The extract opens with a long shot of an 8 year old girl dancing like a ballerina around her clean and tidy bright pink bedroom. Slow motion editing is used to give the shot a dream or fantasy like quality as the voice over tells the fairy tale story of a gremlin that eats humans to protect her children. At first the impression given is that this is a middle class bedroom as it has co-ordinated furnishings and is impeccably neat and tidy. The girl has poise as she dances giving the impression that she is educated.
There is a fade to white and we are drawn out of the dream world and into a working class reality. A tracking shot follow Frank as he stumbles along the street. A close up shot of the post-man reveals his distain at this apparently frequent occurrence. Frank pats a woman on the backside as she carried her milk bottles home. Again she has an expression of disgust on her face and there is the suggestion that this is fairly routine.
Frank’s costume is dirty and old and his hair is dishevelled. Make-up is used to make his face appear very red with cracked veins connoting that he is an alcoholic or that he doesn’t live a healthy lifestyle. This representation of working class lifestyle is fairly stereotypical as he seems to be quite worthless.
An establishing shot shows the estate that Frank is walking through. In the distance is the typical run down 1960s tower block and the street is lined with small cramped housing and gardens that no one cares for. In the Gallagher’s front garden is a camper van, again a stereotypical representation of the lower working class.
The set design of the interior of the house is old and shabby indicating that the family does not have much money to spend on luxuries like nice furniture or décor. A close up shot shows one of the sons being handed fried egg on toast for his breakfast by his older sister. The dad bursts through the door knocking the food out of his sons hands, but seems to be distracted. There is a comical panning shot of the kitchen as all five of the children check their watches, clearly confused by their dad’s sudden appearance. There is the suggestion that the dad doesn’t live with the children and has only come because he wants to collect his ‘giro’. Again this is a negative and fairly stereotypical representation of the lower working class.
To add to this Frank behaves like a rabid dog when the post man arrives. A close up shot shows Franks kneeling down and grabbing the post in his teeth and the diegetic sound of him growling like a dog suggests a feral like nature. The non-diegetic music which plays is reminiscent of old game shows and a high angle shot looking down on Frank as the post rains down upon him suggests that he is the final contestant and he must search frantically through the post to find the final prize – the childrens’ support benefit. Short ellipsis editing is used here to give the impression that the post is coming through the door for a long time. The synchronous sound of the post falling through the letter box emphasises this. Close up shots reveal that the letters are final demands from various companies. Eye-line match editing cuts between the expressions of despair on the childrens’ faces and the various final demand letters.
The dialogue between the characters suggests that the dad takes no responsibility for the families problems, he has no family values. However, mid-long shots are constantly used throughout this scene to represent the children of the family and their unity. They are almost opposite to the dad. The children are dressed for school and eating breakfast when he arrives. This indicates that they value their education and can cope without their father. This representation has a number of connotations. Firstly it suggests that working class families are broken families. Here it is the older sister that is caring for the family. In addition it also suggests that working class families do have strong values, in this case education and family. It is clear from the costumes that this family doesn’t have a lot of money and the children attend a local state school. Their school shirts hang out of their trousers, their ties are not well done and their top shirt button is open. There is the suggestion that these children do not have access to a top education because of their poverty.
Frank experiences a flash back to when he purchased the television that got them in to debt. A warped visual effect is used to create a sense of disorientation, really giving the audience a sense of Frank’s state of mind. In the diegetic sound his speech is slurred and he talks about buying the television for “fags and blow”. His loose moral values are demonstrated again and his children are going to pay for it.
Two debt collectors arrive at the door. Their costume and make-up indicates that they are thuggish as they have stereotypical shaved heads and unclean teeth. A low-angle two-shot indicates their unity and threat to the family. The connotations of their appearance is that they are illegal debt collector and not from a legitimate bailiffs which suggests the dodgy dealings of the dad. Frank runs from the house and a hand held camera track him as he sprints through the run down estate. The unsteady camera movement of the hand held camera really gives the scene a sense of adrenaline and underpins the instability of the family, the chaos that they face everyday. The diegetic sound of a car alarm in the distance reinforces the criminality of the working class people who live there.
When the children are left confronted by the debt collectors the shot composition constantly represents the children’s unity. A low angle close up shot shows one of the debt collectors threatening the older girl, asking her where her dad is. Shot reverse shot shows her reaction. She is terrified but doesn’t say anything. This again shows the family values that the children have. The dad might have given them up, but they won’t do the same to him.
The story of the monster that the voice over tells at the beginning of the story seems ironic. No parent has come to protect these children. They are alone.
It seems that there are both positive and negative representations of the working class here. The father represents a more stereotypical character. Even though the narrative revolves around their poverty and criminal activity, the overriding feeling is one of strong family values and unity under the pressure of poverty and abandonment.
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