Brianna's Media Studies Portfolio: November 2020

Representation in media, especially representation in advertisements and commercials can greatly impact how certain companies or products are viewed and used. Good representation of varied people can really bring light to a company and expand the amount of consumers, while negative or lack of representation can do the opposite. Moreover, we should analyze how well some adverts are able to create positive representation and attract more people.

1. Tide

Some things we will notice in this advert are:

One young mom and her daughter
Most likely a middle-class family
Both white
Lack of interaction

This advert may seem okay at first glance, but, for some people, including me, there is one thing that sticks out. You may not have guessed it right away, but gender and self expression could be seen as a major issue.

For one, we are shown a mom who sits pristinely in her bubble gum colored dome of femininity, which is perfectly okay; however, her hints of dislike for her daughters choice of clothing is very problematic. Young children, even at that age, have their own thoughts and opinions on many things, clothing and style being one of them. The choice to wear gray and green shorts instead of a pink skirt and playing with blocks instead of dolls should not have to be demeaned by anyone. We should be more concerned with erasing the standard of being a girl as determined by dressing a certain way, than promoting a gendered stereotype through an advertisement.

It should also be seen as problematic that this commercial lacks anyone of any other race than white. Yes, it is a story of a mother and her daughter, but there could have been more inclusion because- guess what- we all use detergent.

2. H&M

Glad to say that this advertisement has:

Variety of ethnicities
Variety of races
Variety of genders
Variety of ages
Oh, and of course, VARIETY

I don't see any issue with this advert at all. Overall, H&M did a great job in trying to reach representation of so many people. Even though there was mostly young adults in this advert, it makes sense since H&M typically has clothes suited for that age group. The inclusion of different body sizes and people with many different gender expressions expands their intended buyers to everyone and makes their shop much more appealing to the public.

The representation of people in this advertisement shows a positive and accepting atmosphere and will make audiences feel more inclined to shop or donate clothes to their store.

Let's Put A Spotlight On Dark Comedy

Dark comedy, also known as black comedy, dark humor, morbid humor, etc., is a style of comedy that sheds light on something gruesome or tragic with the use of humor. So if you love watching comedy made out of murder, death, violence, terrorism, poverty, disease, war, racial and sexual stereotypes, and more, then this genre is perfect for you.

Content:

Some very common themes in black comedy include realism and truth. Most dark comedy films may be based on a true story or use real life situations to develop the film and shine light on an important topic. Some major themes may include men as a monster, or the absurdity of the world.

Monsieur Verdoux (1947)

This film shows a more simplistic portrayal of a "endearing" murderer. Most of the films that demonstrate the insanity of violence within an individual that could murder another person, were intending to show a wider endemic social malady. In Monsieur Verdoux, Charles Chaplin plays a sympathetic murderer whose actions are symbolic for the crushing power of business.

Another common theme in Dark Comedies is satire and irony. This part takes place in all black humor films, as they intend to strike laughter at absurd or very ironic scenarios.

Kick Ass (2010)

This movie tells a story about a kid who’s love of superheroes and comics allowed him to want to crime fight and dress up like his own superhero. This film is pretty ironic as they present these very nerdy or geeky people who dress up as superheroes, but they are actually murderers.

Production Techniques:

Most of the lighting in these movies show regular or natural lighting of the scene. Since they are attempting to “lighten-up” the mood of being killed, it makes sense that there would be no specific colors associated with death or destruction within the film.

One thing that is very specific in Dark Humor productions is the presence of props to carry the overall mood of the story. Props can be used to add comedy to the scene or make it the center of attention.

Hot Fuzz (2007)

In this movie we can see how the use of props can help the story become more humorous. In one of the scenes of the movie, a character gets stabbed in the jaw with a mini church steeple. This prop and just imagining the image could make anyone laugh because it seems so absurd or silly.

Many of the camera shots and angles are very important to the film. Close-ups and extreme close-ups may be used within the film many times as it brings focus to many of the props or the reaction of the characters. This allows for the audience to pay more attention to the main focus of what is being mocked or made fun of.

Marketing:

Typically, the audience group that would be mostly directed to watch Dark Comedy films would be 18+. Since most of these movies are riddled with very dark themes and adult humor, it would most likely be inappropriate for younger audiences, and they probably would not understand it.

Most Black Comedy movies seem to have a very similar theme of death and violence; however, many of these movies may be marketed more as horror or thrilling than a comedy. There are not too many similarities in the way that some of these movies are presented. While some movies may have dark backgrounds and images in their thumbnails that represent death or murder, others may be bright and colorful, even though it is a movie about war.

Sample #1:

Heathers (1989)

The movie "Heathers" is a film about a girl, Veronica, that is part of a very cliquey and popular group with three other girls, all named Heather. She meets a boy named JD and tries to stick with him as she disapproves of her friend group's behavior towards others. During the movie she accidentally kills one of the Heathers and frames it as a suicide. JD takes control of Veronica, as it was his plan to kill everyone who had made his life more difficult. Throughout this movie we see many of the themes come through including horror, and murder. Most of this movie and each death is seen mainly as a joke. This movie focusses on capturing many shots of each prop or item that kills each of the characters. The portrayal of all the characters go very well with the theme of Dark Comedy, especially while they make inappropriate jokes and laugh at the funerals for the dead characters.

Sample #2:

Knives Out (2019)

The movie "Knives Out" tells a story about a family whose father and grandfather just died. The story takes place in Harlan Thrombey's mansion where he and his children's family lives until he gets murdered. The story revolves around the theme of murder and mystery involved within his death. Over the course of the film, a detective interrogates each person living in the household that could've been responsible for Thrombey's death. The use of flashbacks and close ups for many of the scenes we can see some of the action and how he may have died. This movie could be considered a dark comedy as each family member clearly doesn't seem very fond of Harlan, and just wants to inherit his riches. Many of the characters make constant humorous remarks including the actual attempted murder of the family who laughs at his parents and relatives' misfortune.

Other Dark Comedies: