My Brother The Devil analysis

My brother the devil is a 2012 British film written and directed by Sally El Hosaini. It is set in Hackney, London and is a social realism urban story.  The film includes the themes of Anger, destruction and survival. Anger and destruction are portrayed throughout because the film features in two brothers and their gang and the rival gang. Survival is a key part in this film because the film is about two brothers growing up in gangland London.

Before the film starts we see a series of various photos of groups of teenagers in different locations. This is the starting point that gives us a general insight into the sort of setting that will be used and almost what some of the film will entail. In between these images it shows a boy who we later find out is called Rashid or Rash (James Floyd) boxing.  As the film progresses it may seem that he is boxing to defend himself against others in his neighbourhood. Another boy who appears younger; Mohammed or Mo (Fady Elsayed); is show leaving school as close ups of shirts being signed are shown. Both these small clips at the very beginning set the scene and characters. Although we are unsure who these people are we can presume they are going to be the protagonists. After this the images are shown again and one by is pictured with what look like drugs which give us an insight to what these boys lives may be like.

When Rashid boxing is shown again it is in slow motion which may be portraying his focus. Other slow motion shots are used throughout the film to maybe show the tension. The slow motion shots make me quite curious because you try and imagine what that person is thinking and how they are feeling.

The handheld camera is used to show their lifestyles and status in society. When Mo is terrorised by his brothers rival gang constant close ups are shown of the boys in the gang. As these close ups are shown the camera is moving around which puts the audience in Mo’s position as if we are being pushed around and that is the view we can see. Also as he runs from the gang to camera is following behind him still using handheld camera to emphasise his instability.

Both gangs meet up at some point in the movie. Demon the leader of the rival gang has a dog and constant close ups of the dog are shown to portray to danger of the situation. In this scene Demon lets his dog of his leash to attack someone. During this time a lot of noise it being made, shouting, cussing and sounds of the fight occurring. However the boy that the dog attacks stabs him which causes everything to become silent. This is effective because it shows the shock of everyone in the area. It is also continuously silent as Demon (Leemore Marrett Jr.) stabs Rash’s best friend and fellow gang member Izzi (Anthony Welsh). The silence when Izzi was killed was a surprise because I thought there would be more of a reaction from Rash’s gang. Instead both gang’s ran off which made it seem like although the gangs fight no killing it ever involved.

I liked the shots used when Rash was running away from the scene because included in this was the sound of his heavy breathing which portrayed his terror and the unpredictability of what just happened.  The sound of the police sirens where also in the background and when Rash was underneath a bridge you could hear the sound of a train going past above. The train got louder as it passed and then everything went silent which makes me think that Rash zoned out and wasn't really thinking of anything he was just stood there in a daze.

The only light in the house when Rash returned home was candle beside his mum as she slept and when he attempted to turn on the lights no lights turned on which emphasises there living situation and lifestyle because it shows they are poor as they can’t pay for the electricity.

The best shot for me throughout the movie is when Rash gets a gun and is standing in the bathroom loading it and practicing because he wants to take revenge. When he holds it up towards the mirror it is dark and he looks as if he is dressed if pyjamas but the camera suddenly switches round to the other side of the wall which is also Rash holding a gun up to the mirror but he is fully clothed and it is daylight. This is used to quickly switch between the time which it is set; the night before and the morning. His clothes are then the same when he arrives at the tattoo parlour which highlights what the mirror shot was about.

In one scene Mo is sitting with his two friends Aisha (Letitia Wright) and Jamie (Aaron Ishmael). Aisha is listening to music through her headphones but if is quiet and slightly muffled; they are letting us hear what Mo can hear in this scene. But when Mo puts o the headphones instead we can hear the song clearly and louder again giving us things from his perspective.  It seems like they what us to relate with Mo because we keep seeing things from his point of view. Aisha is holding a sparkler and different views of the sparkler are shown but when the sparkler goes out the music stops as well and everything is silent.

I enjoyed this film because I think this film showed all the different struggles that people go through, in this film it ranges from life in a gang to homophobia. It focused on the two brothers and what they did to find their true identities