Blue Jean

Blue Jean presents to us the struggles of a woman who is trying to blend into the heteronormative world during a time where homosexuals were politically vilified and othered, whilst trying to protect her position and integrity as a teacher.

It deals with more than just the base subject matter of what could be seen as a run-of-the-mill exploration of what it was/is like to live in a world like this where the politicalisation of a person's nature is used against them in order to misdirect the general public from actual issues of the times.

It delicately portrays the effects that it has on Jean, and by proxy, others, who internalises the prejudices which they experience, and how this behaviour affects how she not only treats herself - by isolating herself from the world at large, but also how she treats those closest to her while she sees that others within the community accepts themselves and lives openly without shame, albeit by not having, what could be seen as, white collared jobs.

Caught within the crossfire of Jean struggling to accept her nature is Lois, a student of Jean's, who is being bullied for reasons which you can surmise... Leading Jean to abandon Lois in a time of need.

The movie, for me, falls just short of having a cathartic release, but it highlights the relief that a person can have by coming to terms with their own nature, and righting the wrongs that they have caused, even if in part. As well as the importance of having a close and supportive community.

Solid performances from the entire cast makes this movie feel real. It reflects the life that people lived and continues to live. A worthwhile watch, as it is also a reflection of the time that we live in now.

The closet she came!, and all the rest of the tyneside dykes and dallies, in the roaring 80's british lgbtq+ redemtion movement, a time where gay and lesbians really stood out as real individualees, fighting for the rights to be equaly treated by society trying to squelch the heterosexual dominance on common settings in life like being the teacher and nurse and coalminer as they were educated as, without meing branded as children molestors and pedophiles, which was a normal rank in these days...

a really emotional flick about lesbianism in the thickest of geordieland, up on the northeast coast of england,where the pitches are so muddy and the only thing you dream of is sun and sand, just like the fight the main caracter in this flick goes through. Being in a rather voulnarable position as a P. E. teacher at the local school youre able to follow the ups and downs of her social life as well as her professional careere, as well as her abilities to sipht out new young girls on the block, which in the end becomes a harrowing threat that will stigmatize and ruin her life as a working teacher.

Loads of good old dj emeralds youll hear if viewing blue jean, well entwined into the bleach and grey landscape of blustery tyneside, ill be better of going to yewtree gardens or maybe it was peartree somewhere walkerville ne6 4tr, a very well made gay movie for sure...

so lets break the walls down in the end, just like the romans did in...wallsend...be proud of yourself whoever you are and have a good time viewing mrs mcewen, quite an enchanting one. A recommend from the ever so grumpy old man.

Set in 1988 Newcastle, Blue Jean follows a closeted PE teacher as she navigates the oppressive climate of Section 28 legislation, which threatens her livelihood if her sexuality is revealed, which Rosy does brilliantly through the film. This was recommended to me. I feel the film conveys 80s Northern England & the struggles that people like me would have gone through pretty well, despite being born a long time after 1988. I felt like the film addresses the impact of Section 28 pretty well, as one of the characters feels the need to hide her sexuality due to the fear of losing her job under the legislation, whilst another shows the tension & secrecy that LGBTQ+ individuals faced as students.

This film had a plot line that was like a documentary piece of 1980s Britain, in particular the whole 'Section 28' legislation using a PE teacher, Jean and her experiences in the period. How times (although the 1980s still seems relatively recent to me!) have moved on with the repealing of the said legislation in 2003. The whole intricacies of the said legislation is freely available to study elsewhere, this is strictly a review of the film I watched.

The film was shot on 16mm film and like other films using this medium it gives it a documentary type feel to proceedings or so I think.

It compares favourably with the 1980s timeframe of the story and other films of that period such as Rita, Sue and Bob Too (1987). The film also demonstrates the 1980s sound of synthesizers and beats from pop music of the time.

The cast put in excellent performances in conveying the bleakness of the whole story and can only be commended for their work on such a low budget film, which the U. K. seems to excel at producing.

Roger Ebert once said, it's not what a film is about, but how it is about it. Any film subject can be entertaining and interesting if done right, and any film subject can be dis-interesting and dull if done incorrectly. I've had some films that I expected to be bored to tears by end up being absolutely captivating because they were made so well. I was hoping for something like that with 'Blue Jean' but it was not to be the case sadly.

This film does everything in the least interesting way possible. It tries to create drama but it does it in a way that is forced and feels more like people being stroppy and unpleasant rather than naturally reacting to a situation. It never tries to push the envelope and be something unique and powerful or perhaps even memorable.

Basically I couldn't connect with the film. I found it uninspiring and I was bored to death for the majority of the run time. It's only 90 minutes but it felt much longer than that. 4/10.