Killing Eve Product and Media Language Flashcards
Genre
- Blackly comical spy thriller that subverts conventions of a traditionally masculine genre
What and when was it broadcast
- First episode of season 1
- Broadcast in April 2018 on BBC American in the USA
- September 2018 in the UK
Who is Killing Eve produced by
- In the UK by Sid Gentle Films for BBC America and BBC Three
When did the show run
Four seasons from 2018 to 2022
What records did it break
- Weekly ratings in the USA
-Became the second most-watched show on BBC iPlayer in 2018
Showrunners
- Female writers and directors
- Phoebe Waller-Bridge scripting the first series
What is the show based on
The ‘Villanelle’ series of short novels by Luke Jennings, which were originally self-published
Plot of Killing Eve
Focuses on a ruthless female assassin, Villanelle, and the bizarre relationship she develops with female MI5 agent, Eve Polastri, who is pursuing her
What the show was praised for
Its portrayal of strong, complex and dangerous women
Awards it’s won
- Best Drama at the BAFTAS
- Numerous individual awards for Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer
Killing Eve as a cross-genre
- Characteristics of the spy and thriller genre
-Plot of an obsessive agent pursuing a criminal nemesis
-‘Dramedy’ show that fuses serious drama and black comedy
Female led sub-genre
-‘Cat and mouse’ thriller
-Driven woman detective becomes personally obsessed with her quarry
Critics praise of subverting conventions
-Replacing all the usually male characters with women
-Consistently surprising audience expectations with unexpected twists and character behaviour
Protagonist
- Government agent Eve Polastri who breaks the rules but gets results
Antagonist
-Ruthless criminal that the hero is pursuing
- Binary opposite of the hero and takes please in chaos and carnage
Admiration between Eve and Villanelle
Admire and even envy the characteristics of their rival, as well as sexually desiring them
Femme Fatale
-Villanelle subverts this, depicted as a amoral psychopath who leads a glamorous lifestyle
- Never uses her sexuality to entice her victims
- Sexually liberal, but the costume and the way she’s shot doesn’t sexualise or objectify her
Spymaster character
-Bill and Carolyn actively encourage Eve in her pursuit
- Villanelle’s handler Konstantin isn’t a cold-blooded taskmaster, but almost a father figure
Narrative
-Typical of the crime/investigation genre
-A brutal murder prompts dedicated investigators to find clues and interview witnesses
-Reveal of the killer’s identity
-Confrontations between hero and villain as the climax
Enigmas
Created then answered, often leading to another enigma and the investigation continues
Long form TV genre
-The investigation will take place over an entire season or seasons, with cliff-hangers or major plot developments
-Killing Eve follows this format
Killing Eve twisting the conventional narrative
-Balancing screen time between Eve and Villanelle, prompting the audience to empathise as much with the antagonist as they do the hero
-Main narrative isn’t the killers identity, but what will happen between Villanelle and Eve when they finally meet
Intertextual references
- Espionage thrillers such as ‘Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy’ and Bond stories
-Villanelle’s character is reminiscent of the female killers from ‘La Femme Nikita’ and ‘Atomic Blonde’
-Eve’s bumbling scruffy image reflects ‘Columbo’ and other shabby detectives
Narratology (Todorov): The equilibrium
-The equilibrium: first scene with Villanelle and the ice cream is striking but also shows the character’s normal life
-There is no disruption to Villanelle’s life until she is told Eve is tracking her in episode 2
Narratology (Todorov): Eve’s narrative arc
-We are shown her equilibrium: comfortably married with a boring desk job before a clear disruption
-Seeing the Polish diplomat’s murder and guessing it’s a female assassin compels her to investigate further
Narratology (Todorov): Enigma codes
-Subvert
-Enigma focuses on character and relationships, such as who is Konstantin to Villanelle? Where did she come from? What made her this way? What will Eve do when she finds her? And what will be the outcome of the inevitable confrontation?
Waller-Bridge interview
Stated in an interview that “people are exhausted by seeing women brutalised on the screen”, especially in the crime genre, where women mainly feature as a corpse: “while a male detective stands over it, talking about his divorce.”
Killing Eve praise on representation of women
Putting women in key roles that lead and define the narrative
-Reflecting social change, increasing power of women in the workplace, and the conflict women feel between career success and personal fulfilment
Script
-Serves to undermine the machismo of the spy thriller genre
-By making Killing Eve a thriller comedy drama hybrid, the show can satirise the ridiculous elements of the spy genre whilst providing genuine emotional heft to the story
Genre (Steve Neale)
-Genres may be seen as being limited by familiar tropes, they are marked by difference, variation and change
-Neale would say they also need to display something original
-Killing Eve does this by providing a unique female perspective and challenging audience expectations
Visual codes: codes of clothing
-What the costumes tell you about the two women
-Scene in episode 2 where Villanelle steals Eve’s suitcase, what she does with Eve’s clothes, what it tells us about Villanelle’s interest in Eve, how Eve responds when the suitcase is returned
Visual codes: Gesture and Expression
- Naturalistic workplace behaviour of Eve, Bill and Carolyn and how this subverts the melodramatic elements of the spy thriller genre
- Compare to Villanelle
Visual codes: Iconography and Setting
-Eve’s home communicates ‘comfy’ domesticity and constricts Eve
-Compared to Villanelle’s Paris apartment, which suggests wealth, indulgence, and freedom but also a sense of emptiness
Technical Codes: POV
- Immediately placed in Villanelle’s point of view
-Close-ups, POV and shot reverse-shot are used to make us empathise with Villanelle
-Her facial expressions aren’t immediately readable and her behaviour is shocking
Technical codes: Camera and Editing
-Used throughout Villanelle’s scenes in the focus episode
-Even though she is a vicious psychopath, the audience is encouraged to empathise with and even admire her
Technical codes: Violence
Despite being a very violent show, Killing Eve has surprisingly little blood – mainly due to the limitations imposed by BBC America
Audio codes: Dialogue
-The understated, naturalistic way the MI5 agents talk subverts the serious, jargon- heavy language in other spy thrillers like those by writer John Le Carré
-The discussions between Eve and Niko are amusingly unsentimental
-They indicate the close and easy relationship between the two – this comfort later contrasts with Eve’s more passionate obsession with Villanelle
Audio codes: Music
-Almost all the songs used are by the band Unloved, who specialise in moody, 1960s ‘noir’ songs
-Music supervisor Catherine Grieves says the feminine yet threatening tone gives another ‘voice’ to the darker sides of Villanelle and Eve
