Bend_It_Like_Beckham

Bend it like Beckham Directed by Gurinder Chadna, Bend it like Beckham is a feature film that was released in 2002. The feature film discuss’ the difficulties of coming from a different cultural background. Jess Bhamra is an Indian girl living in a London suburb; she is constantly surrounded by people who pressure her such as her family and friends. Whilst sneaking out to play soccer she meets a girl called Jules, they soon find they have much in common. Neither girls families approve of them playing football, Jess chooses to lie to her family causing arguments to occur daily. Jules’ father is very supportive of her so she sometimes finds it hard to understand Jess’ emotions. In Bend it like Beckham Jess and Jules face daily challenges such as cultural identity and family, social pressures, the media and gender stereotypes. Gurinder Chadna uses filmic codes such as symbolic, technical and audio to explore the overarching theme of difference and diversity. The media has a great impact on people’s lives as it can be seen almost anywhere you go, it therefore influences the decisions you make to some degree. The media today can publicize humanly figures into something they are not. It also has the power to create many ideas from a key topic weather it been a person or an item. The media in the film Bend it like Beckham portrays David Beckham to be a god, not only to people who follow football but to anyone. Most women idolize Beckham for his good looks; Jess however idolizes him for his great ability to be able to play football. Jess is a football fanatic- football is her life. She dreams playing alongside her hero- David Beckham. Throughout the film we see Jess in her bedroom surrounded by walls covered in David Beckham posters. These posters are very important as they provide us with knowledge about Jess. We are able to view how she thinks of Beckham. I think Jess would consider making decisions just like David Beckham because he has done so well in his football career and Jess is longing to be just like him. The characters of Jess and Jules conflict gender stereotypes as they don’t dress feminine and ladylike. Jess and Jules do not wear the expected clothes for a stereotypical girl. A stereotypical girl is known to dress in pink, play ‘girl’ sports such as netball, shop, cook, clean, iron and take the more parental role on. As for Jess and Jules they are almost the complete opposite to all of these ideas. Jess and Jules are viewed wearing long baggy tracksuit pants, dull coloured loose fitting shorts and loose t-shirts. The only time these girls would show some extra skin would be if they were at training with their female team. Throughout the film you see three girls constantly dressed in pink short miniskirts, tight tops, high heels and lots of jewellery. Camera shots such as mid-shots and full shots are often used to show the details on the girl’s clothes to show the distinctive differences between the two groups of girls. This is a challenge for Jess and Jules everyday because they frequently receive peculiar looks. Most girls would not put up with having people glance at them; they would most likely choose the easy road and attempt to fit in. I think the girls are courageous for various reasons; they are choosing to stand out from the crowd and choosing to be different. Your friends affect the decisions you make greatly because they are an immense part of your life. It can be very difficult to make decision as your life revolves around them. Pressures coming from your friends influence the decisions you make. Jess and Jules become best friends throughout the film despite there ups and downs. If one of them had to make a choice then they would definitely consider the other person. Pressures coming from the football team play a big role in affecting the choices made by Jess and Jules. Pressures coming from the football team have an effect on the choices made by the girls as they are both so heavily involved in football. There life choices are usually based around football. There coach Joe is role model for both the girls so he can impact the choices they make. Joe: Look, I can't let you go without knowing. Jess: What' Joe: That even with the distance, and it concerns your family, we might still have something. Don't you think' Jess’s strong Indian culture and her religious family impact her life choices majorly as they are a very important part of her life to her. Jess’ family has very high expectations for her. They anticipate for her to get married at a young age, go to college, stay at home and clean and cook. Her older sister Pinky has done all the right things by her parents, so Jess has to try and live up to her sisters high standards, as well as her parents. The Indian culture is very strict in what they believe you should and shouldn’t do. If you did something wrong against their beliefs and culture they might punish you or take away your privileges. Jess always wants to do the right thing by her family but when it comes to football she will do almost anything to not give it up. Mrs. Bhamra: What family would want a daughter-in-law who can run around kicking football all day but can't make round chapattis' The media, social pressures, gender stereotypes, cultural identity and family all play a role in influencing the choices made by Jess and Jules.