Analysis Of 'Ill Manors' by Plan B
Immediately from the title, audiences are left to question its meaning, with many elements of the video being left open to interpretation. While some would interpret 'Ill manors' as meaning a person who has not been raised to be polite and is rude, others may see this as a reference to the poor living conditions and rundown state of the lower class areas of London. Plan B may have used this pun on purpose to show how immediately some people would revert to steryotypes, assuming that ill manors is referencing the rudeness of 'chavs' as they refuse to conform to the rules of society, rather than seeing it as a criticism of the governments neglect of its citizens.
Contextually, the video was released in 2012, a year after the London Riots. The Gaurdian claimed it was 'the greatest mainstream protest song in years', depicting the anger of Londons citizens as they riot against the government. This is shown not only through the Mis En Scene of the video but also its lyrics.
For example the lyrics 'He's got a hoodie on give him a hug, on second thoughts don't you don't wanna get mugged' is a reference to David Cameron's 'Hug a hoodie' phrase that aimed to make the tories look softer when it came to crime. However this stereotyped young people who wear hoodies as criminals, making hoodies a sign of violence.
The video uses the colour red which immediately evokes feeling of anger and fear within viewers. As well as this many of the set is dark and smoky, hiding the faces of the actors in the video, which could represent how irrelevant both the lower classes and their issues are to the government. They would rather hide away the poverty than try to solve it. Similarly the colours red and black are shown in the clothing of the actors, which al adds to the mis-en-scene of the video. These colours along with the smoke effect simulates fire, relating to the destruction caused by the London riots.
The video uses many low shots to make actors look bigger and more intimidating. Similarly the camera will often zoom into faces or objects to create the same effect. However there are no high shots in order to show actors as powerful the whole way through, sarcastically presenting them as strong and powerful despite the poverty they are faced with.
The establishing shot pictures a dark and gloomy looking London skyline, lined with run down tower blocks and what seems to be the dying remains of fires. This could be a reference to the destruction caused by the London Riots as cars, shops and homes were set alight, in protest to the unlawful killing of Mark Duggan by police. However the protest escalated into riots, portraying the anger of London's civilians at being neglected by their government. Plan B's video is a more artistic form of protest, allowing people to display their feelings in a harmless yet still effective way.
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