

I saw this film whilst studying in London, and though it isn't exactly pleasant, it does capture your imagination. Roth's performance is as brutal and realistic as everyone says, and the rough, hand-held style of the camera-work contributes to its documentary feel. I don't think I am alone when I say these things; however, I hesitate to talk about how this movie stacks up to other films about skinheads, particularly American HISTORY X. The fact that both movies include the nationality of the main characters says it all--as much as we might like to think that all skinheads are alike, insomuch as they are all equally stupid, Trevor wouldn't make sense in America and Derek Vinyard (Ed Norton's Chararter in AHX) wouldn't make sense in Britain. Each character is a unique product of their country's history, politics, racial attitudes, and ideas of self. Thus I don't think either character--or either movie--can really be evaluated in terms of the other. And while the lead performance is captivating, and might be worthwhile for Tim Roth fans (legend has it Tarantino was inspired to cast him in Reservoir Dogs after seeing this performance), I can see why this film has not been a big hit in the United States. As I said before, the issues discussed in the movie are specific to a particular moment in Britain's social history, and don't translate well. For example, the ending shows Trevor and his new black friend teaming up to assault a South-Asian merchant. This cross-racial animosity toward South-Asian immigrants is reflective of Britain' unique experience with multiculturalism, and wouldn't make much sense to Yanks, given our country's racial history and patterns of immigration. I would recommend this film for the lead performance, and perhaps for its potential to inform the viewer about certain aspects of Britain's multicultural history.