Billy Eliot

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Recommended: Representation of gays/lesbians in cinema

1. The film Billy Elliot (Daldry, 2000) is set in a mining town in England during the 1984 miner’s strike. The plot focuses on Billy, the younger son of a mining family in which the mother has recently died, and Billy’s macho father and older activist brother take part in the miners struggle. Billy does not identify with the masculine world-view of his father and brother, and instead of boxing he secretly joins the ballet class. The notion of belonging to a group that shares the same values is repeated throughout the film, which portrayed class, gender and sexual orientation issues.

Billy’s gender role shift journey starts as he is first exposed of a ballet class while he participated in boxing class at the gym. A new world opens up for him, and marks the beginning of Billy’s way to a new self-identity. Billy secretly makes the transition and takes ballet lessons instead of boxing. When Billy's father finds out that he is taking ballet, he makes it clear that he wants him to quit, but Billy ignores his father and begins taking private ballet lessons with Mrs. Wilkinson.

The turning point of Billy's gender issues occurs as he triumphs over the odds, and wins his father over. Billy’s father's perception changes when he catches him dancing with his gay friend in the gym. Billy begins to dance for his father, who finally sees the talent that his son holds.

Another fundamental aspect in the film is the class dynamics and its relation to the gender and the sexual orientation issues. Billy’s town is a working class oriented and very traditional. Boys practice boxing while girls practice ballet. Yet, Billy successes to defeat these traditional boundaries and brings these harsh miners on his side. This is evident when a celebration, ...

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...ng electricity: Narrating gender, sexuality, and the neoliberal transition in Billy Elliot. Camera Obscura, 25(75), 1-27.

Archard, N. (2008). “Always Be Yourself”: Identity and acceptance in Billy Elliot. Screen Education, (49), 137-140.

Daldry, S. (Director), Brenman, G. (Producers), (2000). Billy Eliot [Motion picture]. UK: Working Title Films.

Ellen, B. (2000, October 8). Billy, don’t be a hero. Observer Magazine. Retrieved from http://www.guardian.co.uk/theobserver/2000/oct/08/features.magazine7?INTCMP=SRCH

Gamson, W. A. (2007). Political socialization and grandparenting. Sociological Forum, 22(4), 568-578.

Guardo, C. J., & Bohan, J. B. (1971). Development of a sense of self-identity in children. Child Development, 42(6), 1909-1921.

Sinfield, A. (2006). Boys, class and gender: From Billy Casper to Billy Elliot. History Workshop Journal, 62(1), 166 -171.

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