Aggressive masculinity
In the film City of God, masculinity is presented to be extremely
aggressive. Meirelles does this specifically through the use of children and
the presentation of Lil Ze.
In the scene in which Lil Ze uses Steak to inform Carrot of Knockout
Ned’s ‘death sentence’, Steak claims the he is no longer a child but a man due
to the fact that he does drugs and has killed. Steak is costumed in a clearly
child’s t-shirt which hangs above his stomach. From this, the viewer is shown
the young age and young nature of Steak which juxtaposes to how he views
himself. Meirelles does this in order to show that in the favelas, the defining
point of becoming a man is showing aggressive and irresponsible behaviour.
Through the close up shot of Steaks face we can see and connect with his anger,
as the other hoodlums doubt his masculinity. This shows us how important it is
for males in the favelas to be proud of their aggression and extreme male
stereotypical behaviour. The anger on Steak’s face also shows us that in a
situation in which an ordinary child would feel only fear, the hoodlums feel
mainly anger, as they are very aggressive.
Another way in which masculinity is presented as aggressive is through
Lil Ze. When Lil Ze is spoken about to be the most respected hood in the city
we see him from a low angle shot, which amplifies how powerful the viewer sees
him as. Lil Ze is mainly seen wearing a tank top, showing off his muscles;
these techniques all force the viewer to link aggression (Lil Ze’s main
personality trait from the opening) to power and wealth which we see Lil Ze
grow. Overall this presents masculinity and power to be completely associated
with aggression in the movie causing an overall view that masculinity in the
film is about aggression.
Steak the man:
cinematography - Low angle close up to reflect his confidence and show the viewer his anger
Mise en scene - childlike outfit contrasts to his view of himself and reminds the viewers of Steak's age to show that with time the 'hoods' are getting younger and younger.
sound - all the sound is diegetic so the viewers focus is on the dialogue and the confidence in Steak's voice.
editing - split screen to show both the ease at which Steak was caught and how Steak tries to escape again as he is loyal to Ze. Average pace.
Steak the man:
cinematography - Low angle close up to reflect his confidence and show the viewer his anger
Mise en scene - childlike outfit contrasts to his view of himself and reminds the viewers of Steak's age to show that with time the 'hoods' are getting younger and younger.
sound - all the sound is diegetic so the viewers focus is on the dialogue and the confidence in Steak's voice.
editing - split screen to show both the ease at which Steak was caught and how Steak tries to escape again as he is loyal to Ze. Average pace.
Hi Jonathan,
ReplyDeleteJust checking as to whether or not this is the complete essay answer?
All the best
Mr Cooper
Ok, you have made some very good points but your answer is generally very descriptive in nature. You tell me what happens but not why or what effect that has on the audience.
ReplyDeleteIf we look back at the AO's:
AO1 - Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of elements of film - Editing, Mise-en-Scene, Cinematography...
AO2 - Apply knowledge and understanding elements of film to analyse films - What effect do these elements have on creating meaning (understanding) for the audience?
Both of the AO's need you to be using a wide variety of film language in order for you to meet them successfully.
So, what I would like you to do is watch the two scenes you are analysing and note down anything you notice in each of them for: Editing, Sound, Mise-en-Scene, Cinematography
Then from the information you gather, think about how that might help form a representation of masculinity.
Once you have this post it on to here. We can then look at your answer structure.
All the best
Mr Cooper
Hi Jonathan,
ReplyDeleteI hope you have had a good half term. I am more than a little concerned that no work has been posted on here for very nearly 4 weeks? I had set work to be done over half term and yet nothing has been posted on here. Is everything ok? Please know that because we do not have exercise books and I do not set paper based assignments the use of this blog is crucial for both you to display your work and for me to ensure that you are understanding the course. At the very start of the year I set out expectations that all class notes and homework assignments should be posted on to the blog in a timely fashion. Unfortunately this has not been done. By not posting work and getting regular feedback from myself or any teacher you are seriously harming your chances of gaining a positive grade. Remember, you are going to be examined on this in the summer of 2019, if there is something wrong with your understanding of a topic or film we need to identify it now.
All the best
Mr Cooper