Upper Ground Production
  • Home
  • About
  • Links
    • Film East
    • Twitter
    • Instagram
    • LetterBoxd
  • Home
  • About
  • Links
    • Film East
    • Twitter
    • Instagram
    • LetterBoxd
Search by typing & pressing enter

YOUR CART

17/1/2018 3 Comments

What I'm (Re)Watching... Peaky Blinders

Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Peaky Blinders
BBC Two
Before the holidays (yes, before the holidays... I'm so backlogged on posts!), I needed something to reenergize me and inspire me to finish those exams and papers, and what better than some brummie Birmingham gangsters to rejuvenate your self-motivation.

I had two main reasons for wanting to rewatch Peaky Blinders - one, it's bloody brilliant (and I can confirm that the second watch through is just as, if not more so, bloody brilliant as the first) and two, while in the midst of watching series 4, I realized I did not have a clue what the actual heck was going on (so a rewatch was in order to help my thick self actually understand this complex plot). 

Here's what makes Peaky Blinders so brilliant: even if you can't understand a word of what is being said, the pure theater of the production, the utter stunning cinematography, and the spine-chillingly haunting performances is enough to make you fall in love. Because you may not know what's going on, but you do know you're watching something incredible. But, once you wade through those Birmingham accents, and start to actually understand the intricacies of the plot, you can see that it far exceeds anything that was on television at the time (I'm not going to say the plot is still groundbreaking, as I feel the show lost its way after the epic and jaw-dropping second series, but, dang, are those first two series are something incredible). 

When you watch Peaky Blinders you feel as if you've entered another world, a world of organized crime, a world of Irish rebels, a world of changing landscapes. It's a world most of us have never been (I don't know about you, but I for one have never been a part of a gang in the English Midlands in 1919), but its a world that is so beautifully crafted and meticulously designed that it feels almost familiar, almost welcoming. Steven Knight and his team have perfectly crafted not only the Shelby family but the entire world of Peaky Blinders. Knight's writing and story, which is set perfectly within the backdrop of a deteriorating Britain, evokes just about every range of emotion one person can experience within 50 minutes. There's never a dull a moment, but there's also never a stimulus overload. Each episode finds the perfect balance of action and drama, intensity and stillness, darkness and lightness. It's like a fine wine - it's just bloody good!   

Next on my parade of praise: the cinematography! Honestly, nothing gets me more worked up than those absolutely incredible (and dare I say sexy) slow-motion ass-kicking scenes. I mean, this is why we love film, people! For moments like these where you literally have to replay it again and again because it is just so provocative. I don't know about you, but it gives me life! The entire production of Peaky Blinders, from the camera direction to the editing to the costumes to the bloomin' bedroom sets brings an emotional energy with it. The mis-en-scene (do mind my causal drop of a fancy film term - that's right I study film) created by Knight and his crew of directors is not something often seen in television - and is starting to be lost in films - so to have this amazing atmosphere of intensity and broodiness rejuvenates ones love for the art of cinema. 

Then to finish off this incredible piece of artistry, to make it even more perfect, there is this stunning and impeccable cast that brings a beating heart to the entire series. Cillian Murphy is intoxicating - he brings a dark allure to Tommy. He plays the tough gangster well, but its the tragic sadness that truly gives depth and life to this complicated character. Murphy can entertain and excite in Tommy's action moments, but his true strength as an actor shows in the quiet stillness of moments of contemplation and the heartache of a man destroyed by the world around him. Murphy finds himself in great company with his fellow co-stars, particularly Helen McCrory, who unarguably brings a beautiful sadness to the strongest member of the Shelby clan, and Paul Anderson, who captures the erratic neuroticism of mental illness poetically.  

Well, if it wasn't clear, I do love me some Peaky Blinders and this post somehow became an ode to its brilliance. But it's a much-deserved ode because there isn't much that can compare to the technical and emotional achievements of this brummie gangsters. 

Peaky Blinders (Series 3) | Review
Peaky Blinders (Series 4) | Review
3 Comments
Mandy
21/7/2018 18:36:54

Oh I totally agree, I actually just googled to see what other people thought of the cinematography and found your article. I am a photographer myself and I sometimes I have to still the screen just to appreciate the amazing work. It leaves me breathless.

Reply
Upper Ground Production
23/7/2018 10:01:01

Hi Mandy! Thanks for your lovely comment! Peaky Blinders constantly blows my mind with its stunning production! Although I think the storylines have suffered a bit over the years, the cinematography continues to be on par! I know what you mean about just wanting to pause and appreciate its beauty - each frame is like a stunning photography. And those slow-mo moments in the first series always leave me thirsty for me! So incredible! xShelby

Reply
Mandy
23/7/2018 10:07:21

Oh, the slow motion scenes of them walking with their coats blowing in the wind is just amazing. I could watch the whole programme on mute and still enjoy it :D




Leave a Reply.

    Click the images below to read each article

    Features

    Feasting on Females: Consuming the Female Body in Mimi Cave’s Fresh
    Marmalade and Masculinity: Combating Toxic Masculinity with Paddington Bear
    The Delicious World of Miyazaki: Subverting Western Food Standards in Studio Ghibli
    Ugly, Delicious and Political: Politicising Cultural Dishes
    Representing Oslovian Women, starring ‘The Worst Person in the World’
    Culinary Temptations: Italian Cuisine in Luca Guadagnino’s ‘Desire Trilogy’
    David Bowie is... The Englishman Who Fell to Earth
    Kris Marshall | Love, Actually
    ‘Choose a name; something simple’: Names and Identities in ‘Money Heist’
    The Sad Eyes of Punk: Subverting the Rock Star in Anton Corbijn's Control
    The Ghost of David Bowie: Capturing Bowie's Cultural Legacy in Todd Haynes' Velvet Goldmine
    Re-assimilating the Other: Zombies, Mental Illness and Homosexuality in BBC Three’s In the Flesh
    Global Strangers: Existing Between Borders Film Collection
    Animation Artistry in Cartoon Saloon’s Wolfwalkers
    Riz Ahmed’s Goodbye to Britain: Confronting Identity and Self in ‘The Long Goodbye’
    Young Film Programmers and the Pandemic
    The Hugh Grant Archetype: Stereotyping British Identity
    “America’s Sweetheart”: White Female Privilege In ‘Gone Girl’
    Why a David Bowie biopic will always be doomed to fail
    Film Oddity: David Bowie and the Screen
    "Did you feel emotional the first time you drove in Sacramento?" Driving with Emotion in Greta Gerwig's Lady Bird
    A [Not-so-Distant] Dystopian Future... The Dystopian Landscape of Ridley Scott's Blade Runner
    Politics, Class and the British Home: British Class Represented in High-Rise and Brazil
    The New New Wave of British Cinema: Joanna Hogg and the Middle-Class Social Realist Film
    “I’m Irish.” – Paul Mescal Vs The British Empire
    "Karen, are you crazy?" The Women of Martin Scorsese's Goodfellas
    Crafting Insanity: Experiencing madness in Sherlock: The Lying Detective
    The Modern Greek Tragedy: Examining Yorgos Lanthimos's The Killing of a Sacred Deer through Aristotle's Poetics
    "But Wales is Britain. And Britain is Wales." Exploring British national identity in Netflix's The Crown
    David Bowie is the Englishman from Mars: An Examination of Englishness through Stardom
    Supporting the Black Lives Matters movement through cinematic education
    “Maybe That’s Normal”: The Normality of Mental Illness in Normal People
    Dance, Woman, Dance: Revisiting Jim Henson's Labyrinth
    How Social Realism Contributes to the Fetishisation of Britain’s Working Class
    Slut! The Sexual Liberation of Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s Women
    Time, Illness And Melancholia
    Patrick Melrose And The Trauma Of The Aristocracy
    Is A Most Popular Film Category Good For The Oscars?

    Reviews

    Toronto International Film Festival '22 | Reviews
    BFI London Film Festival 2021 | Reviews
    BFI Flare Festival 2021 | Reviews
    Norwich Film Festival 2020 | Reviews
    Raindance Film Festival 2020 | Reviews
    London Film Festival 2020 | Reviews
    Lie Low | Review
    Review: Macbeth At The Norwich Theatre Royal
    Review: La Traviata At The Norwich Theatre Royal
    A Feminist Day Out At The BFI | Woman With A Movie Camera Summit 2018

    Interviews

    Red Carpet Interviews 
    Toronto International Film Festival 2022
    Interview with Bassam Tarqi
    ​London Film Festival 2020
    Picture
    Interview with Jonathan Blagrove
    Norwich Film Festival 2020
    Interview with Jamie Weston
    Norwich Film Festival 2020
    Picture
    Interview with Stuart Laws
    Grave New World Premiere 2021

    Film East Chats Podcast on BBC Radio Norfolk

    This is a small section of episodes from the Film East podcast. Click here to listen to all episodes. 

      Contact Me! 

    Submit
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.