The Battle Of Billy's Pond.txt
The Battle Of Billy's Pond CFF 1976.
Two boys investigate industrial waste polluting their favourite fishing pond.
There's just a little of the usual high-jinks and slapstick expected of a Children's Film Foundation production, but there's no doubting this is among the most serious of all its efforts, a film with a definite message. In a rare, considered contemporary overview of CFF output, Films and Filming critic Jenny Craven called this film, "an enthralling and condemning story about pollution [in which] the theme emerges from action rather than words."
A huge chemical company pays illegal dumpers for disposal of chemical waste dangerous to the environment, while adverts for its washing powder Breezee play endlessly on television, selling images of sunkissed cornfields and smiling children. The persuasive voiceover (courtesy of an authentic turn by the 1970s' king of the hard sell, Patrick Allen) makes hollow promises: "Washed nature's own way with a new organic detergent that whitens the same way as sunshine." The parable surely implies that consumerist society is damaging the planet.
The tough message is emphasised by some tense direction - notably a sequence of a waste tanker bearing down on Billy's bike and an exciting final fight sequence by leading stunt performers Derek Ware and Andrew Bradford which betrays the influence of adult crime TV series The Sweeney (ITV, 1975-78).
A short sample is included for evaluation.
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General
Complete name : The Battle of Billy's Pond.mp4
Format : MPEG-4
Format profile : Base Media / Version 2
Codec ID : mp42
File size : 231 MiB
Duration : 53mn 13s
Overall bit rate mode : Variable
Overall bit rate : 606 Kbps
Video
ID : 1
Format : AVC
Format/Info : Advanced Video Codec
Format profile : Baseline@L3.0
Format settings, CABAC : No
Format settings, ReFrames : 1 frame
Format settings, GOP : M=1, N=30
Codec ID : avc1
Codec ID/Info : Advanced Video Coding
Duration : 53mn 13s
Bit rate : 507 Kbps
Maximum bit rate : 1 702 Kbps
Width : 480 pixels
Height : 360 pixels
Display aspect ratio : 4:3
Frame rate mode : Variable
Frame rate : 29.970 fps
Minimum frame rate : 29.528 fps
Maximum frame rate : 30.426 fps
Color space : YUV
Chroma subsampling : 4:2:0
Bit depth : 8 bits
Scan type : Progressive
Bits/(Pixel*Frame) : 0.098
Stream size : 193 MiB (84%)
Audio
ID : 2
Format : AAC
Format/Info : Advanced Audio Codec
Format profile : LC
Codec ID : 40
Duration : 53mn 13s
Bit rate mode : Variable
Bit rate : 96.0 Kbps
Maximum bit rate : 114 Kbps
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Channel positions : Front: L R
Sampling rate : 44.1 KHz
Compression mode : Lossy
Stream size : 36.5 MiB (16%)
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