How are representations of class and 'Britishness' explored in Atonement and This is England?

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How are representations of class and 'Britishness' explored in Atonement and This is England?

In this essay I'm going to compare how the representations of class and 'Britishness' come across to the audience in two award winning British films, Atonement and This is England. Both films are very realistic with what they are portraying and how they portray it. Atonement sticks to the Heritage conventions with big, posh mansions and everyone talking in Received Pronunciation. Although in ways it also subverts from these conventions with the main character coming from a working class background.

This is England is more of a social realistic film, the unattractive settings like Shaun's bedroom and the colourful costumes worn by characters like Smell really give an older audience something to relate to. These films being as realistic and believable as they are make the representations of class and 'Britishness' much more clear to the audience.

This is England represents the working class and Atonement represents both the working class and upper class. We can tell this from watching the first 5 minutes of each film. Shaun is seen in his bedroom which is a very unappealing place. The paint