Individual qualities and emotions

LEARNING INTENTIONS

To understand how texts represent individual human qualities and emotions.

Focus question:

How do texts represent individual human qualities and emotions?

Human qualities in Billy Elliott

compassion

perseverance/determination

courage

open-mindedness

Human emotions in Billy Elliott

anger

jubilation/joy

sadness

TASK

In small groups identify the most relevant character - who possesses these qualities and emotions and identify scenes which demonstrate these in the film.

Compassion

TASK

1 - Define ‘compassion’

2 - Chart the changing nature of the relationship between Billy and Mrs Wilkinson over the course of the film.

What is the relationship like at the beginning?
What are key scenes that show how this relationship changes?
What is the relationship like at the end?

In the first part of the film, it is obvious that the loss of Billy’s mother has affected the family immensely. Billy’s lack of a mother figure in his life, and the warmth and compassion that is missing is further exacerbated by the current miners’ strike in Everington and the violence, aggression and hostility that exist not only in Billy’s home, but in the town.

When we are introduced to the character of Mrs Wilkinson in the film, she is presented as a tough, chain-smoking woman with little evidence of warmth and compassion. She initially gives Billy a lot of ‘tough love’. However, her relationship with Billy is transformed over the course of the film and we see a different side to her and her deepening connection with Billy as not only his teacher, but the maternal figure which is missing from his life.

Scene analysis for compassion

Re-watch the four scenes and identify key techniques.

Billy goes to Mrs Wilkinson’s house (32:08-34:19)

Private lessons (36:42-41:52)

Conflict between Billy and Mrs Wilkinson (43:48-46:08)

Preparing for the Audition (49:54-52:07)

Answer the following questions:

After Billy visits the Wilkinson house, Mrs Wilkinson drops Billy back home and suggests to Billy that he should train on his own for a Royal Ballet School audition. She has seen his potential. Identify the dialogue between the two that suggests they are developing a personal relationship.
After Billy reads the letter from his mother to Mrs Wilkinson, how has the director shown the continuing changing nature of their relationship in this scene? (e.g. non-diegetic sounds, facial expressions, dialogue, etc)
How has the director identified the warmth and compassion shown by Mrs Wilkinson in the ‘I Love to Boogie’ dance scene which follows the reading of Billy’s mother’s letter?
Why has Stephen Daldry chosen to juxtapose the scene of the conflict between Mrs Wilkinson and Billy with the previous scene (conflict between Jackie and Tony)?
Billy finally reaches breaking point, cracking with all of the stress and pressure he is under at home and in his lessons, and he yells at Mrs Wilkinson, running away from her to hide in the changing room. Mrs Wilkinson’s comment, ‘Shit!’ reveals her frustration at what has happened. Why has she responded in this way?
Immediately after Mrs Wilkinson slaps Billy across the face, how has Daldry shown her regret for what has happened? Contrast the tone of Mrs Wilkinson’s voice in her lesson with Billy where he has his final rehearsal with her before his audition to the way she spoke with him at the start of the film. It is evident that she cares a great deal for Billy and has faith in his ability to do well at the audition. In this scene, Mrs Wilkinson is not holding her ever-present cigarette. Why has Daldry decided to remove this from the characterisation of Mrs Wilkinson at this stage of the film?

Anger

TASK

Identify why anger is an emotion seen throughout this whole film.

Identify which characters express anger in the film and speculate as to why this is the case.

Scene analysis: Billy misses the audition

(54:58-1:00:56)

Re-watch the scene and IDENTIFY key techniques.

1 - Identify the elements of this scene that display anger/aggression. (e.g. dialogue, positioning of and interaction between characters, diegetic and non-diegetic sound, camera angles and shots, body language, etc)

2 - You will notice that during this scene of conflict in the kitchen at the Elliot household, it is not Jackie but Tony who dominates the argument with Mrs Wilkinson. What is surprising about the portrayal of Tony as the ‘alpha male’ in this scene?

Angry dance scene

Billy eventually escapes the conflict in the house and we see him displaying his anger and frustration in the ‘angry dance’ scene which occurs with the song ‘A Town Called Malice’.

How does this music aptly accompany the scene?
What evidence do we see of Billy’s anger and frustration in this montage?
What are the drivers for Billy’s ‘angry dance’?
Why do you think that Daldry has included the character of Michael as an observer in this part of the scene?
At the end of the scene, what do Billy’s ‘leap’ and escape from the house symbolise?

TASK

Construct a PEEL paragraph in response to the focus question for this phase. ‘How do texts represent individual human qualities and emotions?’

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