Essex Boys (2000 Terry Winsor)

plot summary :
'The film is based loosely around events in December 1995 that culminated in the murders of three drug dealers in Rettendon, Essex, UK. On 6th December Patrick Tate, Craig Rolfe and Tony Tucker, three drug dealers well known to the police, were lured to Workhouse Lane, Rettendon. There they were blasted to death with a shot gun while sitting in their Range Rover. They had been lured to their deaths on the pretext of a lucrative drugs deal. The three bodies were found the following morning, 7th December 1995. '

synopsis :
'This film starts off as a young taxi driver is offered a job to help a small-time hardman get a little revenge. As the film progresses, he gets money and he thinks he is gaining respect from the other gang members. Then there comes a time where he is woken at night, only to find a Range Rover outside his house: his boss is expecting him to drive this to pick up the rest of the gang and take them to their awaiting fate...'

How Terry Winsor established and develops the thriller genre in the opening to Essex Boys

the genre of essex boys is established very clearly in the opening to the film. the title sequence of white lines on a black backround which subtly fade into the shed of light coming from under the garage door in the first scene of the film. this shows the fluency of scenes in the film, it gives a standard of intelligence which the director will carry on using throughout the film. Thrillers are strongly based on intelligent interpretations and camera angles ensuring the viewer is on the edge of their seat and paying attention to the film, at the same time as feeling involved with the characters and the scene which is unfolding infront of them. 

with the effective title sequence, and the first few scenes, it is clear to the viewer that 'Essex Boys' is a thriller. The first shot of discovering the car in the cold, isolated garage with non ambient lighting created to give an effect of darkness and uncertainty. The single spot light of lighting in this scene gives the scene an atmosphere, which is concerning and unsafe. This feeling will keep viewers attentive and wanting to know what happens next. All this is given off purely to the lighting, which has a massive effect on the film overall. As the lighting in this scene is incredibly limited, it makes the characters whereabouts seem mysterious, almost as if they shouldnt be there. The darkness of the scene connotes a Noir Thriller look. With effective use of shadows it mirrors scenes from famous noir thrillers such as 'The Third Man', meaning the genre is quickly established through stereotypical conventions.  The cold, and bleak streets in this scene is also a cultural reference to the setting of the film, essex is commonly seen as unglamorous place, and the scenic shots from this sequence mirror this expectation well.

introducing Jason

From first encounter it is clear that Jason will play a very important part to the story, you can clearly see his status from the first time the audience view him. The way he is only visible to us after wiping mud of a windscreen and we see him through a glass screen. This infers that he has extreme detatchment from his emotions, he is hidden behind this glass screen unable to make any pure contact with the other characters. He remains distant and cold to other characters building up a mysterious personality, making us want to find out more about his character. Having a character like Jason in the film creates an urge to be attentive to his every move, in hope to discover his true colours. whilst being attentive, the audeince will unconciously form their own opinion on him, setting up for a unique experience when viewing the film. 

 The use of the windscreen wipers cleaning the dirt between Jason and Billy shows that theres is something about Jason which is unclean, almost as if everywhere he goes this cloud of dirt follows him, inferring that he has done terrible things in the past which will never wash away. The way the scene is shot, from a low angle, gives Jason status and power. Making billy seem vulnerable. Jasons loud shirt indicates confidence and brashness, along with his working roots and his backround of coming from essex. Jason is a stereotypical archetype for a character in a thriller, his character has adopted the characteristics which we expect. It is clear that he will play the 'villian' in this film. He comes across as cocky, and a bit of a 'wide-boy', his character somewhat mirrors that of Harry Lime from 'The Third Man', both characters appear to the audience as cocky, and flash. From this, his status and personality is clear to viewers. Winsor has intelligently crafted Jason around other characters of the same status from other films, establishing their roles in the film.  His personality also mirrors the atmosphere they are in, as the film is set in essex which is sterotypically unglamorous, you would expect a character like Jason to originate from here.

alot of things are said about the genre of the film through the scenic shots taken throughout the first opening scenes. For example, when Billy and Jason are trvalling in a white van through the long tunnel. This indicates several things: the white van is seen as an enigma, we as the audience are not yet sure what it is going to be used for, stereotypically, there are a lot of bad views around white vans in our society, this provokes thoughts about what is going to happen. While the audience are trying to work out the next steps they are paying close attention as the white van speeds through Dartford tunnel. The tunnel may be seen as a reference for a barrell of a gun, and the use of the long journey through the tunnel may be seen as Jason and Billy changing worlds.  Going from the bleak darkness in the tunnel, to the bright natural light on exit from the tunnel. They have just changed their position, and this gets the audience ready for new scenes of action in a new location. The use of clear lighting contrast is clear, this is another way of Winsor showing the change in atmosphere. Going from enclosed spaces into something wider indicates that Jason is taking Billy on a journey into what his life is like, this is also backed up by the assault he is about to perform on a man in the fish market. The tunnel may aslo be seen as an encolsed space, again referencing the genre of a thriller.