District 9 Cast

District 9 Cast

Wikus - The main character changes from being very selfish to a hero.











       Sarah Livingston - Sociologist

Grey Badnam - UKNR Chief Correspondent/ Christopher Johnson







Obesjando - The villian who supplies all of the aliens with cat food for their weapons













Tanie - The main characters wife, she is also known as the princess as she is the innocent one in the whole movie.

How far do Tom Ford and Gucci perfume campaigns offer stereotypical aspirations?

How far do Tom Ford and Gucci perfume campaigns offer stereotypical aspirations?
I will be investigating how advertisements for Tom Ford [1] and Gucci perfume [2] use stereotypical aspirations in their campaigns and exploring the effects. To help analyse these advertisements I will be using theories such as Laura Mulveys theory 'male gaze' [11] and the objectification of women and their stereotypical gender roles; [6] I will also be looking at the hypodermic model and trying to establish how the audience is influenced. [9] It could be argued that these advertisements use different methods, as in Tom Ford’s campaign women are represented in a very controversial and objectified way, to sell the product to their target audience of both men and women. In Gucci's advertisement it is very different as they are using glamour to attract their audience. Uses and gratifications show a strong role model who is a celebrity, for example Blake Lively, is very glamorous, you are able to indicate this from the way she is presented in media, with subtle colors such as gold and the clothing she wears for example long dresses. This works on influencing women to buy this product as they want to be like this celebrity and the celebrity is the audience’s role model.
It is very clear that media has a huge impact on both men and women's lives. [13] In the past, women were always made out to be controlled by men and they were not capable of doing anything on their own. [3] Advertisements have long been sexist towards women and would portray them as subordinate to men. 'You mean a women can open it?' [3] Was a quote used from a poster from around the 1940s, however as the realisation came that this was discriminating towards women, the media soon began to change and make women more sexualised.[3]
It could be argued that in the present day the media influences the way men and women think, by showing models who have perfect body's and hair, focusing purely on appearance. [13] However this is not an accurate representation on women as many of the photos of models have been photoshopped to make them appear to look better then they are in reality. In terms of uses and gratifications the media use photoshop to make the 'perfect' human, this influences both men and women to look like these 'perfect models' and effect them, however it leads them to a false goal as it is not realistic. [12] These beauty standards affect the way women and men view the female body, women feel as though they should have this perfect body which is more or less impossible and they feel they can achieve this, which creates men to think this is the way women should look and if they don't they are not 'perfect'. 'From 2000 to 2009 there was a 36% increase in breast augmentation and a 84% increase in tummy tucks' [3], these results confirm the fact people are changing their body's to match how they look in the media and won't be happy until it's completely the same. A study has found that 50% of ads in women's magazines portray women as objects. [3]In advertisement women are also portrayed as sexually submissive, and the sexualisation of women in advertisement has become a lot more violent meaning that they women are in skimpy clothing and showing of all of their body parts to the camera and being very seductive towards the cameras.
However it could be argued that men are often represented as strong, dominant and aggressive, they are affected by the hyper-masculine stereotypes. 'Depression in men has increased dramatically in the past 2 decades' [5], this shows that media does have a huge impact on men and women and can lead to them having various illnesses.
Heavy exposure to media alters the viewers perception of social reality in a way that matches the media world' - Levin and Kilbourne. [4] 'Advertisement companies spend over £5 billion a year to tell you how to think. After a media report a shocking fact was found that only 30% of women are behind the published articles and a shocking 70% are men' [4], this shows that a lot of the media today is viewed in the way of a man which is very biased.
In terms of uses and gratification Tom Ford is very clever with this as they use different angles on the camera to show women belittling men, this gives connotations of power but also showing that men will abide by the women's request but also they are able to influence men to buy their aftershave as they make out that women will fall to their feet to be with them and that half naked women will soon come after them. In Tom Fords advertisement we are able to analyse this by using Mulveys theory the male gaze, Tom Ford is able to sell his products by using sex cells which use women as sex objects in order to attract men to buy his products. In Tom Fords perfume they intend to sell the product by objectifying women in order to attract men. He also uses enigma codes because people begin to wonder the extremes Tom Ford will go next so they become intrigued and excited for what he will release next. You can see that in Tom Fords advertisement the women are passive as they are just lying across the men they are not doing anything however the men are active as they are the ones who are controlling the advertisement, this is very stereotypical as it is represented that men are able to control women as the women abide by them.
In 'Tom Fords' advertisement he uses have very bright red lipstick and fingernails, which signifies desire as well as sexuality. [7] She has her mouth slightly open which is a very erotic signifier, this can also mean sexuality and submissiveness this is because when women show their mouths slightly open it can mean they are try to seduce you and make you obey to their commands, they also make her skin shiny by using oils, which makes it shiny and almost wet which evokes emotions of heat and passion. They create arousal and vulnerability by placing the fragrance bottle between the cleavage to entice the viewers to look at her breasts and between her thighs. All of these signs indicate that they are considered to be sexually impure or 'dirty' the white background can signify purity and innocence. Tom Ford’s main objectives are, to make the audience feel aroused and excited by his sexy fragrance. In terms of uses and gratifications they use close ups on breasts and carefully covering areas between her thighs which are very explicit, they also use close ups on sensitive areas such as your mouth and fingers to make them more sexualized. They also have high key lighting, which can give a sense of innocence and not abiding by the rules. The different props that they use are the perfume bottles and place them very provocatively to get the audience excited and astonished. The mise en scene for this perfume advertisement is to create a setting, which is very simple but stands out very strong such as the red lipstick and fingernails but it also being very simple has an effect on the audience.
However in Gucci's perfume its main audience is for women as it is using glamour women will feel they are highly thought of and known as someone who is glamorous and not sexualised, this may make them feel that they are more unique and independent. The mode of address which Gucci use is that women can be glamorous, we do not need to be objectified we can have our own independence. Gucci intend to sell the perfume to women through love and romance. At the beginning of the Gucci advertisement it uses mise en scene by having Blake Lively over looking some outstanding scenery looking out over the city with all of the lights lighting up the city and wearing a long golden dress, which fits to the curves of her body. The gold is used to show glamour but it is also a very bold colour which makes her stand out from everything around her to show her importance in this advertisement also it fits to the curves of her body for women to aspire to be like her and be jealous of her appearance, this then influences women to buy this perfume. The mise en scene used through out this advertisement shows how women have power and independence Gucci are able to do this by making Blake Lively appear to stand out from the surrounding environment and although there is no one else in the room it shows power through her strides.  The lighting on this advertisement differs because in the background it is very low key lighting however it is very high key lighting which spotlights Blake Lively this again shows her importance and makes her stand out, it also signifies innocence. She then imagines herself with a handsome man and she is able to get him; this will have an effect on the audience, as it will make the audience feel they are able to get any man. They use a very respectable and well known celebrities such as Blake Lively to sell their product this is to sell the product to the audience who are familiar with this celebrity and aspire to be like her. In terms of uses and gratifications they are able to do this by using well known celebrities who have a good reputation to advertisement this is a key to selling a perfume and ensuring it is a big hit. [15] [18]
In Tom Fords advertisement with perfume especially his most recent campaigns for example Neroli Portofino they use very explicit pictures and videos of women’s breasts and in-between her thighs on women for example his perfume/ aftershave and eye wear, using this technique makes it possible to encode, this effects the audience by making the men feel if they use this after shave women will get naked and want to be with them. It also creates social integration as more and more people begin to talk about their advertisement and become overwhelmed with it.

Tom Ford aims at his audience by making the men feel that if they use this perfume they can get any women that they want, because of this it is a very closed text which leaves little room for the audiences interpretation. Tom Ford uses a very clever technique by enticing and shocking the audience and creating enigma codes for people to have unanswered questions by a very sexually explicit advertisement this entices the audience in and in terms of uses of gratifications the social integration theory is used by shocking the audience which makes them talk to others about what they have seen. He is very clever on how he positions his fragrance bottles to sell his product as men may feel that it will assist them to find a girl. [18] An example of this was Robin Thickes music video when the ASA quoted "particularly the shots of the women's bodies with their heads obscured and the shot of the woman on all fours". [14] This is very shocking advertisement for people who are not accustomed to these sort of advertisements it may stick on their mind, it could be argued that this is what Tom Ford is trying to achieve. However we live in a increasingly sexual culture where these sorts of images are becoming a lot more 'normal'.[12] 
How far do Tom Ford and Gucci perfume campaigns offer stereotypical aspirations? Tom Ford and Gucci take this quite to an extent however in very different ways. Tom Ford influences the audience to buy this product by using shock tactics and making men feel as though they can get any women they desire, however Gucci make women feel they have importance and can be dignified and feel well presented by using a glamour technique. Tom Ford is able to use social integration to be able to sell his products as people begin to talk about how shocking it is which makes more people look at it even if it was to be band. [16] Through this research I have been able to prove how Tom Fords advertisement is a success all though very explicit it has a huge impact on the audience. Also in Gucci's advertisement they don't want the women to be made out as sex objects or the women wouldn't buy this product so they show them as respectful women. Overall with using these different techniques they are both very successful and do their job of selling their perfume to their target audience. [17]

Bibliography

[1] - Tom ford perfume advertisement
[2] - Gucci perfume advertisement
[3] - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HaB2b1w52yE&feature=youtu.be
[4] - http://www.thesaint-online.com/2012/11/the-representation-of-women-in-the-media/
[5] - http://www.policymic.com/articles/41949/men-are-hurt-by-sexist-ads-too-new-study-says
[6] - http://geniusbeauty.com/celebrity-gossip/christina-aguilera-is-the-new-photoshop-victim/#.UI_C7o4iFvc
[7] - http://www.global-customer.com/images/Fragrance_Tom%20Ford/Tom%20Ford_Fragrance_18.jpg
[8] - http://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/us-gossip/blake-lively-stars-in-gucci-premiere-1207835
[9] - http://www.utwente.nl/cw/theorieenoverzicht/Levels%20of%20theories/macro/Hypodermic%20Needle%20Theory.doc/
[10]  Advertising and Reality: A Global Study of Representation and Content  edited by Amir Hetsroni 2012
[11] Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema (1975) - Laura Mulvey http://imlportfolio.usc.edu/ctcs505/mulveyVisualPleasureNarrativeCinema.pdf
[12] http://www.pinterest.com/kimastrum/no-makeup-photoshop-and-airbrushing-oh-my/
[13] http://www.beautyredefined.net/photoshopping-altering-images-and-our-minds/
[14] http://news.sky.com/story/1152186/robin-thicke-ad-banned-from-air-before-19-30
[15] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrzHWaHhyPE
[16] http://www.tappernet.com/marketingworkshop/targetaud.htm
[17] Advertisement uncut 1/2/3/4
[18]  Understanding Audiences: Theory and Method By Andy Ruddock 2001
[19] Naomi Wolf - The Beauty Myth

Representation of men and women in the media

Representation of men and women in the media

In the past, women were always made out to be insignificant and manipulated, advertisements have long been sexist towards women and would portray them as subordinate to men. 'You mean a women can open it?' however as the realisation came that this was discriminating women, the media soon began to change to sexualising women.
In the present day media controls the way men and women think. These beauty standards affect the way women and men view the female body. From 2000 to 2009 there was a 36% increase in breast augmentation and a 84% increase in tummy tucks. a study has found that 50% of ads in wen magazines portray women as objects.In advertisement women are also portrayed as sexually submissive, and the sexualisation of women in advertisement has become a lot more violent.
However men are often represented as strong, dominant and aggressive, however they are affected by the hyper-masculine stereo types. Depression in men has increased dramatically in the past 2 decades, which shows that media does have a huge impact on men and women and can lead them to various illnesses.
Media plays a strong role in how we view each other and ourselves but how would ads look if they were reversed? they would look very silly.
'Heavy exposure to media alters the viewers perception of social reality in a way that matches the media world' - Levin and Kilbourne. Advertisement companies spend over £5 billion a year to tell you how to think.
After a media report a shocking fact was found that only 30% of women are behind the published articles and a shocking 70% are men, this shows that a lot of the media today is viewed in the way of a man which is very bias.

Women are not the only ones who do get effected by the media today men also do.
Hyper-masculinity is an extreme form of masculine gender ideology that consist of four inter-related beliefs:
-Toughness as emotional self-control
-Violence as manly
-Danger as exciting
-Calloused attitudes towards women and sex

The study found that 56% of the advertisements portrayed at least one or more hyper-masculine belief. They also found that two of the magazines depicted at least one hyper-masculine belief in 90% or more of its advertisements. The researchers claim that through print ads, products are paired with representations of culturally "ideal" hyper-masculine men which can be harmful because it normalizes and encourages these traits as socially acceptable and desired.

Explore the ways in which your chosen texts reinforce or challenge typical representations of gender?

Explore the ways in which your chosen texts reinforce or challenge typical representations of gender?

In the film sin city they back up mulveys theory as the representation of women in this film is highly negative. The women sleep around with different men and prance around in very skimpy clothing they are also very seductive, so the men use this women and sex objects and like to over power them. Throughout the film a lot of the women try to have their own view and opinions on different matters however the men make them feel insignificant and control them in to things that they may not want to do. This backs up mulveys theory of the male gaze as the men are always looking at the women as though they are sex objects, I feel this is the reason why the women act in the way they do, because otherwise they wont get noticed or made to feel special to anyone. When the camera is on the women the are looking down on them to make it seem that the men are over powering them an manipulating them.
In the film fish tank, it is set an a lower class background so the girls are always wearing the same dirty clothes and so are the men. However when the man becomes involved in the young girls life, the male gaze begins to b3e put in to place as she begins to dance he watches her and watches the way her body moves. However mulveys theory is also shown it is not always correct because as he takes his top off the young girl watches the man in a very sexual way which doesn't back up mulveys theory. They also use repetition when the young girl enters her fantasy mode she breathes very heavily and that is the centre of attention and what is focused upon.
Within both of the films they are both very differently challenged with representation as sin city back up the male gaze theory however fish tank doesn't. 

Sin city

Sin city

Sin city is a very stereotypical film for its film noir, femme fatal and comic book conventions. At the beginning it opens in black and white as it is shown to be a very old film but it has been made in the present day. Sin city uses a lot of diegetic sound as that is a part of the comic book conventions however they are highly exaggerated. In the beginning scene it begins to rain which shows pathetic falasy which creates emotion through the film and affects the audience. It uses a lot of comic book conventions such as making it look inky in the scenes  which doesn't make it look very realistic also they highlight the woman's eyes by making them green this can show jealousy and mistrust. They also highlight the woman's dress by making it red this can show passion and strength.
Film noir is used very typically as through out the film it is in black and white, also it uses a voice over  which helps to tell the characters state of mind.
Throughout the film venishan blinds are used which is very stereotypical convention of the genre for the 40's it also makes it seem very mysterious and old fashioned. The representation of women in this film is thought about very negatively, they are represented in a way that they are sex objects and stand around half naked a lot of the time. This backs up mulveys theory of the male gaze very accurately as the men are always looking to the women and controlling them a lot of the time. Using propps theory it is very clear that 'Heartigan' is the hero in this and he is try to protect and look after the princess which is 'Nancy'.
They use a lot of technical aspects such as diegetic sounds to make sounds like a comic book, such as 'whooshing sounds'. They also use very different camera angles such as a high angle shot to over power people and make them seem insignificant.

Fish tank

Social realism:
issues and themes-

• Prostitution
• Abortion
• Homosexuality
• Alienation
• Relationship problems

Fish tank -
It is set in a very run down flat which shows that it is very realistic and not just a set which has been put up. They use a lot of tracking shot this is to make you feel involved and to focus upon certain objects. Dancing in a an abandoned flat is very typical of this genre, it also uses a lot of natural lighting to make it realistic and you can see that it is diegetic sounds when she is dancing as it is echoing and very tinny. She also uses a lot of swear words which her young sister uses which suggest she has learnt from her mum. This film shows ways of how mulveys theory can be wrong as it uses a female gaze when the man takes his top and a male gaze when the man is watching her dance. In this film it also always shows it from the girls point of view until the man turn to look at her, which shows all her view points and actions. When the girl becomes in contact with the horse she gets very attached and wants to set the horse free this could signify her life as she is also trapped and unable to get anywhere. Her breathing is very closely focused on this is when she begins to go in to her fantasy world and everything slows down and begins in to slow motion. Also because it gets so intense and realistic it begins to make you feel uncomfortable. It also uses a lot of tracking shot which makes you feel more involved. It also uses a lot of pathetic fallacy to make the weather have an effect on your emotions. She is a very naïve young girl who feels she is amazing at dance when she isn't very good at all. The prop theory is used when she steals the young girl who is the princess to make the 'hero' in her eyes come and save her but who is really the villain. It has a very strong representation of women suggesting that they are sex objects and can be easily controlled. The horse is then shot as it was too od, and she begins to cry which is the first time in the whole film which shows her vulnerability also as the horse was 16 and the girl is only 15. She is brought up with some nasty habits like swearing and drinking she also vandalises the mans house by weeing on the floor which suggests she's like an animals. They also name there dog after alcohol. She finally gets away in a car which can suggest freedom that she has finally managed to escape.