Joe's Analysis

Film Analysis – Sexy Beast

GENRE
Sexy beast belongs to the genre British gangster. Watching the opening 5 minuets of this film it is somewhat evident that the generic conventions of this type of Genre are fulfilled. The main thing that gives you an impression of the British gangster epic is mainly down to the main character played by Ray Winstone and the way he is portrayed in the introduction. In the opening credits most of the footage is of him sunbathing in the sun describing his current situation in his classic east London accent. His accent is the main giveaway when linking the start of this film to British gangster films. His accent is classic and used in nearly all of the big budget Gangster films. The opening sequence gives the impression that Ray Winstone’s character “Gal” the image of a retired gangster living out the rest of his days up in the hills of a hot Mediterranean country away from crime and his former life as a safecracker. The way he is shot in the opening sequence also gives his British nationality away he has obviously been lying in the sun for far too long and is red all over, it is a well known fact that most British people are unable to judge how long they should stay in the sun for and how much sun is good for them thus shooting him almost cooking in the heat. I think that this text treats the characteristics of the genre playfully and there are many things used to show some humour within the first 5 minuets. For example the fact that he is only dressed in skimpy yellow Speedos which show his whole package is somewhat amusing as he is far to old to be wearing that type of swimwear. The types of words he uses also adds humour when describing how hot he is words like “roasting”, “you could fry an egg on my stomach” and “fan dabby dosey – tastic” are all funny ways he uses to let the audience know just how hot and how much he is enjoying himself. But it is also quite ironic that a former gangster has fled abroad to get away from all the crime when you would expect him to be deeply involved in it. Nevertheless he is beside his pool at his villa, surrounded by his fags, beer, and wearing flash sunglasses, all characteristics you would expect to find in a British gangster film.

Film Language
Mise-en-scene is very important when conveying meaning in the opening sequence of Sexy Beast. The setting for example when a retired gangster is thinking of somewhere to retire to it usually involves a place in the sun. Sexy Beast does not challenge this stereotype the opening sequence is shot in a very hot Mediterranean country overlooking the sea, in a villa up in the hills. “Gal” is relaxing by his pool drinking beer with his cigarettes by his side. All of these things are very important when taking into consideration the Mise-en-scene of the British gangster film. What he is wearing is also very important when setting the scene in the opening sequence. His tight yellow Speedos are accompanied with massive black sunglasses and lots of silver ‘bling’. Most gangster films involve lots of jewellery as it shows great wealth and the more jewellery u are seen to be wearing even when sunbathing at home shows the vast wealth that u posses. But his bling does not seem to complement his yellow trunks very well, they maybe are used mainly to ad humour to the text.
The camera shots used in this film are very useful when trying to describe the meaning of the opening sequence. For example there is a long birds eye shot looking down on Gal when he is describing his situation. This shot for example gives you a good look at him in all his glory as you get 2 see he is a slightly overweight man in his 40’s talking to himself. Another shot which I think is used very well is shot from the angle of a boulder rolling down the hill the camera is placed in such a way that you would think it was imbedded within the boulder this shows how fast the boulder is rolling down the hill and how close it was to hitting gal in the head. This shot adds drama and excitement to the shot as you are willing the boulder to miss him and land somewhere else.
The soundtrack used in this film I think is probably one of the contributing factors which makes this opening sequence such a good piece of film making. The song which is used is called ‘Peaches’ and was written by the Stranglers this song is a very British song and I think accompanies this opening sequence very well and this is for many different reasons. Firstly this song was probably released at the time in which Gal was in his prime of his crime career, so anchors the film in time very well. Secondly the tempo of the song is very up beat and chilled out which accompanies the mood in which Ray Winstones character is in at the start of the film. And lastly the lyrics of the song are very cheeky and slightly rude which if you are making a British gangster film are important qualities to uphold in your characters and plot.
The dialogue used in the film is very much of what you would expect of a British person it’s very quick witted and fast in its delivery. The non-verbal language used is mainly do describe how relaxed he is just lounging around beside his pool there are lots of sighs of relief and oh yea’s which show how contented he is. He stands as if he is utterly relaxed also and moves slowly as he has nowhere important to go apart from his chair to the pool.
The only other visual techniques the director uses is when he shows how bright the sun is everything seems slightly brighter than normal this is probably due to the filter used on the camera lens this is effective when showing the suns intensity.

Narrative
Narrative is used in this film when the main character Gal is talking to himself beside the pool. His accent is important in this narrative as he speaks with a very convincing London cockney lad tone. This choice of style is essential when convincing the audience that this man is part of the criminal underworld and one of London’s finest. The audience is positioned in such a way that they are looking down on him whilst he is talking to himself this gives the impression that we hare taking a sneaky peak into his life. Major themes in the narrative are very simple, he describes how hot he is by using an array of different words he then goes on to describe how much he enjoys being in the situation he is in. Tension is created in one way when the narrative appears on screen you wonder why he is there and how he got there. Gal is your typical Londoner so you are interested to find out what has caused him to flee London and move to Spain.

Representation and ideology

There are very few different social groups represented in the beginning of sexy beast. The main Social group would have to be the one played by Ray Winstone and his character Gal. This is the 40+ category; Ray plays the role of a retired Gangster living out the rest of his days in the sun somewhere in Spain. He has seen everything and done so much in his life he is loving the period of relaxation now his life has calmed down. There are only two other characters evident during the opening sequence and these include the pool boy and Gals wife but both of these characters play very small parts at the start of the film and you don’t learn a lot about them.
There is only one main belief evident from the opening sequence and that is one shown by Gal. this is of that he is thoroughly enjoying his life at the moment and he would never give it up, this becomes ironic later on in the film. His belief is highlighted when he says “wouldn’t trade it for anything”.
Gals character is treated very playfully and from what I have seen is not to be taken too seriously. There is one still shot of him in his yellow Speedos stretching over a chair, then the title name flashes up SEXY BEAST this is ironic because he is not the picture of beauty but his ads humour to his character and makes the audience laugh. This then automatically gives you your Anti- hero and someone to like and root for in the film.

Media audiences

The target audience of this film is most likely aimed at young males from the age of about 17 to middle aged men up to the age of 45 who are seeking a bit of action. This is probably due to who is in the film and what they get up to. The main theme of this film is Gang violence and so immediately shoots the target audience towards men who are more interested in this type of film. There is slot of money to be made from the age demographic as they are the people who buy the DVDs and go and watch the films many times.
The most probable way this text is read is one of interest. I think normal people are interested to find out what goes on in the criminal world and what old Gangsters get up to when they retire and move abroad in this case.
I as a male British teenager really enjoy watching this type of film for many reasons. One is because in my everyday life I never see the criminal underworld very much and it is interesting to me to see what they get up to every day. This probably has something to do with my age. At my age I am very interested in all the violence and things that make me laugh and this film hits all those targets. It is more interesting than my everyday life so it is nice to be entertained like this by watching a film. Because things like this are happening all the time all over the world this gives more a real feel to the film.

Institutional context
Yes a star has been used in this film Ray Winstone has been used in many films just like this, as he is perfect to play the cockney role in any film because of his accent. This is a very important quality to poses when being cast for a British Gangster epic. His accent is very important when making this film he plays these types of roles very well and gives credibility to the character.
A major film company called Film Four produced this film and it is an industrial film. I think this film was mainly promoted in England as it includes mainly British actors and it deals with very British themes and problems in society. This suggests that not a lot of international advertising has been done, as other nationalities will not be able to relate with in the same way with the characters and what is going on.