Appearances - Dilys Latham

Appearances

VirginMediaShorts

Film Maker:  Amancay film

Genre: Social Realism

Synopsis: A story about why we must not judge a book by its cover

Running time: 2:19

I have decided to analyze Appearances for my research as I think it thoughtfully presents the problem with pre-judgement and social class still apparent in modern society. Although the film is short there is also great character development of the man and woman which successfully allows for audience connection and understanding. I have also chosen the short for the simplicity of the narrative and the subtle twist at the end.

Representation:

 Representation of social class is very successfully displayed in this short film to help criticizes modern society and it embedded ideologies. The medium shots and use of mise en scene set the audience up to pre-judge a characters wealth and culture, its set in a café full of vibrant colours and the young female actress who has neat combed hair and is dresses in a floral summer dress all set up both of which suggest comfortable middle class setting and woman, it is when the lower class homeless man enters the shop the stereotypes become even clearer. He is dressed in black and dreary colours whilst supporting a big coat and hat implying the idea of being outside. At the end of    the film when it is revealed that the woman is also in a sense homeless and un-employed those previous stereotypes are demolished and it is then the audience understand the problem with social class and its superstructure.

       Having social realism as a theme of the short allows the creator to play with the representations of social class, the woman’s presentation and thus criticize society and its process of judging a book by its cover                                                                                                                                                              

The two main characters representation are interesting in the short as to begin with they both seem to be subject to very stereotypical presentations of middle class and lower class however as the film develops and it is revealed that the woman is very much in the same predicament as the homeless man it becomes clear that the earlier images of class have been made stereotypical to highlight the problem with pre-judgment.

The audience for short would most likely be female the use of representation considered this fact and represented the young woman as of traditional middle class so that the females in the audience could find the character relatable or engage them in understanding women around them.

In a sense the film does deal with issues of difference between social classes and the problem of pre-judgement among humans. The characters in the short simply play a metaphor for the phrase ‘don’t judge a book by its cover’ at the beginning it is the man asking for money but at the end the roles are reversed and he gives her the money back and they have been set up like this so the audience can reflect upon judgements they make themselves and the effects of this upon others and when collectively society itself.

Narrative:

Bordwell and Thompson’s Narrative Theory:

     The plot is in a linear structure as it shows the two characters, who from an outsiders point of view would never dross paths, but in the short it is revealed that the pair are in fact in similar positions. The story would be the character’s lives and the problems they face being unemployed and in the plot of the film we see the two characters meet and the ironic bond is formed.

Todorov’s Narrative Theory:

Considering Appearances in terms of Todorov’s theory is effective as it allows the audience to establish the importance of roles and changes in characters. At the equilibrium the audience is introduced to the female character and to begin with she is portrayed as an average middle class woman who looks after herself and goes out for a coffee. When the disruption takes place in the middle of the short we are introduced to the man who it is suggested is homeless and has to beg  for money to simply be able to eat. It is not until the resolution when the metaphor of the short truly becomes apparent as the audience realises the woman is also unemployed and homeless. This narrative theory can be applied well as it shows the transition of characters and the problem with society and its expectations of people.

Genre:

 It is difficult to name the genre of this short film as it does not directly fit into any existing category but having watched the film and seen that it deals with problems of social class and expectations of class the film could be viewed as social realism.

Short films typically use genre to help tell a story but they also use genre to break conventions and boundaries to tease the audience and provide something more interesting for their target audience.

Steve Neal Genre Theory:

It is interesting to consider the short in terms of Neal’s theory as he declares that ‘genres are instances of repetition and difference’ and this is very true of Appearances. The simple plot is easy to follow but does not hold very much value till the end of the short when it is reveals that the woman is not your typical middle class woman but is instead an unemployed homeless person and it is because of this change in narrative that makes the film far more enjoyable.

Rick Altman’s thoughts on genre:

It is difficult to apply Altman’s views on genre onto Appearances as it is difficult to address themes of social realism in semantic codes, however the use of stereotyping on the coffee shop and a middle class female, have far greater effect than obvious genre conventions as it allows for ideas of pre-judgement to be established and addressed.

David Buckingham on Genre:

Buckingham argues that genre is a ‘constant process of change and negotiation’ and this is evident with the short film appearances as issues of social class are addressed with a much more subtle modern approach where the underlying problems of social realism are not made clear until the end.

Audience:

The expected audience for this short film would probably be people of the age 16+ and it may also be swayed towards a female audience due to the relatable female lead and issues in the film that an audience of older and more educated humans would understand. The film was on the Virgin Media Shorts website and is on there being celebrated as it is created by a young unknown film maker.

Media Language:

Although this short does not include a large range of shots and angles and there is only one setting I think the effective use of mise en scene is important in the sequence. It is set in bright middle class café and the female character is very much a stereotypical woman, wearing a floral dress and neatly brushed hair. The man in the short is also very much a stereotypical homeless person all dressed in black and wearing a large coat and hat. These thoughtful uses of setting and costume help to address the underlying theme apparent in the film which is that we shouldn't judge a book by its cover.