HOMEWORK
Due in 3rd October, 2012.
What did you think of 'Bullet Boy'?
Questions to help you:
What were its good points?
How did it compare to 'Boyz n the Hood'?
Who do you think is the target audience for each film?
Links to a variety of articles and responses are included below. You do not have to read all of them, but they offer a variety of different perspectives which you may find helpful, including interviews with Saul Dibb (the director) and Ashley Walters ('Ricky').
i think bullet boy was realy realistic because it is set in south central l.a which is known for being a gang area but not everyone who lives in the ghetto is necisarily bad,the guy who gets shot ( i forgot his name )has a bright future ahead of him untill he dies, i like how the boys have a soft part to them because they do try to act hard infront of there friends but are actually quiet infront of there family. i think this film is rated 15 because of the swearing and sexual scenes, and it is targeted at mostly people 15 to 20.
ReplyDeleteThe point about the boys feeling they have to act tough is a good one - softness and gentleness aren't qualities which are respected, so they can't afford to show that side of themselves.
DeleteMedia
ReplyDeleteBoyz n the hood & Bullet Boy;
I personally enjoyed watching 'Boyz n the hood', one of the many reasons is the way the director showed us, informed us more like, on how people use to live (or/and still do). We were taken to the very heart and soul to be shown how the characters lived in fear, how most things revolved around guns and threats. Not much parental guidance either. And there wasn't very much mention of education, obviously no one had cared for school. They assumed it was a waste of time.
If they didn't stick to education they certainly stuck by the loyalty of their 'brother'. And by this I'm referring to both films. Yet, In Bullet Boy, they did show the signs of education being important for the younger generation, such as Curtis. When his older brother, Ricky, complained about him not being in school and Curtis's mother asking how school went. But like I said, loyalty towards your 'brother' or 'bredren' was / is a very big deal.
In Boyz n the hood you're/you'll be able to tell that there was a lot of violence, suspension and an expectations for something new. And as expected they always met up to our wants and needs.
As others will agree with me I do believe the scene where Ricky dies is the most saddest, the director had done an amazing job in portraying it. It was dramatic, slightly expected but still heart touching. But it's mostly his arrogance to blame for his death, and I say this because it's cockiness for always being right that got to his head. More favoured / adored by his mother whilst his brother, Doughboy, grows up behind bars and then accused for his brother's death when in fact he speeds over in his car to prevent it.
When it came to watching Bullet Boy I came to realize how the title 'Bullet Boy' came to be. The gun, which was a revolver I presume, was shown repeatedly as one of the three weapons to be used in the whole movie. The same gun which is passed by Wisdom to Ricky then to Curtis, who accidentally shoots his best friend Rio. It was a lucky shot. And by that scene of Rio being shot it reminded me of the poster, where Ricky's face is a extreme close up and there's a images of his younger brother holding a gun or/and standing around.
When I saw it was made by BBC Production I automatically assumed it was a documentary since the BBC specialized in that sort of thing, but when watching it gave off a feeling of it being a movie but mixed with a realistic point of view. It felt too real, as if I was really zooming into Ricky's point of view but I knew it really wasn't manly focused about him but his brother, mother, 'bredren' and most probably his girlfriend, Shae. They all played a special role to play, even if it was really small. Every character counts.
I do believe that both films are signaling a message. They're both giving out warning that people are too blind to see, it's either they don't care or too tired to care.
~ Rimonah T.
Some thoughtful points, well done. The BBC has a remit to Educate, Inform and Entertain - would you say Bullet Boy reflects this? The high cost of Ricky's thoughtlessness and his mother spoiling him and neglecting Doughboy is an interesting comment: who do you think the film blames for his death? Is there more than one cause?
DeleteI think bullet boy was a very good social realism film,i feel the best points of the movie was seeing this young mans life and all the pressure he is under at such a young age after coming out of prison.I think bullet boy and boyz n the hood share some simalrities such as the way the characters get caught up in the drama and the way there lifestyle is set but also there were some diffrences i think in bullet boy we didnt see a real connection with the parent where as in boyz n the hood we really got to see treys relationship with his father something not seen wit ricky in bullet boy, i think this film was targeted to audiences at the age of 16 to 24.
ReplyDeleteA good point about the immense pressure in these films to behave in a certain way, and interesting comment about the different parent/child relationships - do you think Bev was never going to be able to reach Ricky in the way Furious was able to reach Tre? Was Tre's mum right to think he needed a male role model at this point in his life?
DeleteI think that Bullet boy was really good compared to boyz in the hood also in terms of if the film fitting the Social realist genre it does because it has many things like: weapons, murder, death, sexual relationships, swearing, slang etc... I think bullet boy tells you more about two brothers growing up in one of London's most volatile neighbourhoods, where a minor street clash escalates into a cycle of violence that has tragic repercussions, whereas boyz in the hood is a Saga of a group of childhood friends growing up in a Los Angeles ghetto. I think in terms of brotherhood bullet boy has a good understanding/relationship between them (ricky & curtis) whereas in boyz in the hood Ricky & Doughboy have a really bad relationship. I think that I liked/enjoyed Bullet boy more than boyz in the hood because bullet boy is more modern, dramatic & realistic. RAHAT HUSSAIN.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteI think that Bullet boy was really good. Also i think that in terms of bullet boy fitting the Social Realist Genre it does because it has thing like: sexual relationships, weapons, death, murder, guns, swearing (modern for bullet boy), slang etc... I think compared to boyz in the hood bullet boy was much better because the film explores themes of friendship, rivalry and revenge amid a generation of boys to whom guns have become a fact of life, so there are some good & bad things about both films. I think that the one thing i really found good/interesting is about brotherhood, in bullet boy Ricky & Curtis have a really good & understanding relationship between eachother whereas Ricky & Doughboy in boyz in the hood have a bad relationship between eachother because they're always fighting, arguing, swearing with eachother. i think that bullet boy tells you more about two brothers growing up in one of London's most volatile neighborhoods, where a minor street clash escalates into a cycle of violence that has tragic repercussions. A powerful and moving tale of young men on the edge, it reflects an emerging modern reality within Britain's inner cities whereas boyz in the hood tells you about a Saga of a group of childhood friends growing up in a Los Angeles ghetto. I think in my opinion the target audience for Social realism type of movies are young black teenagers. Lastly I think that i really enjoyed bullet boy because it was really modern, dramatic & realistic. Rahat Hussain.
ReplyDeleteThe comments on the different brothers are great, but I think this post contains some comments you have pasted from another website. You must be careful - if you don't name the website in your work it's called plagiarism, and it can lead to your work being disqualified. Your own points are great, stick to stating them in your own words!
DeleteBullet Boy is a very moving, emotional but a realistic representation of a social realist film. It is set in the London area of Hackney where crime often occurs. The director of the film, Saul Dibb, wanted to portray his view of Hackney and what really happens in these areas, and that not everyone who lives there is gang-related as the film also has positive portrayals.
ReplyDeleteThe main character, Ricky, has just been released from a youth offenders institution. He is desperate to have a fresh start but as soon he leaves the premises, his past has already caught up with him - but not for the better!
Unlike most families that appear in social realist films, Ricky does not come from a broken home or broken family. Although his father has abandoned him, he has a potential father figure, named Leon, who is a preacher in Church and is very influential. However, he completely disregards him and doesn't appreciate him.
The range of weapons used is quite limited. Before I saw this film, I was expecting the main problem to be knife crime. However, my expectations were not met as guns were used- which is not common. This one gun that appears often in the film creates trouble and spirals out of control, especially for certain individuals who are easy targets.
Ricky took care of his younger brother, Curtis, from a young age as he quotes whilst speaking to his mother: "It was me who bought him trainers, picked him up from school and wiped his nose".
This is a very significant quote as it symbolizes fatherhood, despite the fact he is Curtis' brother.
Ricky presents himself as a stereotypical youth as he wears urban clothing.
Overall, i think that this film is an emotional roller coaster of both fear and happiness and success and failure. It also fits the genre of a social realist film due to the slang (colloquial accent that is portrayed) swearing, abandoned fathers, weapons, sex scenes, gangs and violence.
Hanifa Majothi
I think both these social realist films are very similar but also very different. They both show the hidden danger in urban areas such as South Central LA and Hackney. I think both these films are made to increase the public awareness, and show other people from different backgrounds that yes there is a problem in todays society. I liked the fact that both the main characters in both movies were dragged into the violence. One wanted a clear path in life but struggled because he was surrounded by constant danger and violence. Both movies showed that there is constant danger and never a moment to rest. For example in Boyz N the hood when Ricky gets barged by a random person looking for trouble. That scene was an example of constant violence because that was the only time when they were close to happiness, but it was all spoiled due to someone looking for danger and trouble.
ReplyDeleteI think that Bullet Boy was more realistic as it seemed more gritty unlike Boyz n the hood where it was more glamorous because of the setting and the sunshine but in Bullet Boy it was set in a more closed area, they had estate buildings. I liked when Ricky in Bullet Boy had an ambition to get out of the place and leave his criminal records behind but he couldn't as he got murdered in the end. I assume that the age limit of both these films is a 15 because of the foul language, the sexual scenes and the violence.
ReplyDeleteBullet boy persented alot of negativity in the film for example the film starts of with a person in prison. The good point were Bev supporting her family, Leon (the pastor) helping Bev, Ricky and Curtis even though he wasn't related to any of them. Ricky respecting shay. It can be compared to Boyz N the hood because both the films include weapons, broken families, unhappy people (Doughboy and Ricky from bullet boy). I think Bullet boy is aimed at 15+ because thats when you start making descions about stuff that goes on in your life the point of the film is to help you make the right descions. I think Boyz N the hood is aimed 15+ aswell because of its uses of extremely explicit language i am not sure how life was like in South Central LA during the 90's but it must have been exactly like Boyz N the hood.
ReplyDeleteI thought Bullet boy was realistic in comparison to Boyz N the hood. Bullet boy was set in London, Hackney which is known to be quite a violent area and for gang culture.Cause we live in London we new what to expect from bullet boy and how the area was going to be like. For example, we where expecting to see estates where the youths live and gather together in Bullet boy. Where as in Boyz n the hood it was more glamorous and they lived in big houses.Bullet boy was more grittier than boyz n the hood, the atmosphere was grey and it had more of a shock factor than boyz n the hood. The film had a similar story to boyz n the hood which was trying to break out of the circle of gang life. But due to peer pressure from friends such as wisdom the main character Ricky finds it hard to let go as he feels he owes wisdom.Due to Rickys careless actions his brother Curtis follows the same road as him leading him into a scary situation between Rio.So n both Boyz n the hood and Bullet boy there is a character who does srtive for a better future but the consequences of others bring them down.
ReplyDeleteThe film is rated 15 because of the swearing, sexual activity, and it contains strong violence. Which would be too much to show younger children as people will fear they could go and do what happens in bullet boy, especially in the scenes that show curtis and Rio playing with a gun and they are young children.The target audience of this film is 15 to 20's so the youth, as we can relate to these kind of things that happen and we are old enough to tell right from wrong and are sure that films like this will not influence us to do bad.
I think Bullet Boy was realistic because of all the problems but I didn't really like the film because I don't think it was long enough. Good points were the actors, I think they played their part well. I think that Boyz n the Hood was better then Bulet Boy because I thought there was more tension. I think it should be for all ages becasue I think its more like a documentry then a film.
ReplyDeleteI thought Bullet Boy was quite good although I didn't find it very realistic. This is because I thought they took it over the top, I don't think that East London is as crime ridden as they make it out to be. However, I do think that the emphasis they put on that one gun was appropriate. I think this because in England guns are not as commonly used like in Boyz N The Hood. Boyz N the Hood was set in South central LA therefore some aspects in the movie will be different to the ones in Bullet Boy which was set in East London. I think that the target audience for both movies is roughly around 16-28.
ReplyDeleteI think bullet was a good film although it was quit short. I understanded this film better than boyz n the hood as the language which they use is common in london, where as boyz n the hood is in LA and I dont usually use there kind of language. Hamza
ReplyDeleteBullet Boy was very intresting.I found it very realistic than Boyz N The Hood because in Boyz N The Hood people wouldnt just leave a dead body laying around for people to see it and there wasnt alot of things going all like killing and most people dont just sit around all day drinking and waiting for trouble.In Bullet Boy it was more af a social realist film because thing that happen does happen in real life because if someone try get rude to u are kill someone for you , you are going to want to kill get revenge and kill that person just like how ricky brother was playing with the gun most kids do that when they see a gun bcause it make them look cool. both film was set in different area so some aspects in the film will be different.a good point: the actior was good, they play there parts well and Bullet boy didnt hav alot of tension as boyz n the hood had alot.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed Bullet Boy due to its realistic and responsible portrayal to a controversial (but rare) scenario. In my opinion the film grasped the key roots of problems within London without perpetuating stereotypes. I found the family relationships to be particularly relateable to its target audience which I believe to be about 16 and up. Boyz n the Hood on the other hand I thought was a rather romanticized and Hollywood take on similar problems whereas Bullet Boy grasped the harsh realities of such issues.
ReplyDelete