Opening Sequence Analysis Conventions of a British Social Realist Film – Mike Leigh’s Happy Go Lucky (2008)

- Mise En Scene (4 images)

In this shot we see a woman with bright blue clothing, boots, on a bike riding on the road. Her casual costume connotes that she is an easy going and average looking person. There is nothing flashy about her costume that differentiates her from others; this conforms to British Social Realist conventions as the character reflects an ‘ordinary’ person. The lighting is high key, connoting that she is happy, and the mood of the narrative is the same. The set has buildings and trees in the back and a traffic light, the set connotes that it is possibly set in the city; this is different to the usual run down estate areas which we see in other British Social Realist films. This creates an idea that Britain is a quite cheery place, which creates a light hearted atmosphere connoting themes of none too serious matters, perhaps relationships. It creates the idea that comedy is also another genre of the film, as well as

British social realism.

In this shot we see the bright red bus in the background with the protagonist in the foreground. The red bus is an iconic sign of London. With her riding in the foreground, it

shows that Britain is a simple and carefree place to live. The lighting is natural, which conforming to the conventions, as it shows everything as it is, without exaggerating it. From this, it gives the idea that the film most likely has a mundane narrative, conforming to British social realist ideology.

In this shot, we see the protagonist, smiling. The lighting is natural, but high key connoting a very happy and joyful atmosphere. The background connotes that life in Britain must be easy going as there isn’t a busy scene, but people walking at a relaxed pace. It portrays the character as a care free character, living in a relaxed and somewhat mundane area. This hints at themes of relationships, most likely something happening in the character’s life that either makes it better or more exciting or worse. But the title connotes that it’s carefree (after the phrase) therefore it is most likely has a more comedic narrative.

In this image we see more colours, yet the character’s costume stands out against the other on the set. It shows that the main character is most likely very eccentric. Her blue laden costume represents her as a very happy person, and the people around her look bleaker in dull greys and mute greens. This reinforces that she is different from others. This could possibly hint at her and her relationship with others and the outcome of it from her personality.

Editing (2 images)

There are simple editing used in the opening sequence. In the first image above a wipe was used for the transition of one title to another. This smooth transition emphasises the atmosphere and idea that the audience have made from the title Happy Go Lucky, as being a very calm and happy atmosphere. The use of simple editing techniques such as a wipe keeps the audience more focused to what is actually happening in the film rather than elaborate editing techniques. This is conventional as British social realist film keep the editing quite simple, because of budgets and making sure to not break the verisimilitude, which keeps it different from other types of films. There is use of fade in/out for text as it moves from different titles in the second image. Again the simple editing techniques reflect the budgets of institutions that produce British Social Realist films. The simple fade also keep the audience focused on what’s happening rather than using more elaborate ways to edit distracting the viewer.

Camera (3 images)

The camera movement is stationary, most likely filmed from the back of a car as it tracks the protagonist on her bike. The camera being stationary shows the simplicity which British Social Realist film use. It also reflects how the directors want to keep the audience more

focused on the narrative or the other aspects such as sound, mise en scene to emphasis the message. The stationary camera gives the audience the feel that they are onlookers into her life.

The camera tracks the character along the road. The track is a simple camera movement, conforming to British social realist conventions. This also gives us insight as we know that this is the main character and everything in the narrative is to be about/involving her. The smooth camera movement hints that there is again a calm, free mood within the film.