Monday 8 December 2014

Representation of Ethnicity- Spooks


Camera Shots, Angles, Movement and Composition
Hand  Held Camera- This scene is filmed on a camera which is being hand held. This makes the scene shaky and not the way in which filming usually takes place. This may be used to show that this is not a true representation of the 'real world' and this is not how all people should be seen to be. It may also be used to show that this is not what people normally see and it may be shocking to the people who do watch it and make them angry. It shows that there is conflict between the black, male character and the white, male character and may be used to show that this will not end well and something bad it going to happen.
Tilt- There is a tilt down from the gun to a close up of the woman's face. This shows both the gun and the women so we are able to see what the scene is about. However, they are not shown in the same scene which may be used to show that at that moment, the gun does not bother her and she is focusing on talking to the man on the phone. It may also be used to show that the gun has the most power and it may be responsible for the death of this character. It shows that he is unable to do anything about the situation that she is in and that if the male charter wants to shoot her, he will.
Tied to a Chair- The two characters who are being held hostage are both tied to a chair. This is so they are unable to move and get away and are unable to fight back. However, it also shows that white people are seen to be the race with the most power as they are standing over the male and female character. Being able to stand over them, gives them power and makes them feel as though they are higher up in society to every other race. However, even though the other characters are lower then the rest, they are not shown in a high-angle shot. This means that even though the white characters see the other character, who are different races, to be lower than they are, in fact they are not and society does not actually feel this way. It shows the characters to the audience in a way that means that they are equal to them and this is how society should be.
Danny- When Danny is talking, the shot is a close up of his face. However, it also shows the hands of the other male character and the gun that is being held to the woman's head. This may be used to show that even though the audience is meant to be focusing on what Danny is saying, there is also that danger that the male character may shoot anyone at any time. This may be used to show that there is also danger to black people and that there is a still an underlying racism that appears in a lot of people still. 
Close up on Gun- There is a close up on the gun which is used to emphasis the fact that this white character has the power and he is the person who can be responsible for the death of these two characters. However, the gun is shaking and he is unable to hold it still. This may be used to show how he may be having second thoughts about the situation and his consciousness may be catching up with him. This may be used to indicate that he has ended up in a situation that he does not want to be in but is unable to get out of it. This could show that white people feel as though they have to have some power and they feel pressure to carry things through if they start something.

Editing
Jump Cuts- At the begging of the clip, there are jump cuts from a man on his phone to people in a room tied to a chair. This is used to show the reaction of the man on the phone to what the women is telling him but can also be seen to show the distance between the two characters are they are in completely different settings. It shows how the male character is helpless and how he is unable to help the woman that he is talking to on the phone. He is not saying anything to the woman which may be used to show that he is shocked and does not know what to say. This may be used to show that even though the man with the gun and the man on the phone are the same race, they have different attitudes and powers and they are not all the same. This shows how you should not group people together just because they are the same race and that stereotypes do not apply to everyone.
Flashback- The flashback allows you to see what happened by in a way in which allows you to see others reactions rather than the actual shooting. It cuts to two other people to show their anger and their frustration at the fact that this is happened. This makes it look as though this whole situation was set up among a lot of people but it was not meant to end this way. It could also mean that it was meant to end with a death but they may not regret it and wish that this had never happened. It cuts to two other white people which may be used to show that they all stick together and are against other races.
Reaction Shots- There are a lot of reaction shots after the shooting which is used to show different characters reactions to what has just taken place. This is used to show their attitude to what has happened and it gives the audience a chance to understand what they may be thinking. There are characters are shown at this point who where not shown earlier in the clip which may be used to show that there was a hidden team behind the white male and it was not just him that was doing this. It shows how they were hidden but watching which may be used to show that they are worried of what people will think of them and they also may be too afraid to do something like this themselves so will send someone else in to do it for them.
Slow Motion- After Danny has been shot, the clip then begins to show things in slow motion. This may be used to show how shocking this is for everyone and that they are unable to believe what happened. The slow motion emphasises the characters reactions and allows us to image what they are thinking but only showing them for a short amount of time. 
Blurry- The shots become blurry after the death of Danny which may be used to show that everything is a blur to them and they do not know what to do or how to react to what has just happened. 

Sound
'If I had been born somewhere else, it might have been me holding the gun'- This is what the black male says to the white male whist he has a gun to his head. He then continues to say 'If you had been born somewhere else, it might have been you sitting where I am'. These two lines are used to show that this whole situation is based purely on the race which the men are. This is because the black man is saying that if he were white, he may have the power to kill people he may be as evil and cruel as the white character is being. He is also saying that if the white character was black, he would be the one who was at gunpoint. This may be used to show that all races are put together in a group and people are categorized depending on their race. It shows that stereotypes do not apply to all of the people in that race and everyone is different. 
'I guess you are just unlucky'- This use of diegectic speech is ironic because of the fact that we view the black male character as the character that is unlucky. This is purely based down to the fact that he is being held at gun point and may be hot at any moment. However, he does not view himself to be the unlucky one and in fact feels as though the other character is the one that is unlucky. This is for the fact that he feels as though he is much worse of a person because he feels as though the only way to live is through killing other people. This may be used to show that he feels as though white people are the people who are unlucky because they are seen to have to act in a  way in which makes them want to react in this way. 
'I'm unlucky?'- After Danny has said a lot about the situation, all the male character responds by is asking this question. This shows that this is the only thing that he has picked up on out of everything that Danny has said. This may be used to show that he does not feel as though what he has to say is important. However, he has said something that has offended him so he wants to pick up on it and address it. It also emphasises this line and exaggerates the fact that Danny believes the other character is the character who is the unlucky person. It may also scare the audience as now the male character may want to prove that he is not the unlucky one and there is an obvious way in which he is able to show that, by shooting Danny.
'And you know what my answer would be?'- This is how the man with the gun responds to Danny after he has said what he would do if he was not tied to the chair. He then shoots Danny. This shows that he believes the only way in which he can answer someone being rude to him is to kill them. I also shows that his only answer is violence and he does not see any other way. This portrays white people in a way that may make people feel as though they all only believe in violence and killing rather than peace.
Music- When the male character gets shot, non-diegetic music is played for the rest of the clip. This music is quite slow and may be used to show that the male character is now at peace. This may also be viewed a being quite haunting music. However, it is used to emphasis the fact that the male character has been killed and shows the other characters horror and frustration at this fact.

Mise-en-Scene
The Gun- The gun is the item which gives the man the power to kill and why the other character are scared of him. It shows that the male character feels as though he needs to make an impact and he needs the other characters to realise that he is important and dangerous. It could be used to show that he did not feel as though he would be taken seriously if he did not take the gun which may be used to show that white people are not seen to be dangerous and they are not seen to be the race which can cause a lot of harm. This is because it is widely stereotyped that black males are the dangerous people and these are the people who are capable of killing and are seen to be dangerous. This clip proves this stereotype wrong as the black character is the one who is being shot rather than doing the shooting. This may be used to show that societies ideas of people are wrong and the stereotypes are racist and how dangerous a person is does not depend on the colour of their skin.
Dark Lighting- The whole scene is quite dark which is because the lights are off and the only light that is lighting the scene is the natural light which is coming through the window. The dark lighting is used to show that this scene is eary and dangerous. The dark lighting can be used to show that the male character is dangerous and capable of doing a lot of harm. It may also be used to show that the clip is going to end badly and that this conflict is not going to be solved. It may also show that the man does not want the other characters to see who he is in great detail because he is ashamed of what he his doing. He may also be making sure than nobody is able to see into the room from the outside which ensures that nobody is able to see what he is doing. This could be used to show that society is blind to the fact that some white people can be dangerous and that the stereotypes that they have are wrong.
Curtains over the windows- This is used as a way to block out most of the light that is trying to come through the windows. This means that the room remains dark and makes it hard to see the scene clearly, which shows that he is ashamed of what he is doing. The curtains also shows that he wants to make sure nobody is able to look through the windows and see what he is doing, so that he is unable to get caught. It also backs up the fact that society is blind to this kind of actions and they do not see this part of life, which leads people to carry on with their stereotypes.
Black- Most of the things in this scene are black, this includes their clothes and the interior. Black is seen to be the colour of death so may be used to show that there is going to be a death before it happens. Black is also a colour of danger so shows the audience that there is an underlying danger throughout this scene.

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