The Best of British Cinema: ‘Made In Britain’ (1982)
Alan Clarke’s TV-film paints a bleak, divided portrait of a broken Britain
The work of Alan Clarke was bound to come up multiple times throughout this focus on British cinema. He is one of the essential British directors, responsible for a group of important films made mainly during the 1980s. While I may not dedicate a full article to each of Clarke’s films from the 1980s, they are all worth seeking out if possible. All have abundant qualities. (If anybody is looking for a specific recommendation, I’d suggest Psy-Warriors from 1981 — a difficult film to find but an absolutely brilliant one.)
Made in Britain always stood out to me, perhaps because I came across it when I was close in age to the main character, Trevor. As the film’s tagline makes clear, ‘Trevor is an angry young man’. He is, in fact, a furious one. He is a 16 year old punk skinhead who is driven by a seemingly bottomless pit of pure rage. He is racist, violent, intimidating and criminally minded. Trevor is played by Tim Roth, in his very first film performance (and one good enough that Alan Clarke recommended Roth to director Mike Leigh for Meantime shortly after), who portrays Trevor’s anger and disillusionment through a commanding physical performance which completely absorbs all attention.
