Tuesday, 28 March 2017

Dr Martin - Regionalism


The camera shots of this clip vary to make sure that every shot allows you to see the feelings and emotions of the characters. The wide shot, when the two plumbers and Dr Martin are discussing the problems with his tap, the doctor is leaning against the table and is still towering over the two other men. This could indicate that due to him being from London he has a better background and education therefore theoretically is of a higher class than the two uneducated plumbers from port Wynn. By the producer doing so he is segregating the men by using stereotypes to portray the region they are from. Giving the audience the impression that all county men are stupid and simple, and that hardworking men from the city are pompous and arrogant. Throughout the clip the scenes are all portraying ‘real life’ events, which is when the camera shots are at the level of the character that is speaking, giving more of a realistic feel to the show. For example, when the tap is exploding and the women walking in complaining about her working conditions. The camera is at a lower level when he is yelling at the girl and the two plumbers and when she starts to talk the shot changes to a higher shot of her face and shoulders. By doing so the audience is able to follow the emotions of each of the characters as it shows how all of them are feeling as the camera is constantly following their level of thought. There is also a full body shot included in the clip where the director uses tracking to capture the doctor walking into the police station. In this scene he is angry and we can tell this by the tense way that he carries himself as he expeditiously walks into the front yard of the building. This is a good technique used by the director as body language is key when figuring out how a person is feeling, as the full body tracking shot is used the audience has a clear indication to the stressed manor that the doctor appears to be in.

The clip is trying to portray reality; hence the pace of the clip is the same throughout. However, when the doctor is angrily walking into the police station the camera tracks him and consequently makes the pace of the clip increase. A fast pace has connotations to mean an intense scene is about to occur making the audience pay more attention as they want to know what may possibly happen. The producer has done this to create various differences between the fast pace Londoners and the slow peaceful life of Port Wynn. In TV it can become very boring if the past of the show is the same throughout, therefore changing the pace can keep the audience’s attention and increase the comparison between the two regions. The lighting also gives us indications about some of the nice places of the little village and the other parts which seem run down. In the surgery the previous doctor had not cared for hygiene and had let it become an unkempt mess. This is shown by the lighting being dark and dreary, giving the audience the idea that it is dirty and old fashioned. This is also increased by the fact that the outside scenes that are shot are so bring and colourful and appear to make Port Wynn a happy place to live.

First impressions and stereotypes are a big importance when trying to portray a character in a show. The clothing is a big clue towards how the producers want to bring across their characters. The younger girls of the village are the only ones dressed in girly pink colours and wearing makeup. This is the typical stereotype for teenage girls, young, experimental and dressed to impress. The older on of the plumbers was struggling to use nouns in his sentence, hinting that he hasn’t cared much for his education. Conforming to the normal county lifestyle of following your family trade, which is what his son has also done as they are not working together. We pity this man as it is obvious he is not living up to his potential, making the audience feel sorry for Dr martin as he is now living in the town in which people have low aspirations. The clip also includes a woman with dreadlocks, this is a metaphorical juxtaposition as in secluded sea side towns they don’t usually have the hippies with outrageous styles, especially working in the doctor’s surgery. This makes the town appear even more out there and as if it is a strange place to live. Making the people that live there more interesting and make the audience what to know more.

 “Down here we just go with the flow” is a quote said my a resided of the small village, it emphasises the idea that living in a place as such means you have not cares in the world. The producer wanted to make sure people saw the village as a different world, as if unconnected from civilisation. Thus, increasing the divide between the doctor and other people in the community due to their different background and lifestyles. They have also added Foley of the dog crying when he is left at the police station. Dogs cry when they are sad or in need of something/someone, the clear noise of the dog crying shows he has a connection to Dr Martin, in which the doctor hasn’t had with anyone else in the village. The producer could have added emphasis on this as in undermines the intelligence of him as the only person he is able to have a relationship with is a stray dog in the village. Also, the tone and urgency of people’s voices becomes heightened when dealing with the broken tap. The diegetic sound of the water spraying has been increased to make it sound as though a bigger problem that it is. The high tones, loud shouting and piercing water sounds all add up to make the scene appear dramatic and add stress to the doctor’s hectic day. All in all, the main parts of sound used are all to increase comparisons and intensity of the situations throughout the clip.

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