Monday 27 December 2010
Monday 13 December 2010
Thursday 9 December 2010
Wednesday 8 December 2010
Tuesday 7 December 2010
How is the representation of ethnicity constructed in this extract? - Spooks.
The representation of ethnicity is very significant and clear in this clip. Mise en scene emphasises the stereotypes each character has and how their personality and appearance is represented. The scene is set in a plain, dark room which has a very tense atmosphere. Beams of light pour in from the outside which creates shadows and makes it heavenly. There is also a part where it looks Danny is behind bars which shows dominance for the white people as they are in control of him. The shadow effect also looks like a split between black and white people. Close ups are used to highlight emotion and helps intensify the scene. The music is very haunting and forboding which could lead up to his death. The wale song is played as he speaks, which could be to calm him down as black people are known to be more relaxed then white. The call to prayer (Mvezzin) relates to his ethnicity which could show he is religious. This is where the intertextuality becomes clear.
Danny is clearly against terrorists and is very definite about what he says which shows power. he talks to himself which could mean that he is praying which is also a religious factor. He is on moral high ground but he has no power. Danny also talks about how him and the woman are from different areas and it would be difficult if they swapped places. This could show racism but he goes on to say he still has humanity and that she will never win. The over shoulder shots show the difference between the two ethnicities.
The terrorist in the long shot is very stereotypical. He is all dressed in black and looks Arabic. The white male is more dominant and indecisive. The woman who gets saved is clearly very emotional and has blood around her mouth which could represent violence. Danny is dressed in a suit and has a strong English accent which is not so stereotypical for a black person. The black, white and blue lights could emphasise death and darkness. Adam is very upset as he had to make the decision and the woman with the headset was very shocked at what she saw. Adam goes on to apologise for his decision and the old man who we see also looks very somber.
The differences between ethnicities are made very clear by the use of mise en scene.
Sunday 5 December 2010
Kickass Overview.
Kick-Ass is a 2010 superhero/action-comedy film based on the comic book of the same name by Mark Millar and John Romita, Jr. The film was directed by Matthew Vaughn, who co-produced the film with actor Brad Pitt, and co-wrote the screenplay with Jane Goldman. The film's general release was on 26 March 2010 in the United Kingdom and on 16 April 2010 in the United States.
The film tells the story of an ordinary teenager, Dave, who sets out to become a real-life superhero, calling himself "Kick-Ass". Dave gets caught up in a bigger fight when he meets Big Daddy, a former cop who, in his quest to bring down the drug lord Frank D'Amico, has trained his 11-year-old daughter to be the ruthless vigilante Hit-Girl.
Saturday 4 December 2010
Kickass notes.
age:
The teenager Dave, is very hormonal but geeky at the start of the film. We can see him changing as he turns into Kickass and he becomes a lot more confident, vain, violent and grown up. The older men come across as gangsters and they are very rough and threatening. They are also very dominant and other characters are wary of them.The young girl 'hit girl' thinks she's a lot older than she is. She swears, she's extremely violent, in one scene she drives red mist's car and she kills people. Her father 'big daddy' is a bad influence on her. He lets her do these things and encouraged her to be a superhero after her mother died. He also bought her a knife. His friend told him 'brainwashed' her as she had no childhood. She was too busy learning how to be a superhero. She has a very cute and innocent side although she turns into a killer which shocks everyone. The scene where she kills the whole gang of people is horrifying as she is so young. Dave likes girls as well which shows he is a stereotypical teenager. The teenagers gangsters show a bad example for other teenagers and make an image of representing them. They are 'asking for trouble' at any opportunity they can get.
gender:
There are a lot of characters in this film, some more significant than others. The males are very stereotypical, especially the gangsters. They are very intimidating, violent and always looking for trouble. Dave is only a teenager although we see him grow throughout the film. 'Big daddy' is not a real father figure as he encourages his daughter to do horrific things. He is not the average middle aged dad. She is also not the stereotypical little girl. You could say she is like a tom-boy and definitely not girly. She is more interested in killing people, like her dad. Most of the gangsters are males other than one woman. She is very flirty and attractive which appeals to the males.
ethnicity:
There are a lot of races in this film. The black gangsters are criminals and are very threatening. The white gangsters are also stereotypical but older than the black men. Dave is represented as the 'hero'. The teenage gangsters are both black and white so are both violent which shows no difference between the two. The black man stabs Kickass which shows violence and dominance but also the stereotypical 'criminal' image. The gang of white men are also very violent as they punch and kick the victim who Kickass tries to save. The black gangsters laugh at Kickass which shows they are quite manipulative. The tattoos that they have also represents crime and gangsters.
social class:
There are many groups of people in Kickass. The story looks at these at different times throughout the film. They all have their similarities and differences and this is because of their social class. The students are middle class and not really noticed a lot of the time. Although when Dave turns into Kickass, he becomes more and more popular because he is a 'mystery'. He becomes more of a hero figure and people want to be like him because he can't get hurt. The gangsters seem to be lot more dominant because they are older and experienced at what they are doing. Although the superheros Big Daddy, Hit Girl, Red Mist and Kickass are on the highest level all due to the fact that they are superheros. This could mean that the gangsters are jealous of them because they are always one step ahead of them. This forms a hierarchy of importance and popularity as some characters are more noticed than others.
regional identity:
The film is set in America, New York and it creates a very bad image. The characters make it look like a very rough area because of the violence and murders that occur. The graffiti shows how rough the area is as well as the lingering gangsters around every corner. Most of these have a very bad attitude and reputation. There is also a clear distinction between rich and poor. Some could say that they are stereotypical but the audience mainly focus on the superheros because of what they do and the story is based around them.
sexuality:
Most of the characters in the film are straight although a rumour is created that Dave is gay. He is straight as he likes girls and is a typical teenager because he wants to be with her. In one scene Hit Girl says he has a 'gay looking tazor' which shows she thinks she's better than him and knows a lot more. The scene where Dave helps with the girl's self tan is very awkward, as the audience knows that he likes her although she thinks he's gay. His 'geeky' image at the start of the film shows his feminine side as he talks to his friends and does anything to try and be with her. He is upset that she thinks he's gay and always wants to impress her. She also says that she's sad he's gay and this encourages him to tell her he's not. As Dave turns into Kickass, he becomes a lot more confident and wants to impress her even more. He works on his skill and his costume in the mirror, showing off, although we know that he is doing all of that for her. This shows his vain side. For example she said she likes Red Mist's cape so he went and bought a cape for his costume.
physical ability/disability:
Dave is indestructible and can't get hurt. He is very brave and grows in confidence throughout the film. The fact that he can't get hurt makes others, especially the gangsters, very jealous which shows his skillful ability. Each one of the superheros have their own power, mainly killing others but they are strong, skilled and their physical ability expresses this. Hit Girl would just look like an ordinary little girl normally, although, when she turns into a violent superhero she is the opposite of the stereotypical cute and innocent girl. The gangsters also have a strong physical ability although the superheros win them over because of their powers and experience.
camera:
There are a wide range of camera shots in this film. Mainly close-ups. There is one scene where night vision is used and this includes editing, but it expresses the whole superhero theme as it is one of their gadgets to see the gangsters in the dark so that they can kill them. Another example of editing but also cameras is where they reconstruct the cartoon and split the screen into different parts by cartoon images like an actual cartoon magazine. Another camera shot that they use is the long shot and the scene where Kickass and Red Mist jump through the door while escaping the factory expresses this clearly. This escape is very stereotypical for superheros as it makes them look powerful and strong so the camera captures this in an effective way. The closeups are normally used in the violent scenes as it focuses on the injuries and murders. The weapons are also significant as it shows something bad is about to happen. The closeup on Kickass's face in hospital shows the pain he is suffering with which is also significant as he took the pain for someone else because he can't get hurt. The mid shots are mainly used for the gangsters as it shows power and represents something that they are about to do. The quick shots of crime from the gangsters represents violence and reflects on what is currently happening in a different area. The scene where the videos of Kickass on Youtube shows how he is becoming more and more popular and the camera uses a close-up of the number of views he has which expresses this.
mise en scene:
Mise en scene is the area of representation which is most important in this film. Most scenes are shot at night time which creates tension as the scenes can be violent and makes it unexpected. The scene of the black gangster's apartment is very dark and smoky which creates a bad image for them as it represents violence and drugs. The violence in the alley also highlights the bad area that they are located in. Overall the colours and lighting are very bright and colourful. This carries on the idea of cartoons and superheroes. The costumes that the superheroes have are very important for their character. Big Daddy looks like Batman which could be an influence and Hit Girl looks like she knows what she's doing even though she is only a little girl. The scenes in the classroom and bowling alley represents what a normal teenager would do but this creates a contrast as Kickass is going out fighting 'villains'. Red Mist's dad has a scar on his face which once again shows violence and his bad reputation. This also signifies that he likes getting into trouble and has a bad background. The weapons int he film also play a big role in the cartoon theme. Normally in cartoons, violence isn't expressed in a realistic way, although as they have converted this cartoon into a film, it shows just how bad the violence is. Hit girl and Big Daddy own lots of weapons which is strange to see a little girl handle. Dave tries to live to his name by training and fighting the bad guys at night in the alley. This is how he is first recognised. This tense atmosphere represents his braveness. Hit Girl's purple wig and mask also signifies the superhero image. When Red Mist is introduced, Kickass sees him as a competition and is jealous of his gadgets because of his dad's wealth. Red Mist has a cape which shows a 'real superhero' so Kickass feels the need to get one. He also has the 'Mistmobile' which impresses Kickass and makes him even more jealous. When Red Mist enters the blazing factory, Kickass is shocked by his braveness and didn't expect him to storm in like that. The superheroes are vigilante's, including Kickass.
editing:
Special effects and editing software obviously plays a huge role in this film. It is mainly used to show violence, explosions, injuries, cartoons and other disasters. The first scene where the man jumps of the building and crashes into the car shows suicide. Stabbings and murders are also edited to make them look realistic. Some of the injuries and murders are very disturbing and editing helps play a role in this. For example when the man's body explodes in the machine and blood is smeared all down the window to show his awful death by the gangsters. Another example is when Hit Girl kills the whole gang of black men and the man's legs are sliced off by her double ended spear. It is very graphical although very realistic. The fire in the factory also looks very realistic although editing makes this happen. The cartoon strip is also effective as it relates to a real life situation. It is telling the story but switching between cartoon and real life which carries on the theme. The explosions and murders are most effective in editing.
sound:
The sound in most scenes always suits the mood. There are many cartoon-like sounds to represent action. This includes blasts, action, gun shots and violence. It is clear when tension is building up as the music becomes very fast and classical, but low tone. The tone of the music depends on the mood of the character. For example when Red Mist's dad is angry, the music will go very low but loud and fast. There are also songs that the audience would recognise in some scenes to represent the realness of the situation. For example when Red Mist meets Kickass in the alley, 'This town ain't big enough for the both of us' is played to demonstrate the competition between the two and that there is usually only one superhero. This makes it strange as they both work together. Another song that is played is 'Crazy' by Gnarls Barkley in Red Mist's car. The two superheroes start dancing to it which creates the association with 'normal' teenagers but the title represents the situation that they are in.
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