Pride - Representation of Youth

Pride

Representation of Youth

The opening scene of any film can be said to be the most important - it serves a vital role in establishing the theme, tone, premise and world of the film. While some films do this better than others, Pride is rather efficient in its method of introducing one of the characters most important characters as a young, spirited, rebellious man taking action in the only way he knows how against the government. Mark attentively watches a news report of the miners strikes, oblivious to the attempted conversation of the previous night's lover, we immediately get a sense for a kind of youth that Mark represents - specifically gay youth. He is clearly interested in sex but not interested in the long term, emotional arrangements - rather, he is focussed on larger societal issues. Mark’s frame of reference isn’t for the people around him, rather for the issues at hand and how he can fight to fix them; seen by the fact that he immediately grabs a bucket for donations. There is a certain sense of youth we get from such a short scene, one that shows a generation of people with a larger focus on society than even settling down. As we see later in the film, Mark is quite content to leave and return at his own free will - he has no restrictions, no responsibilities and this is through his own actions. He evidently does not let people get close, nor does he enjoy the feeling of people relying on him. Approaching Mark’s character this way, we can understand his frustration towards Mike - in the scene where he says:

Do you think it might be possible

that - just for once you could make

your own decision, Mike?

Mark represents a youth that actively wants no responsibilities, that is scared at the thought of having something outside of themselves to be held accountable for. Yet, through their desire to make a difference in society and thus their own lives, they are forced to adapt, to overcome, this desire for a certain vagabond lifestyle is not compatible with the issues at hand. Arguably, it is through the village and it’s small group of tightly knit, interdependent families that Mark learns that being a free, young spirit is simply not sustainable in the long term - not only does this reflect the representation of young people in the film, it represents the entire thematic message of the film; a message perfectly surmised by Joe Bromley:

Whether we march with banners or

without - the important thing is

that we march together. All of us.

But as a reflection of a true story, does Pride accurately represent the young and their attitudes. I would argue that Mark’s storyline and the youth he represents is archetypal and stereotypical of any protestor active within the LGBT community during 1980s Britain. Mark’s life is arguably too ‘perfect’ of a story, there are no external factors that make Mark who he is. He enters the film with the spirit and the fight of a young protestor and throughout the film he changes as a result of the events of the film, there is nothing outside the diegesis of the film that we see that could have shaped Mark. Arguably, the reason the filmmakers do this is to have mark represent a section of young, spirited protesters rather than be a complex, developed character study. The film could also be said to have a problematic representation of young people in the fact that they are all expected to be fully devoted into social issues, characters who don’t fight for social justice in the film are somewhat demonised for their lack of will in the fight for equal rights. Bromley, as much as he learns to love LGSM, is heavily pressured into the protests by Mike. In reality, many young people would have been happy to accept to see a steady, gradual change or even, accept the status quo - however right that may be.

There is also a representation of youth culture in their fashion, sense of identity and expression. Steph, for example, is visually carrying all the trademarks of a 1980s, Lesbian-Punk girl - she is quite evocative in her appearance and her attitude. This reflects the central thematic message in the film: Pride, take pride in who you are and fight for what you believe in. Whilst this can be seen as a very positive message, some may take issue with the fact that lesbianism is expressed most prominently as a fashion statement - and perhaps, that young girls are simply not responsible enough to express their sexuality in a way that is outside of a hairstyle and choice of jacket.