Film Studies Minor (Level 3)
Media, Communications and Culture Dual Honours (Level 3)
Media, Communications and Culture Minor (Level 3)
For economic reasons British Cinema has had a chequered history, especially since the 1960s. At all times, however, British directors have sought engagement with social issues, and many leading directors have striven to cast a critical eye on contemporary social and political events.
This module will seek to track the development of British society as it has been reflected in the British movie over the last five decades. It begins with a concentration on the pioneering films and directors of the 1960s, before moving through later decades to focus on the most recent developments. Participants on this course will be introduced to key social themes: working class culture (Saturday Night &©s Blow-Up) and dystopian anxiety about the implications of social and cultural change (If ... and A Clockwork Orange). Later films will concentrate both on the depiction of the underside of British society in My Beautiful Laundrette, My Name is Joe and This Is England, while multicultural modern Britain will also feature in My Beautiful Laundrette, Secrets and Lies, East is East, Bend it Like Beckham, Dirty Pretty Things and It&©s a Free World. At the same time students will be introduced to the work of some of the most important directors working in Britain over the last 40 years, including Lindsay Anderson, Ken Loach, Stanley Kubrick, Mike Leigh, Stephen Frears and Shane Meadows.
To build on students&© understanding of British society and representations of it in an historical context;
To develop their abilities to analyse, argue and discuss;
To develop their abilities to relate historical contexts to the present
will be achieved by assessments: 1, 2
critically assess the relationships between sociological and cultural discourses will be achieved by assessments: 1, 2
make critical and creative use of cinematic and cultural materials in interpreting historical and contemporary British Society.
will be achieved by assessments: 1, 2
apply challenging concepts in the analysis of cinematic texts will be achieved by assessments: 1, 2
assess the usefulness of a variety of theoretical models in the analysis of film will be achieved by assessments: 1, 2
38 hours seminar preparation
60 hours assessment preparation
30 hours film viewing
Students will write an essay chosen from a list distributed at the start of the course.
students select two essay-style questions from a list of options. The questions will be based on the module contents.
This document is the definitive current source of information about this module and supersedes any other information.