Both Billy’s are very thin and appear to be energetic. It also comes across that both Billy’s are very proud of themselves. For example in Billy Elliot, Billy stands up for himself against his father when he tries to stop him going to ballet by belittling him. In Kes there is an incident where McDowell a bigger boy than Billy, picks a fight with him. Billy stands up for himself and fights McDowell.
Both Billy’s also dislike school. This is evident in Kes from when Billy gets in trouble for falling asleep in assembly and from Billy Eliot when Billy daydreams in class and has to be nudged to pay attention. They both clearly prefer their newfound hobbies to school.
There families are similar in both films also. All members of the families are fairly distant from one another and there are constant arguments happening between them. When studying the families of both Billy Elliot and I found that one of the main similarities is that both are one-parent families. With Billy Elliot there is the father, the older brother, Billy, and the Grandma, the mother of the family died. With Kes there is the mother, Jud (older brother) and Billy, the father moved away.
Inside both families it appears that the parents have little control over their children. This is apparent in Billy Elliot when Billy goes against his father’s will and continues to learn ballet. In Kes Jud has no respect for his mother and he and Billy do not listen to her. Jud treats her as a disliked drinking partner.
There is also a comparison to make with the two brothers in the families. They are both older than the two Billys at about twenty years old. In Billy Elliot the brother at first appears aggressive towards Billy but gradually we see that he loves Billy although he has difficulty showing this. This is clear form the affectionate two finger salute (swearing) he gives Billy when he goes off to ballet school. In Kes the brother (Jud) clearly doesn’t care about Billy at all, he treats Billy as his slave. This is clear when Billy spends Jud’s betting money and Judd tries to find him but can’t so he kills the kestrel, the only thing Billy really cares about. The main similarity in this point is that both brothers do something unexpected. Billy Elliot’s brother supports Billy and at the end goes to watch his ballet. Judd kills the bird.
It is also clear that in Billy Elliot they are dependent on each other, yet in Kes they are non-dependant. Examples of dependence in Billy Elliot are the family care for their Grandma. Whereas in Kes Jud doesn’t care about his mother or Billy and the mother appears to only concern herself with her children’s matters when necessary.
When looking at the communities in both films I have found that there are a few key similarities. One of them is that the films are set in North England, because of this the dialects of the characters are obvious, and the way in which they lead their lives is similar.
It is clear also that in both films the community’s are poor. This is apparent in Billy Elliot as most families live in housing estates, eat poor food and Billy always wears the same clothes. It is clear in Kes from the family’s houses, their food, Billy’s shabby clothes and that he has to steal a library book, as he cannot afford it. I think the director intended this to show working class stereotype.
This similarity ties in with another; in both films they are mining communities. Although miners did not get particularly poor wages, both families were dependent on this income. In Billy Elliot the father and the brother both worked in the mines, which provided a comfortable income to rent a house on the estate, (the fact they went on strike consequently not earning money is irrelevant to my point) but not to buy a bungalow where the middle class people would live. In Kes it was the brother (Jud) who worked in mines and he brought in the highest income, the mother had a job, which didn’t bring in much money. Despite Jud being represented as tight with money, this point could also be considered a family similarity.
Another difference to comment on is linked with one of the similarities, the mining community. In Billy Elliot it is clear by the riots and panic that the community relies on mining. It is also clear, as there do not appear to be many other jobs available in the community. However in Kes the community is not based around mining. This is clear because there is a village where alternative work is available and the mother has a different job.
The two films endings are extremely different. Billy Elliot ends on a particularly positive note and may be considered a Hollywood style ending with huge success and a happy ever after. I find Kes on the other hand displays a more realistic outlook upon life with a more tragic ending. It shows how things don’t always work out and everyone can’t be a success. A strong example of my point would be that the ending of Kes is unresolved, the mother is still unloving and the death of the bird has thrown Billy and Jud further apart.
To conclude I feel that Billy Elliot and Kes are two very realistic films. It is rare to have two such similar films, each of a high quality, yet made a generation apart. Considering Kes was made in 1970 and Billy Elliot was made in 2000, it is fair to say that Kes may have influenced the producers of Billy Elliot in making their own film. They could have used some of their ideas (e.g. one parent family) and filming techniques to make there own ‘child’ story.
Obviously the differences (although it does not appear so in my essay) greatly exceed the similarities. However I do feel that it is unusual to have two films with so many similarities, yet if you watched one it may not remind you of the other, this is to their credit.
The most similar part of the two films is the main characters (Billy in both cases), because of the way they both retreat to their passionate interest. The most different part of the two films is the families. In Kes they are non-dependent and do not appear to support one another. Yet in Billy Elliot it is very clear that in the end they not only support one another but also care for and love each other, as displayed in the ending of the two films.