Compare how Hot Fuzz and This is England appeal to a British Audience

Hot Fuzz, directed by Edgar Wright, and This is England, directed by Shane Meadows, are
both examples of British films. Also they are both based on the directors own experiences or
what they think will create a good film for, primarily, a British audience. However they are
very different. Hot Fuzz was produced by Working Title which is owned by Universal which
makes it a mainstream film, where as This is England was create by the company Warp Films
which is an independent film company. The main differences this gives the two films is the
budget.

The budget for Hot Fuzz was 8 million pounds, and because it was produced by a
mainstream company more money was available if the budget was exceeded. This relatively
large budget meant Wright could spend more money on advertising his film and spreading
the word to a wide audience. It also meant he could spend money on special effects and a
famous cast to draw his target audience in. On the opposite side of the scale the budget for
This is England was 1 million which meant Shane Meadows would have to be very careful
with the allocation of is money. This small budget meant that he could not spend as much
on advertising and more advanced techniques to attract a modern British audience as well
as Hot Fuzz, and consequently not gain as much of a profit.

Shane Meadows and Edgar Wright are both British directors with quite renowned films to
their names. Edgar Wright has been know to create films which he thinks he will enjoy,
which is what he did when he created Hot Fuzz. He imagined himself as the target audience
and used his personal preferences to create the film. Creating a film he would enjoy pin
pointed his target audience to be people like him, so probably: British, possibly male, similar
opinions of the police force and the same film interests. Another main influence Wright
used in the film was to use ‘childhood dreams’ of policing and big action films. On the hand
Meadows tried to create a film that was as realistic as possible and not based on fantasy,
this is called social realism. He did this in This is England by using an actual childhood
experience he had in the 80s, where a skinhead group is influenced by an older person to
become racist. Meadows’ story is one of a right of passage.

The cast of the two films are also polar opposites. In This is England unknown actors are
used, the reason for this is because it will help the audience to relate to the characters and
it will make the film more realistic if the cast seem like they belong in those roles. Also the
unknown cast is very cheap, which fits into the films low budget. The cast in Hot Fuzz where
all well known. The main characters are played by Simon Pegg and Nick Frost who are stock
actors. Using stock actors helped to target a British audience because they are well known
for working together and producing good films, so the audience will know what kind of film
to expect from them. The rest of the cast were British film ‘royalty’, for example Bill Nighy,
Jim Broadbent and Bill Bailey. Using these famous actors is good because they will attract
different people in the British audience, not just their specific target audience. Although the
cast will help to attract the audience it will also created a huge dent in the films budget, as
many of these well know actors will cost a lot of money.

The locations used in Hot Fuzz were very stereotypical of England. The main London location
was the Met Police station which was a modern, tall building. The other location was the
village of Sanford in Glouster. This location seemed very dull and it had all the traditional
features of a small British village like a church, a pub, a B+B and cottages. These two
locations were used to create an exaggerated contrast between the areas and therefore
create a humorous element. Also fabricated sets were used to create the building which
would have added to the location cost. In This is England the location is a typical 1980s rural
council estate. Its derelict, there’s a school and a corner shop and there are abandoned
fields. The sets on This is England were not fabricated and were all shot in the real location
so Meadows did not have to incorporate extra set prices into his low budget. The use of a
real set really shows realism in the film and demonstrates something that the British
audience may be able to relate to from their childhood.

The main stereotype in This is England is the traditional skinhead look, with shaved heads,
Fred Perry clothes and Doc Martins. This classic 80s style was widely seen in poorer, working
class communities. Another stereotype in the film was the characters northern accents as
typically northern people are seen as working class so the accents helps to depict what
social class the characters are in. These stereotypes will help the audience to relate the
characters to the period and area the film was set. In Hot Fuzz the stereotyping focused on
the location rather than the characters like in This is England. One stereotype is of the police
form in London as it is show to have a rigid hierarchy which s what you expect of the top
police force. Also the crime rate in London is very stereotypical as it is shown to be very high
in the film. The stereotypical elements in Sanford are those you would expect of a small
rural village. There is a lack of authority, it’s a very traditional village and the villagers always
seem to be at the pub. These stereotypes have been influenced by other media. The
stereotypes in the film all help to demonstrate that the film is aimed at a British audience as
they will relate to the content of the film and find the huge contrasts, which are quite
exaggerated in modern day, funny.

The mocking stereotypes lead me on to the humour of each of the films. In Hot Fuzz the
huge contrast in stereotypes of things like the police and the locals of each area and the
location provide humour in the film. Also the characters mocking each other are
entertaining for the audience, especially as the characters join in. In This is England this
technique of the characters laughing along with jokes is also used. In This is England the
realistic jokes emphasise the idea of the film being realistic. Also Shane Meadows uses irony
to add humour to the film. All of these aspects of humour in the film are generally seen to
be things that British people find entertaining so it will help to attract the British Audience.

The iconography is a very important aspect to consider when attracting a British audience as
they will need to relate to the images created. In Hot Fuzz there are lots of traditional British
things used like Big Ben, the Met Police, the Underground and red buses. Then in Sanford
the traditional village image, with green spaces and open fires, is used as iconography.
These two iconic images of Britain, a busy capital and then a quiet rural village, show it in
the modern day and there will help a British audience relate to the film, however one area is
almost living in the past compared to London. In This is England things such as the British
flag, and British 80s icons such as: Margaret Thatcher, Prince Charles and Diana, riots and
nuclear development are used to remind the audience of the time the film is set and what
those times were like.

The camera work in This is England is very natural and realistic, especially as there are no
special effects done in editing. The first scene has a montage of pinnacle events in the 80s
which adds to the iconography and is also very artistic. In some scenes handhold shots have
been used which creates a very documentary feel, this is good because it gives the audience
the feeling they are part of the film and it also makes it very realistic. In Hot Fuzz however
there are a lot of sharp movements and fast paced editing which help the mundane events
in the film seem exciting. Also this technique imitates an action film. So as it uses all the
techniques of a high end action film, it can still be almost relatable for a British audience.

To conclude although the films have very different motives, Hot Fuzz’s is to purely entertain
and This is England’s is to convey a message, they both reflect different aspects and times of
British culture. This use of British culture gives the audience something they will be able to
relate to, being British as well, and ultimately find entertaining. However the two films will
target different areas in that audience as the humour and casts will only appeal to certain
people.