Culture Project

Elena Ortega Durán

3ºA Primaria

English language teaching materials and resources in Primary Education

MOVIE OR FILM?

British and American cinema always have been in comparison even both of them have got too many things in common and as years are passing, they are getting more equal.

Nowadays we can see many phases and features of Anglo – American film relations. This happen, in fact, because they work in cooperation, mixing American and British actors, companies or scenarios. The common language facilitates them their “special relationship”.

Trying to describe their differences, as a first sight it is said that American movies are shiner and colorful than British films. In spite of that, Hollywood shows a consistent fascination with British literature and history. For this reason, there is a kind of “Americanization” in Britain, where production companies as the Fox, Warner or Paramount make important source production finance in domestic British film industry. This fact makes a classification of those movies in the States called Hollywood “British” films.

American own versions of British films are more popular with British and American audiences than the ones completely done by British companies. Hollywood adapts British history and culture, being a fascinating combination of American convections and British source material.

("The King´s speech" and "Harry Potter" are films created by American companies but filmed in UK)

British filmmaking cannot stand up to Hollywood, neither technically or financially so, Americans use British language and paraphernalia and this European country accept it. Furthermore, as Hollywood is a huge empire, British companies ask for help and American support to their projects.

What we can see here is that at the present, in England there is an “Americanization” on British culture that makes them more open to accept their culture on their screams done by United States.

Even though as years are passing, both of them look very similar, but comedies of these two countries are quite different. This is the most highlight difference between them. In Britain, irony is really extended around all the country to create comedies, but most of the American audience, in general, just does not get it. Their humor is more expose, more clearly and maybe more simple. When American people use the irony, they will often immediately say “just kidding” as an explanation that it is not true what they said before. But, normally they do not feel comfortable using it, in case it causes damage. On the other side, British people use irony a lot. The majority of British comedian films are based in irony to make laugh.

(A "Life of Brian" scene as an example of British humor)

(A "Bad Teacher" scene as an example of American comedy)

The British and American versions have their own cultural and emotional specificities, but both work as painful satires on a lifestyle familiar to British and American people.As we could see here, nowadays the cinema world between these two countries is quite similar because of their mixture between actors, companies, stories etc… Hollywood gives the opportunity to tell British culture and history on the screams financed by American production companies and a mixture of cast between the workers, but even their have too many similarities, we can also appreciate differences like in the comedian way. The most outstanding one is the use of the irony in their comedies. In Britain it is the way to make to the audience laugh while the American likes are more simple and concrete.

Problems that we can thing about language (different words) and habits are not very difficult to resolve. As in Spain we can see South American films and adapt our senses to enjoy them, they do the same, and I think it is a great thing for the evolution: to link countries, learn  about the others and work with different cultures for a good globalization.