Cubs - Tom Harper - 2006

In the opening sequence of ‘Cubs’ the audience automatically knows the set-up for the films narrative which is a gritty, urban setting. This is backed up by the location of a bleak concrete football pitch with graffiti covering every inch of its walls. The choice to set the narrative in winter creates a dark and depressing mood which can be seen from the surrounding cold grey clouds, and the bare dull brown trees. There are children playing football in the pitch wearing old and plain sports clothes, these costumes defend the urban setting along with the actor’s accents and the use of urban slang for the dialogue making it an believable storyworld. The colours of the costumes which are mainly dark and faded grey’s, brown’s and blacks also work well with the bleak and dull look of the setting. All this can immediately set up ideas of young gang culture for the narrative for the audience before the story has even actually begun.

Graffiti on walls reveal urban setting



Winter setting creates bleak mood from grey clouds and bare trees

Dull, plain Sportwear costumes make setting believable.

The main protagonist is also established at the beginning as a young boy named Ben who is sitting on the wall speaking to a young girl named Davis sat next to him. It is revealed that he is the main character as there are longer cuts on his face and the camera is zoomed in more for him than any other character creating more of an attachment between Ben and the audience. Because Ben is sat on the wall with the girl Davis rather than playing football with the other boys, this separates him from the other characters and is of more interest. Ben is also the one with answers while the Davis keeps asking questions, revealing he is the dominant one between him and the girl as he is the one with the knowledge of what will happen.

The Protagonist Ben.

The inciting incident within the narrative begins when a gang leader named Karl enters the football pitch. We know he is a gang leader because he is of older age that the other boys and the other boys quickly stand in a line and stay silent for him. When one of the boys who was playing football try to speak to him, Karl shouts at him and the boy quickly falls silent, defending the power of this character over the younger boys. Ben is fully revealed as the main character at this point, this is because when he says hello to Karl, Karl quickly looks Ben in the eyes, staying silent but nods to him, not like the other boy who was shouted at.
The protagonist Ben gets his want within the narrative stucture when Karl allows him and Davis to join his gang that night with weapons. During this scene the hand-held camerawork is very shaky with quick cuts giving the effect that is through Ben’s point of view, there is also a dominant colour of a dull yellow lighting which is used to give the effect of streetlamps to add to the urban, gritty mood of the setting. The use of this colour also gives an hint of hope which could reflect Ben’s emotions as he finally feels part of the gang, however the dullness of the yellow backed up by Ben’s stiff body language and him staying silent could show that he feels he doesn’t fit into this lifestyle that could be possibly dangerous for him. 

Different coloured lighting create different moods and atmosphere. 

Different coloured lighting create different moods and atmosphere.

 During this scene it seems that the films narrative is going into the cliché plot of youth gang violence as the gang seems as though they are on their way to meet a rival gang. However, when the films narrative comes into its midpoint we discover that they are fox hunting when they find a fox and the gang begin chasing it. We also disover that Ben does not have it in him to kill the fox when he clearly has a chance but hesitates allowing the fox to escape, resulting in him being humiliated in front of the gang by Karl.  

We get into plot point two in the narrative when the gang capture the fox, attacking it to near death. Karl gives a gun to Ben ordering him to shoot the fox to become a true member of his gang. Here the camerawork is less shaky with use of close up’s only on Ben’s face and the fox creating a more intense atmosphere for the scene, showing that there is no escape for Ben from this situation. During this scene the colour of the lighting changes, from a dull yellow to a cold blue, reflecting Ben’s emotions and the distance and isolation he feels towards the gang, the coldness of the gang and the realism of the situation.

Close up's create intensity. 

Close up's create intensity.

 There is also no dialogue used except the commands of Karl ordering Ben to shoot the fox, reminding Ben what he has got himself into. From Ben’s body language it is revealed that he is extremely uncomfortable with the situation he has got himself into and does not want to go through with it. We can see this through the look of alarm on his face and his panicking eyes quickly darting around looking at the gang around him. When he shoots the fox he closes his eyes in fear as he cannot bare to see himself kill the fox, after he has however, because he cannot face to be humililation and face up to the consequences of the gang, his face is full of distraught and stays constantly silent.

 

As we get to the resolution of the film even though the protagonist Ben has required his want, he discovers it is not what he needed, discovering he does not have the same frame of mind as this gang he has now got himself into. We are shown this at the end of the film when Karl and the gang are congratualting him in successfully joining the gang. Their dialogue of chants fade out and Ben looks directly into the camera, revealing Ben’s loss of innocence who is clearly a lot younger then everyone else in the gang.

The resolution & loss of innocence.