Bend It like Beckham: Mise-En-Scene

Written, directed, and produced by Gurinder Chadha along with other contributors, Bend it Like Beckham is a film about growth, culture, and rebellion in 2002 United Kingdom. Jesminder “Jess” Bhamra, played by Parminder Nagra, is a young Indian girl finding her way in her culture and the modern world. She struggles between the Sikh Punjabi beliefs that she was raised with and the life that awaits her. Jess begins with the feeling that she cannot be the woman she wants without leaving her culture behind. Juliette “Jules” Paxton, played by Keira Knightley, comes into Jess’s life as a spunky, sporty, self-assured girl with a proposal. She wants Jess to play with her on a woman’s soccer team, the Hounslow Harriers. Jess goes to a practice and falls in love with the girls, ambiance, and game; however, she is soon discouraged by her parents. Jess must go behind her parents back and “bend” the rules in order to do something that she loves, something that completes her. Along the way, Jess falls in love with her coach Joe, played by Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, and it does not help matters that he is Irish and her new friend Jules likes him. Culture, friends, boys, soccer, family, school… Jess has to figure out who she exactly is. Bend it Like Beckham shows that you do not necessarily have to break the rules but bend them for changing attitudes as did David Beckham with the way conventional soccer players looked and behaved.

At first Jess is trapped and, in a way, hiding behind her culture. In the beginning, Jess’s mother is dressed in traditional clothing and her father wears a turban while she wears sporty clothes with her hair pulled back. The lights that Mr. Bhamra puts on the house in the beginning signify a celebration of culture. Jess, however, is serving food at the festivities. This act compares to Jess’s feelings of being a servant to her culture.

Her room is covered in David Beckham and soccer memorabilia. The only times she is playful and open is if she is around soccer friends or playing the sport. She is first wearing her Beckham jersey when she is “discovered” by Jules. At the first practice for the Hounslow Harriers she also wears it. Although she somewhat uses her culture as a security blanket, it seems to be that she feels most safe around the game of soccer.

At her first game the girls liberally change in their sports bras, and the captain openly states that she is going to change her tampon. Jess, feeling ashamed, changes under her clothes. She does not even want to wear shorts. It is greatly looked down upon in the Indian culture to show bare legs. The burns that Jess has are representative of this. As Jess approaches her guy soccer friends after practice they start to fool around and make fun of one another, and Jess’s mom can see this peering through the bushes. This act is similar to the invasive nature of her culture. Nothing is private, and you do not only bring shame on yourself when you do something wrong but your entire family. Jess’s mother constantly waves her hands or points her finger at her in an accusatory manner. Jess always ends up looking down or hanging her head whenever she confronts her parents.

After feeling trapped long enough, Jess becomes rebellious. Her first act is hiding soccer clothes in the bushes outside of her house. Jess and Jules are shown running past two old women jogging slowly. It is as if Jess is trying to run away from her culture, passing it by. Next, Jess is in the kitchen with her mother. She is kicking round food items behind the back of her mother cooking just as she is playing soccer behind her parents back.

The lights are taken down off the house the same time Jess is shutting out her culture. At the next game, Jess changes with no shame just displaying her sports bra. These simple acts, although others may not notice, are small slaps in the face of her culture. At practice, Jess hurts her ankle. Joe massages it and helps her off the field. In her strained relationship with her family, Joe tries to ease her through the journey. He shows up at her house in white like a knight in shining armor. He speaks with her parents and looks her parents straight in the eyes with no fear. As Jess and him have a discussion afterwards light is emulated behind Joe creating a certain glow. It makes him seem as though he is a savior.

At the Germany game Jess goes for a penalty kick. She is standing alone and in the dark. She misses the goal. Later that night Jess emerges from the hotel with jewelry, her hair down, make-up done, and she is wearing a tight, black, open-back shirt. Everything she displays right here is the opposite of everything she is in the beginning of the film. She has gone from one extreme to the other. Joe guides her to the dance floor by the hand as he has guided her through her self-discovery. Jess stumbles, and Joe holds