As soon as the audience are introduced to the scene, the representations of genders are very apparent. The roles of the males and females within the scene are shown through stereotypes, such as traditionally placing power in the man’s hands and objectifying the females as sexual objects (L.Mulvey, The Male Gaze). Throughout the scene, the use of various camera angles and movement, sounds, editing and mise-en-scene help to reveal each characters role and relevance to the scene as well as their representation.
The first characters in this scence that we see are the shop assistant and an older lady. The position of the camera is level with the shop assistant, in effect looking down on the older lady, this could show that the shop assistant thinks or is higher up in status/social class than the older lady. To help emphasise this point, the older lady is dressed in not so expensive or stylish clothes looking at highly priced designer wear. The camera reveals the way in which the shop assistant deals with the older lady; not interested as he believes she has no money or is not worthy to be in his shop. In this section of the extract, the audience can get a clear understanding of what kind of person the shop assistant is, even more so when we see a blonde, smartly dressed and well presented woman enter the shop. All the attention turns to her and we see the shop assistant looking more interested and willing to help because she looks like she has alot of money. We know she has money when the camera zooms to a close up of her hand in which shes wearing a huge diamond ring(proposing it could have some importance later on in the scene) and her well pronounced english could suggest a wealthy upbringing .The camera follows the blonde womans body up from toe to head revealing the stereotypical woman; perfect figure, beautiful and intelligent. Throughout the scene, the blonde woman brings the stereotypes upon herself. She becomes flirtacious in her tone of voice when trying on a sleek and sexy, long black dress that the shop assistant recommended to her, perhaps showing his feminime side (testing the male stereotype). She's shown to be rather ditzy when she looses her wedding ring in the shop and reveals that her husband will go crazy if she cant find it (stereotyping thr dominant male figure), but for who-ever does find it will get a reward of £5000. Immediately after she says that, the camera zooms up into the shop assistants face to see his reaction which makes him seem very keen on finding the ring and that he's probably only wanting to help find it on the fact of the generous reward.
Other camera angles and shots also help to reveal reactions and relationships between different characters.
A two-shot is used in the shop revealing the relationship and whats going on between the shop assistant and a blonde male that is testing his character and potentially setting him up in relation with the misplaced diamond ring. Another way in which the camera helps to show the roles of these two characters is the fact that the camera moves down onto the level of the blonde male rather than the level of the shop assistant, this could show that the blonde male is indeed more important and powerful. As the blonde male goes to walk out of the shop, there is a shallow depth of field where the blonde male is fully in focus but the shop assistant is blurred in the background and a direct mode of address in used when the blonde male looks straight into the camera and talks directly to the audience. Showing importance and hierachy of characters is also present in another scene, in which we get a two-shot of two men drinking and talking together in some sort of bar. We understand that one of these two characters is the more important character in perhaps the whole of the sequence because the upbeat and franctic music thats played throughtout the majority of the extract stops, exhibiting that maybe he's the boss and theres a more seriousness about him than any other.
Talking about different scenes, the use of screen wipes/inter-cutting helps to connect them together and makes the audeince believe that they are all happening relativley at the same time. Also sound is a connection between scenes and helps the audience remember whats happening in which because the upbeat, frantic music is only played in the scene with the shop assistant and blonde woman.
Pulling in everything together, editing, sound, camera use and different aspects of the mise-en-scene help give a representation of genders. Some stereotypes have been tested and some have shown the traditional and idealised roles of men and women.
The first characters in this scence that we see are the shop assistant and an older lady. The position of the camera is level with the shop assistant, in effect looking down on the older lady, this could show that the shop assistant thinks or is higher up in status/social class than the older lady. To help emphasise this point, the older lady is dressed in not so expensive or stylish clothes looking at highly priced designer wear. The camera reveals the way in which the shop assistant deals with the older lady; not interested as he believes she has no money or is not worthy to be in his shop. In this section of the extract, the audience can get a clear understanding of what kind of person the shop assistant is, even more so when we see a blonde, smartly dressed and well presented woman enter the shop. All the attention turns to her and we see the shop assistant looking more interested and willing to help because she looks like she has alot of money. We know she has money when the camera zooms to a close up of her hand in which shes wearing a huge diamond ring(proposing it could have some importance later on in the scene) and her well pronounced english could suggest a wealthy upbringing .The camera follows the blonde womans body up from toe to head revealing the stereotypical woman; perfect figure, beautiful and intelligent. Throughout the scene, the blonde woman brings the stereotypes upon herself. She becomes flirtacious in her tone of voice when trying on a sleek and sexy, long black dress that the shop assistant recommended to her, perhaps showing his feminime side (testing the male stereotype). She's shown to be rather ditzy when she looses her wedding ring in the shop and reveals that her husband will go crazy if she cant find it (stereotyping thr dominant male figure), but for who-ever does find it will get a reward of £5000. Immediately after she says that, the camera zooms up into the shop assistants face to see his reaction which makes him seem very keen on finding the ring and that he's probably only wanting to help find it on the fact of the generous reward.
Other camera angles and shots also help to reveal reactions and relationships between different characters.
A two-shot is used in the shop revealing the relationship and whats going on between the shop assistant and a blonde male that is testing his character and potentially setting him up in relation with the misplaced diamond ring. Another way in which the camera helps to show the roles of these two characters is the fact that the camera moves down onto the level of the blonde male rather than the level of the shop assistant, this could show that the blonde male is indeed more important and powerful. As the blonde male goes to walk out of the shop, there is a shallow depth of field where the blonde male is fully in focus but the shop assistant is blurred in the background and a direct mode of address in used when the blonde male looks straight into the camera and talks directly to the audience. Showing importance and hierachy of characters is also present in another scene, in which we get a two-shot of two men drinking and talking together in some sort of bar. We understand that one of these two characters is the more important character in perhaps the whole of the sequence because the upbeat and franctic music thats played throughtout the majority of the extract stops, exhibiting that maybe he's the boss and theres a more seriousness about him than any other.
Talking about different scenes, the use of screen wipes/inter-cutting helps to connect them together and makes the audeince believe that they are all happening relativley at the same time. Also sound is a connection between scenes and helps the audience remember whats happening in which because the upbeat, frantic music is only played in the scene with the shop assistant and blonde woman.
Pulling in everything together, editing, sound, camera use and different aspects of the mise-en-scene help give a representation of genders. Some stereotypes have been tested and some have shown the traditional and idealised roles of men and women.
