A Clockwork Orange and Kidulthood.

After watching the opening scenes of 'A Clockwork Orange' and 'Kidulthood', violence is immediately identifiable and there were a number of similarities and differences.

In Kidulthood, it explores the social experience of inner city life - with drugs, sex, teenage pregnancy and violence being the daily norm. The film is focused on the youth and how they use violence to deal with issues and even when it is not needed. One of the main reasons why they use violence is to gain authority and power in their area so they get known. The film has a sense of social realism in the inner city of London so the audience can relate to some of the characters and reflect on the issues that should be under consideration in life.The opening scene immediately portrays a negative ambience to the audience as it is apparent the students are aggressive, rebellious and boisterous. Camera shots that cut in between shows different groups of people and it tells the audience who the violent ones are and who the frequently bullied ones are. Although no information is given at the very start of the film, you can see that some of the girls are wearing hooped earrings with their hair tied up at the side of the head, this automatically makes the audience think they are the stereotypical unfriendly 'chavs'. The characters are not scared of the teachers and the teachers are even intimidated by them, this shows that the teachers are aware of what the youth are capable of and they’re not afraid of doing it. The scene where an innocent girl looks over to a gang of unpleasant girls, an older boy named Sam, presumably a sixth form student, tells the leader of the gang that he wouldn’t let her get away with it and encourages her to do it. This foreshadows the girl getting brutally battered. When she gets beaten up, it regularly cuts to her point of view to show how fierce the leader of the gang is and how close she is to the weak girl which creates a sense of claustrophobia and suspense. As you see the bully raising her arm and tightening her fingers to form a fist, the audience is aware of what is going to happen; the girl getting punched in the face. The camera cuts very quickly when the fist is close to the girl's face to make it seem as if the bully did actually hit her. The vulnerable girl falls down to the floor and when you see it from her point of view again, a high angle shot is used to make the bully seem very powerful. The students witnessing this shocking moment do not help the poor, bleeding girl. Although they do not tell the audience that they cannot help, it is already clear that the gang is threatening and that if the students help, they will also be like the defenceless girl, getting verbally and physically bullied. Language also plays a major role in this film as most of the characters in the film communicate through dialect/slang to one another, swear words and insults are used excessively and effectively throughout the film to create a very violent atmosphere. The way they speak is very common which proves that they are from the inner city. The film also stereotypes black people or people wearing tracksuit bottoms as 'gangsters' or 'chavs' and the way they wear their uniform also tells the audience that they are deliberately not following the school rules.

In ‘A Clockwork Orange’, the film is also focused on the youth; however the actors are much older than what they are in the film. The film is thought-provoking with a very dark se

nse of humour. The director divides the nature of violence in a darkly ironic satire. In the opening scene, the leader of the gang Alex, is introduced by a close up shot, forcing the audience to spot his strange 'fashion sense?' - false eyelash stuck on his right eye. The voiceover of him talking begins to play in the background whilst the camera is still focusing on him, I believe it is done intentionally so the audience would feel edgy and uncomfortable of what the film has to offer. The camera then slowly zooms out showing all of his 'droogs', holding bats and chains. The misé-en-scene makes it clear to the reader that the props they're holding will be used/have been used. This allows the audience to prepare for

shock. We then see Alex and his droogs talking to an old tramp. However it is clear what the gang wants to do and they mock the old man when he begs for money. Shot reverse shots are used for the short conversation that they have before they savagely attack the old tramp just because he was singing, we as an audience, are forced to strongly dislike the characters as they are behaving unfairly and psychotically. It is also clear that they do not use violence just for authority/recognition, but purely to satisfy their desire for a 'good laugh'. The way they speak differs greatly to the way the characters speak in Kidulthood. Alex and his droogs speak a peculiar language, some words recognisable and some which appear foreign to us. Although it seems as if it is an invented language to make Alex's group stand out even more, Alex's parents also speak it so it is clear that it is not some sort of unique language they share between them.

Both films contain heavy violence with strong language. They have no respect for anyone, even elderly people except their mothers, this is rather interesting as the main characters (Sam and Alex) are clearly uncontrollable yet they speak calmly and treat their mothers well. However, the parents are totally oblivious to what their children are up to and they do not even question them when they are told such repetitive lies (e.g. the scene where Alex misses school for a week and claims that sleeping will make him feel better). Dramatic irony is created as the audience are aware of what is happening but the parents do not, this makes us feel more engaged to the film. Overall, Kidulthood and A Clockwork Orange portray teenagers as sinful and that violence is the answer to their problems.