Media Language- TV

Question 1

Codes and conventions- PB

Answer 1

• Define genres
• Gangster films and historical dramas have recognizable conventions that produce audience pleasure, eg, narrative ingredients like anti-heroes, and scenes of violence, but also more aesthetic pleasures like locations and costumes. A common convention of the gangster genre is witnessing criminal activity.
• Shelby household:
  -The panning shot reveals the hustling illegal bookmakers, the Shelby household is running,
  -Crescendo of the non-diegetic punk music as Tommy enters the bookmakers represents an essence of rebelliousness and anarchy.
  -Numerous male protagonists and secondary characters + visual clothes of suits = convention of masculinity- gangster genre.
  -Arthur’s aggressive approach to Tommy ‘fixing’ horse races, foreshadows impending conflict within the family, especially between family members – a typical convention of the gangster genre, eg The Sopranos, Godfather.
• Hybrid Genres= combo of 2 or more genres, embedding codes, and conventions for both, increasing target audience
• Peaky Blinders = hybrid because has many characteristics of the gangster subgenre as it focuses on the personal lives of a criminal family. Also historical drama – uses lavish production design to evoke a specific period and location concentrating on Birmingham in 1919 and focuses on many of the social and political issues of that time.
• Genre Theory- genres established over a long time through repetition and variation
• Arthur’s interrogation communicates the conventions of gangsters;
  -intimate tight framing of Arthur strapped to the chair connotes the impending threat and ‘closing in’ of the Shelby family.
  -low-key lighting creates an ominous atmosphere illustrating Chester’s ruthless delivery of law
  -A close-up of Arthur’s bloodied face promotes the essence of brutal masculine violence
  -low-angled framing of Chester connotes his brooding presence and epitomises his intimidating threat
  -patronising dialogue, “after 35 years of dealing with animals like you” + high angle of Arthur promotes themes of class divide.
• Variation- important as it provides the show with a USP to help differentiate it from other Gangster shows
• Tommy’s character untypical of a traditional gangster (variation);
  -greater depth and complexity, violence rooted in historical social contexts, like PTSD
  -He is rarely impulsive and does not retort aggressively when Polly strikes him - a stock character of ‘man of few words, “that’s what i do, I think”’
  -Opening scene- elements of Western genre, Tommy enters the small village, and characters run into hiding, intimidated and fearful of his presence.
  -the first introduction to Tommy, therefore, the enigma of his characterisation is established immediately.

Question 2

Narrative - PB

Answer 2

• Narratology- Todorov: believes that there is a common pattern of movement throughout all linear narratives (Equilibrium- disruption- recognition- restoration- new equilibrium)
• PB conforming to narratology:
  -equllibrium= opening scenes establish Tommy as a man of great status. They also show the day-to-day running of the Shelby’s gambling operation
  -Disruption: the mistaken theft of the guns has already occurred and further disruption (Campbell’s campaign) is already beginning.
  -Recognition: almost every character has their own narrative arc, e.g. we see Arthur’s equilibrium, more firmly disrupted by his ordeal with the police and Campbell.
  -Restoration: some recognitions hinted at in the focus episode, e.g. the Shelbys know Campbell’s identity and reputation before he even arrives
  -New equilibrium: resolution to the main narrative arc particularly between Campbell and Shelby is unlikely to be resolved until either the end of the series. Enigmas are often answered with other enigmas in long-form dramas.
• Character typologies of gangsters- a system of dividing characters into different categories.
  -Matriarch/Patriarch: older person in control of other characters (Tommy and Polly)
  -Law enforcer- Campbell = antagonist who binary opposites the criminal family
  -Mad dog- Loose cannon/ unpredictable/ angry, poses a threat the the criminal business- Arthur
• Enigma Codes: create suspense by withholding or delaying the answers to particular questions that the narrative sets up
  -In long-form TV drama, more subplots and characters can be added to add complexity to a more generic narrative, resulting in audience interest and therefore seeking a resolution to the multiple narrative strands created in the first episode.
  -separate narratives for, Polly, Ada and Freddy, Danny, etc.
• Cliffhangers: PB is a serial so doesn’t have a self-contained narrative
  -keeps the audience ‘hooked’ and desires to discover an outcome.
  -many narrative strands and character development that are unresolved, which grips the audience into actively tuning into every episode of the serial.
• Narratives in PB: flexi-narrative+ restricted+ unrestricted
  -flexi contains the self-contained element of ‘Danny’s Survival’ however, more episodes are required for the development of the character relationships and the main narrative.
  -unrestricted is a position of privilege, as the audience is aware of both Tommy and Chester’s intentions but neither character is fully aware of the other’s
  -Audiences are also aware of Ada and Freddie’s relationship as well as the deceitful undercover mission of Grace.
  -restricted for the development of how the pending conflict between Tommy and Chester will arise, of what Tommy has assigned Danny to do

Question 3

Theory- PB

Answer 3

• Structuralism- Levi Stauss: texts can be understood through their structure and pairs of binary opposition
• Tommy v Campbell (criminal v law):
  -No physical contact in ep 1 so binary opposition is suggestive and foreshadows a collision between antagonist and protagonist.
  -Chester’s explosive tirade of the law enforcement where he is continuously framed via a low-angled shot, conveys his threat to the Shelbys and those who have aligned with them
  -Conventional that the narrative of the show will develop further for the two characters to collide and examine the ideological significance of who will prevail.
• Tommy vs Polly (patriarchy v matriarchy)
  -Polly adopted the role of matriarch when the Shelby boys were drafted into World War I.
  -Conflict between the two characters is established in the church scene. Two shot represent the animosity. Polly via her performance physically strikes Tommy several times after discovering Tommy was responsible for the robbery of the BSA guns.
  -Feels Tommy has betrayed the family by not consulting with her first. This indicates the two will clash on key decisions of the criminal family throughout the narrative.
• Post Modernism- Baudrillard: media creates hyper-realities based on a continuous process of mediation. So media images have come to seem more “real” than the reality they supposedly represent
  -Simulacra-
  -The 20’s world of the Peaky Blinders is a hyper-reality. It is the 20’s represented from a mediated perspective.
  -The heightened aesthetic and anachronistic soundtrack suggests that the programme privileges style over substance.
  Eg, mixing of fictional characters and and real historical figures such as Winston Churchill suggests that the boundaries between between reality and simulation have imploded

Question 4

Codes and Conventions- The Bridge

Answer 4

• Film noir: Hollywood crime dramas, a low-key, black-and-white visual style with roots in German Expressionist cinematography
• Nordic Noir: Multi-layered storylines, slow and melancholic pace, dimly lit aesthetic & interest in uncovering the dark underbelly of contemporary life
• Define Genre Theory
• Nordic Noir in the opening scene:
  -SETTING: establishing shots of the cold, dreary, and melancholic setting are shades of the Nordic Noir style and the morbid setting parallels the narrative action and themes of the serial, whilst enhancing the dispirited feeling of the show.
  -ICONOGRAPHY: typical of crime scene, murder investigation and the recurring situation of a detective obsessed with solving a case. Scandanavioan presence felt via visuals and language (swedish and danish)
  REALISM/ ANTIREALISM BLEND: characters, setting, narrative devices, themes are all realistic and comparable to themes in society and in other crime dramas.
  However, the hyper-reality element of the serial creates a ‘Mean World Syndrome’ for the viewing audience.
  TONE/MOOD: melancholic with most characters all fighting their own personal battle. The episode favor’s a more pessimistic outlook on Scandinavian life.
  COLOUR PALLETE: desaturated colour palette, cold blue, murky grey and muted colours – all contribute to the melancholic theme and nordic noir.
• Saga challenges codes and conventions of stock character: She’s unconventionally female so post feminist detective + work obsession so isolated
• Saga and Hanne visiting natalie subverts conventions of crime drama:
  -the two shot of the dominantly framed female protagonist challenge the stereotypical male partnership.
  -pressing delivery of questions from Saga, illustrates her tenacious and insensitive approach to policing so contrasts typical female rep who are usually weak and maternal

Question 5

Theory- The Bridge

Answer 5

• Structuralism- Levi Strauss (binary oppositions)
  -key binary oppositions are Sweden vs Denmark and Saga vs Hanne
• Narratology- Todorove (follow a structure)
  -Not completely applicable because the typical convention of any crime drama is to keep most narrative strands open, meaning the enigma’s unresolved so keeps audiences hooked and invested to keep watching till the resolution
• Restricted and nonrestricted: restricted because there is only so much information the audience is provided with, meaning enigmas codes confirm the narrative restriction and unrestricted as the audience positioning is an omniscient one and there are instances where the audience ‘learn’ more and ‘see’ more than the protagonists themselves eg. about Henriks drug addiction