Hustle

>   Discuss the ways in which the extract constructs the representation of gender using the following: Camera shots, angles, movements, composition, editing, sound, mise en scene.

The gender representations in this extract from ‘Hustle’, conforms to stereotypes. The men are taking the more powerful lead roles and the women are being objectified (Laura Mulvey, 1973). I am going to write about how gender is represented using camera shots, angles, movements, composition, editing, sound, and mise en scene.

At the start of the scene we see the male shop assistant. He is very feminine and works in a woman’s clothes shop, (roles reversed) usually women would work in women’s cloths shops. He is stereotypically gay and is ruled by money. We also see the blond rich woman, in the background but still in focus to show the audience she is important to the scene. She is a stereotypical woman, spending husband’s money, blonde and objectified (Laura Mulvey, 1973). She is dressed smartly, like a rich woman would. The music being played is very flirty, to set the mood of the scene. The lighting in the clothes shop is very realistic; this is to make it just like everyday life.

Then we cut to a bar, usually associated with men. There we are introduced to some very stereotypical men (rich), drinking, smoking, and wearing suits; this is shown in a two shot, to show the audience that they are in conversation. The man has an American accent which has a very masculine feel to it. The bar has a warm atmosphere, which shows the audience that they are relaxed.

Then we cut back to the clothes shop. This is a good use of parallel narrative, the audience know that the men in the bar and woman in the cloths shop are both happening at the same time. The shop assistant and the blonde woman are talking, use of shot reverse shot and sticking to the 180 degree rule. When the blonde woman ‘looses’ her ring she falls to the floor searching for it saying that her husband will go mad, this tells the audience that the blonde woman is weaker than her husband, very stereotypical. The music is very fast paced as the woman is rushing around the shop looking for her ring. The blonde woman uses money and her sexuality to persuade the shop assistant to find it, as she does this she looks directly at the camera (direct mode of address) in close-up; this makes the audience feel involved.

Next, the man walks into the cloths shop, the audience are introduced to him differently to the blond woman. The blonde woman starts off in the background of the shot, but the man is in a low angle tilt upwards to reveal his whole body; this shows the audience that he is important in the scene. The man is dressed smartly and looks rich; the only thing that makes him look ‘less rich’ is when he is chewing gum. He is in a low angle shot to make him look powerful and in control. When he pretends to pick up the ring, the shop assistant looks at the ring (eye-line). Then two have a talk about who the ring belongs to, which is shown with shot reverse shot to show they are talking with one another. The man uses his power and brains against the shop assistant to make him buy the ring.

Binary Oppositions are used, the man uses his brains and power to get what he wants, while the blonde woman uses her sexuality to get what she wants (Levi-Strauss, 1969).

The man looks directly at the audience (direct mode of address) so they feel like they are apart of the action. The bomb theory is used very well; the audience know something the characters do not, in this case the audience know that this is a con and the shop assistant does not know this.

Then we cut from the posh women’s clothes shop, to an old cafe. The brown haired woman (once blonde, shows she was wearing a disguise) is sitting at a table. She is on the phone, being told to keep someone busy; this shows the audience that she is always used as the decoy. The man walks into the cafe, and shows the woman the money (the shop assistant gave him the money to get the ring and claim the reward). The man is shown as the worker whereas the woman is the sexy decoy.

Overall the extract shows many representations of gender. Laura Mulvey’s, the Male Gaze (1973) is one of the main theories used. The blonde woman is seen as an object throughout the extract and she uses her sexuality to get what she wants. The man is seen as the worker, and he uses power and his brains to get what he wants. This is known as Binary Oppositions (Levi-Strauss, 1969).