Our Friends in the North Analysis

The TV drama ‘Our friends in the North’ portrays the story of a young man who has an alcoholic Father who abuses him. The clip I had to analyze therefore has strong representation of class but of region too, as we have common ideology of Northern people being binge drinkers and generally more troublesome than the ‘normal’ person. The scene viewed sparks his unprovoked anger towards his son. Furthermore, the conflict between the son and Father is spotted when the son tells of how he doesn’t want to look like his Father and does not want to act like him either. Firstly, the camera angles used are influential in this scene as there is more reasoning to the angles than first meets the eye. AT the start of the extract the son and his friend are having a discussion about the alcoholic Father and how he doesn’t want to be like him. The first camera angle we notice is the’ Over-the-shoulder’ which reflects to the viewers that we are part of the conversation and become deeper involved in the conversation. I believe this angle to be effective as it makes the audience feel as if they are the third person in the conversation, and begin to create a relationship with the characters as we understand their story and struggle. This conflicts with our stereotypical views of northern people as we generally perceive them as being strong and tough, although in this scene Geordie is emotional and feels intimidated by his Father. Although, the use of a mid-shot during the conflict between Geordie and his Father lets us see the clash unfurl. The camera stays static and is as if we are stood still in the room whilst the conflict takes place around us. This adheres to our views of the stereotypical northern home as we believe them to be troublesome and violent. However, we feel sympathetic in this case as we have a relationship with Geordie due to him being scared and intimidated by his Father. In addition, the editing throughout the extract also has importance. The majority of transitions used in the clip are cuts, and this is done with the intent of making the scene seem a lot faster and dramatic. The cuts are used effectively during the fight scene as they highlight the action packed scene and the fast tempo reflects the brutality of the attacks. The tracking movement of the camera is used to represent the force of the blows, and to highlight the drunken fury of the Farther. These actions tie into our preconceptions of northern people who we consider to be violent alcoholics. Therefore signifying how the northern people are represented in two ways in this drama; as violent, abusive, drunks and as intimidated and threatened people. This proves how the clip both adheres and subverts our ideology and stereotypes. During, the clip we can take in a lot about the people just by the mise-en-scene. The first noticeable items are the beer bottles that Geordie’s Dad brings back with hi. These items along with his slurred speech and staggered walk signify to the audience that he is an alcoholic but also adheres with a stereotypical view of northern people too as it is early in the morning and he is drunk. Furthermore, at the end of the extract Geordie attempts to hitch-hike and gives a thumbs-up to oncoming traffic. This signal signifies that Geordie’s life is on the up after retaliating to his abusive Father and leaving his broken home as this is what we can connote from thumbs up. The audience also gathers a sense of happiness for Geordie as the large bag on his back implies that he is not returning, and we get this emotion as we do not want him to return to his abusive Dad. Finally, the sound used in the extract is mostly just the dialogue and no music is used. This implies that there is a lot of focus on the discourse because it has great importance to the clip. The effect of only using the speech is to force the reader to listen tentatively to what is being said to understand the scene fully. Although, the graphic noise of the head-butt later in the clip also comes of significant value too, as it displays the force behind the hit and sends a shudder through the viewer as it sounds so painful. The silence, that follows the blow reinforces the shock and awe of the strike and makes it appear even more dramatic to the audience.