Analysing Luther Scene

Discuss ways in which the extract constructs the representation of gender using the following:

This extract is a clip from Luther between a protagonist Luther and a female called Alice. This extract demonstrates gender and how different camera shots and mise-en scene portray this.

Camera shots, angles and movements

The extract opens with a close up of the female in the centre of the frame. This suggests to us that she is the most important in the extract. There are multiple mid shots of the female (Alice) in the opening scene which emphasises this point. But also there is many over the shoulder shots from the male (Luther) which could suggest that he has all the power in the extract. This backs up the stereotype of men having power over women. Also to show that Luther has the power, we are shown a high angle shot looking down on Alice from Luther's point of view to show that he is more powerful and has more authority than her. From these components in this opening scene, we can put together than Luther seems to have more power, authority and control over the women in this scene and possibly overall in society. From the high angle shot looking down at Alice, it makes us look as her as a less authoritative figure and therefore shrinks the amount of power she obtains. This again fits the stereotype that women are 'weaker'.

Another way that Luther is seen as powerful is from low angle shots. From various low angle shots, it makes us think that Luther is in control as the camera and therefore the audience are looking up at him which makes him seem like the dominant one.But from the position of the camera, this is actually the view that Alice gets so we can see that she is the less powerful one and Luther has more authority. This further reinforces the stereotype of men having more 'power'.

The movement of zoom is used various times in this extract. The camera will zoom in on certain characters faces to grip the audience and make us listen to what they are saying. This will cause all the focus to be on that particular character. At one scene in this extract, there is a zoom on Alice's face so that we listen to her and are gripped by what she is saying. This enhances her power and we then see that she is not in fact powerless, but actually quite authoritative. This goes against the stereotype that all women are 'weak' as in this particular scene she seems to have the power over Luther and seems to be persuading him and seems quite seductive.

Mise en scene

We can see that the female, Alice has a tidy apartment. We are able to see that she has things like a telescope, various books and a globe in her apartment. This goes against the typical stereotype that men are always the clever ones and women aren't so intelligent, but these props clearly show that she is smart and intelligent. We can also recognise that she may be fairly wealthy as from various camera angles, the Shard and St Paul's Cathedral are visible through the windows at the back of the apartment. This portrays that she may posses a lot of money as these buildings are attractions in London, so a flat overlooking them would certainly cost a high amount of money. This would definitely go against the stereotype of women being 'private' but this contrasts that as she would not be because we know she is wealthy so we can see she is not private and earns money.

There is also a red chair positioned in the middle of the room. The chair seems to be the only bit of colour in her apartment, surrounded by dull and lifeless furniture. The fact that her flat is relatively tidy, suggests that she maybe is harmless but the placement of the red chair in the centre of the room portrays the fact that she may have some danger in her. The colour red gives us the impression of danger and that she may fit into the 'mad, bad and dangerous' stereotype for women. But also it may go against the stereotype for women that they are 'weak' but this contrasts this as she seems dangerous.
The red chair represents a symbolic code as it symbolises the fact that the red chair shows the danger within her. A symbolic code is something that represents a more abstract concept, so the chair shows the danger.

Sound
Non-diegetic sound is used when the male and female close in on each other. This creates lots of tension as it seems the music/sound is building up for something to happen. From this we can tell that the relationship between them is uneasy. As the male moves closer, the sound seems to increase. This could suggest that the male has the power in the situation which fits the male stereotype of being the one with all the power and has more power over women.

Gender is shown through this extract between the two characters Luther and Alice. Gender is shown through various stereotypes that back up the idea of gender. But the stereotypes are challenged throughout the extract because of the representation of gender.