HOW DOES MY BRITISH

GANGSTER FILM “BLOW”

REPRESENT PARTICULAR SOCIAL

GROUPS?

In the very first scene of my opening it begins

with a close up of Tonys face. His face is in the

centre of the screen and fills up most of the

screen. His eyes are facing down in

concentration. The fact that a close up of his

face is the first thing that the audience sees

suggests that he is the main character. The

lighting in this scene is quite low which makes

his blue sweater stand out. During this first

scene there is a voice over which is

accompanied by non - diegetic slow music.

Whilst these two shots are on screen Tony says

in his voice over “this is me” which shows that

this is him in the present day and suggests there

could be a flash back to follow. The close up of

Tonys face stays on screen for barely two

seconds before cutting to a side view of tony

rolling a cigarette whilst the camera vertically

pans up. The low level lighting creates quite a

dark atmosphere and the slow motion shows

Tony to look relaxed but makes the audience

feel like something is going to happen. In this

scene tony looks like he is at home and in

control of what he is doing. He doesn't look like

he has anything to worry about.

After the first introduction to the main character, Tony.

The camera cuts to a flash back of tony. The

audience knows it is a flash back because the voice

over says “this was me”. Also, Tony is wearing

different clothing as he is now in a red adidas hoodie

with grey joggers. These clothes stereotypically make

him look “chavy” and that he hangs around on the

streets a lot. He looks happy and comfortable at home

which is backed up by the voice over saying “life was

good and i was the top boy”. The phrase “top boy”

suggests that he is the leader of some kind of gang

and is very successful especially with making money.

This is shown through the expensive Ciroc vodka that

he is casually drinking whilst smoking a cigarette. This

mid-shot of tony is effective in making him look like a

dominant character because the low level lighting

makes his clothing stand out and he fills most of the

screen. The camera in this scene vertically pans up

slowly whilst his movements have been edited to a

fast pace. The eery, tense non-diegetic music that

continues to play indicates that something is about to

happen. The close up of Tonys face from the previous

present day scene begins to fade back in on screen

as the camera pans up to reveal Tonys face.

Here, the camera cuts back to the same shot as in the

beginning and it is back in the present tense. The lighting

is still quite dark and the non-diegetic music continues to

sound more tense. The voice over on this scene says

“Trust meant something to people where i was from, well

at least i thought it did”. The phrase ‘at least i thought it

did” suggests that someone has been un-loyal to Tony and

something bad is about to happen. The tone of his voice in

the voice over is very strong and confident throughout but

towards the end you can begin to hear a tone of

disappointment in his words. Although, someone has just

intruded his home which is indicated by the loud diegetic

door slam Tony remains to look strong and dominant with

a slightly confused look on his face but he is not in a huge

panic. This shows the ideas of a modern representation of

men. This represents his character as being fearless which

contributed to his great success as a gang leader. The

person behind the trigger remains unknown but could

suggest this is because it is someone he knows. As tony

turns back around the audience is unsure what he is going

to do but then he grabs his chest while the loud diegetic

gun shot goes off and his body fly’s forward.

After Tony gets shot and the production company titles

come on screen the camera cuts to an extreme close up of

Tonys eyes as he lays there dead on the floor. The

camera tracks out to reveal his face and a slight bit of

blood coming out the corner of his mouth. This shows that

his unknown enemy has defeated him and here he is

represented to be the opposite of what he was and now

looks like a weak character which is the opposite to a

modern representation of men. The music has changed to

fit the dark mood and becomes louder as the camera

tracks out. The audience sympathises with the character.

Tonys best friend Max is introduced next. Time has been reversed 24 hours

earlier and is the time before Tony got shot. His body is positioned in the

centre of the screen and only reveals his legs as the camera is at a low

angle. The opening then cuts to a long shot of Max walking down the

lane.The audience can immediately associate him with Tony by the similar

looking clothing he wears which is stereotypically “chavy” and could be quite

intimidating to people. He is wearing dark black and blue clothing with a Nike

bag and hat. The high level of lighting in this scene makes his bold dark

clothing stand out. The hat he is wearing suggests that he doesn't want

himself to be recognised by people as he wouldn't normally be wearing a hat

in the sunny weather. The bag he has over his shoulder reflects some

femininity within him which could potentially mean he is a weaker character

compared to Tony and has less authority. This contributes to the film well as

there are no main female roles in the film and in order for a successful story

line there is always a weaker, less dominant character which is potentially a

female. However, in contrast to this the fast pace non - diegetic music and his

strong posture whilst walking reflects a strong representation of a male figure

and his heavy steps links to the way a confident “gangster” would walk.

Sprayed graffiti on the wall of the lane also emphasises the gangster life

style. The audience can tell he doesn't hold as much authority as Tony

because he has his back to the camera the whole time and his face isn't

revealed fully.

This two shot of Tony and Max reveals that they indeed do have a close

friendship. This shot is taken from a low angle and shows how Tony is

welcoming him into his house. The lighting in this scene is at a high exposure

and their similar blue clothing stands out. Max’s back is still all we can see of

him at this stage in the film which reflects a clear lack of importance and

emphasises on Tonys dominance throughout the film and “their” gang which

is supposedly a joint leadership. By looking at their surroundings the

audience can tell its not a well kept area, intercity and rundown. This is

significant to show that they are part of a rough gang operating in a less

privileged area where unemployment is high. Therefore, criminal activity is

rife.

Here, we meet a new character Mitch. By watching the opening it isn't

revealed how tony knows him or if they are supposedly friends. His body

language makes him come across very intimidating and some what

aggressive. He is wearing dark clothes with his hood up and he is facing

the floor. This suggests that he doesn't want his face to be seen and

possibly doesn't want Tony to recognise him. The lighting in this scene is

quite bright and is filmed at a low angle to make Mitch look bigger and

more threatening. This could suggest that he is a possible enemy of Tony if

he is portrayed by the camera in a negative way. I edited Mitch’s

movements walking towards Tony into jump cuts so it looks like he is

walking towards him even faster. His sudden change in movements

creates power and suggests he holds a lot of power and may take control

in this situation. During this scene there is a change in tempo within the

non-diegetic music signifying a new character and the opening coming to

an end. Again, the fact that this scene is filmed in a lane again portrays the

inner city, rough, gangster life style. His arm movements at the end of the

opening shows that something physical is about to happen creating a lot of

suspense. However, the audience get left on a cliff hanger.

Absence of women:

I have deliberately not included any main female roles in my film opening.

However, if I was to create the whole film I would include some minor

female roles but not so much that they hold any dominance. My opening is

aimed at mainly a male audience and as a full film it is clear it would

involve a lot of violence, drugs and weapons. Stereotypically, you wouldn't

see a main female role in a film based on these particular themes. The

male characters in my opening very strong and hold a lot of power. A

female role wouldn't fit well with my British gangster theme as it may make

the female look extremely weak which wouldn't be a good modern

representation of a women and my opening is a very modern film. In

contrast to this, I would include a female role as a minor character (e.g.

girlfriend of Tony or Max) so more characters are introduced and there

could be more of a personal story for each of the main male characters.