female audience...how do they react?

[lexy]

please help me .. i have a fyp and i wanted to do shane meadows...but there is nothing out there...ive done my proposal which means i have to do this question lol...i decided to do a fyp on A FEMALE AUDIENCES VIEWS ON SHANE MEADOWS' THIS IS ENGLAND AND DEAD MAN SHOES

there is nothig there and it is due in a couple of days ... i thought i was sorted but im really not...and im rubbish at essays asit is and then i create a hard question...so all help needed please

lexy xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

[RydCook]

May 23, 2008 18:27:55 GMT lexy said:

i have a fyp and i wanted to do shane meadows

Oooh Err Mrs! FYPs change people ay?

Seriously though, what sort of help do you need? Links and stuff?

All i can help you with is my gf's reaction to both films, although I didn't watch them with her, i know her opinion on them. First of all, she loves both films. However, she prefers This Is England. Reason being that it has more happy themes and a reasonably.....

TIE & DMS SPOIERS****

..... happy ending (considering milky survived, and Shaun has learnt a lot from his experiance.) In contrast to DMS's stark brutal ending, it's nicer. And she prefers TIE's nicer ending, as she doesn't like the way DMS left her.

She'd rather watch a film that made her feel good, for the most part, takes her on a ride, wheer she'd "want to be in it" and theres more room for this in TIE for girls i think. More strong female characters than in DMS you see.

She would not want to be in the world of DMS at all. I suppose there was nothing for her to relate to in there.

Hope this helps buddy! Good luck with the FYP and "Doing shane meadows"

[GR]

Speaking as a female viewer, as dark and disturbing as DMS was to me, my own reaction to it was of pure empathy for nearly every character on screen -- Anthony for obvious reasons, Richard for the depth of his guilt (over having felt embarrassed by Anthony and abandoning him), and even Sonny and his gang for their fear and paranoia. I was emotionally overwhelmed by the end of my first viewing, and I've been wiped out by it each of the few times I've seen it since.

As for TIE, I wasn't quite as overwhelmed by it, but I found it an emotional roller coaster just the same. I found the early scenes (with Shaun getting to know Woody and his gang) sweet and entertaining; in retrospect, I think they were a great way to ease people into the picture before the arrival of Combo took it into heavier territory. Regarding the heavier stuff, my reaction was (and still is) not unlike my reaction to DMS -- much as I disagreed with and disapproved of what Combo said and did, I could also understand the frustration and fear behind his words and actions.

I hope that helps... Good luck with your project!

[jill]

You can't research this, so maybe you should write about how a female audience might relate to the characters a bit differently, since most of the main characters in Shane's films are men/boys? Anyway, wouldn't worry about it too much-I'm sure that by this time of the year, all your lecturers want is to mark your work quickly and f*ck off on holiday

[anonlytwin]

Hi Lexy, Jill's right. how a whole gender of the human race react to a film is impossible to quantify. not all girls are the same or liable to react in the same way. audience reception theory is a tough old area of research for the reason Jill gave- it can't concievably be researched in any sort of thorough or rigourous way. Sooo, do what Jill suggests, look at the position of female IN Shane's films and how they cope with a the male world that Shane almost entirely focuses on... then, if you like, discuss the effect this has on a female audience (but make it clear within the essay that what you are saying is hypothetical at best).... in terms of references and sources, i would dig out the work on Meadows and masculinity that exists and make use of that stuff as a means of proving your point that his films are marked by the fact that the majority of his characters are male... go to the education section of this site and in one of the threads you will find reference to a few different publications that contain work on this subject.... good luck with it all and remember what Jill says, all anyone wants to do is fuck off on holiday

[lexy]

cheers everyone ... i have been worried about this and i choose the wrong thing ... i ended up saying how theorists think women watch film and how they react and then made them watch the films and see how they reacted and then compare...its guna be poo lol...wish me luck lol

xx

[shanemeadows]

What's a blinkin FYP??? I left school and college early.

[RydCook]

May 27, 2008 23:57:14 GMT shanemeadows said:

What's a blinkin FYP??? I left school and college early.

Final Year Project.

I'm skipping the whole Uni thing. Discovered its not for me ;D

[large michael]

What getting up before 1 and listening to someone more qualified. Sounds like a perfect student to me....

[shindig]

Wish I'd bailed before getting in too deep with it. 2 years wasted.

[helene]

i cant stop laughing about the line 'all your lecturers want is to mark your work quickly and f*ck off on holiday' thats hilarious.. As a female viewer I found TIE very believable and realistic. Shane seems to be interested in male behavior and the relationships that develop from this. I think most films nowadays are much too concerned with instant recognition and success that they by pass the actual dialogue. Thats what makes shane's films so effective. He develops the phsycology behind each character so you understand their motives. It is clear that he must have thought about the relationships between each of the characters.
This techniques is used in the film catch 22- which seems to concentrate on old school acting and dialogue, filmed using minimal camera angles / edit cutts etc.
Theres a scene near the beginning set outside a cafe and it lasts about ten mins with one take and no cutts. This is a dangerous technique that relies souley on directors prep and acting skill. im probably the only one but i'd love to see more of this.

[eyepennies]

Dont know if this would be any help for you but you could maybe look into Harrington and Bielby's work on females watching soap operas. It talks about female character relations. How often female viewers can feel greater intensity and closeness to the characters the view. Also about viewing habits (how women like to go into a private world when watching tv/movies). I dont know if its totally relevant but its pretty interesting stuff.

You could propose that many women could have difficulties when watching Shane's films and they rarely offer a strong i.e. prominent) female protagonist. From studying some of this sorta rubbish on my degree it appears that men like to watch where as women like to relate.

Im rambling. sorry.

[GR]

Jun 26, 2008 14:45:20 GMT eyepennies said:

Dont know if this would be any help for you but you could maybe look into Harrington and Bielby's work on females watching soap operas. It talks about female character relations. How often female viewers can feel greater intensity and closeness to the characters the view. Also about viewing habits (how women like to go into a private world when watching tv/movies). I dont know if its totally relevant but its pretty interesting stuff... From studying some of this sorta rubbish on my degree it appears that men like to watch where as women like to relate.

That's an interesting point, and I suppose that could explain a lot about how I look at certain movies, trying to sort out the characters' thoughts and motivations behind what they say and do. (Of course, I can't stand soap operas, and I totally dig Shane's films...)

[eyepennies]

Jun 26, 2008 23:43:56 GMT GR said:

Jun 26, 2008 14:45:20 GMT eyepennies said:

Dont know if this would be any help for you but you could maybe look into Harrington and Bielby's work on females watching soap operas. It talks about female character relations. How often female viewers can feel greater intensity and closeness to the characters the view. Also about viewing habits (how women like to go into a private world when watching tv/movies). I dont know if its totally relevant but its pretty interesting stuff... From studying some of this sorta rubbish on my degree it appears that men like to watch where as women like to relate.

That's an interesting point, and I suppose that could explain a lot about how I look at certain movies, trying to sort out the characters' thoughts and motivations behind what they say and do. (Of course, I can't stand soap operas, and I totally dig Shane's films...)

Personally I think it makes a lot of sense. It does seem somewhat sexist but in many cases its true. Its why soap operas and romance films have a majority female audiences, because female audiences feel more involved with characters who they feel theyve "experienced" some thing with. Whether its something trivial like Rosie Webster's Christmas play (god I hate corrie) or Bridget Jones heartache. Its emotive story telling.

I think perhaps that a majority of female viewers could feel estranged from Shane's work as its very much a mans world. Its like a mine field littered with the silent bombs of deep masculine issues. There's not the emotional simplicity that a lot of female lead films have. There's odd estranged emotions like regret and frustration and sometimes there arn't concrete reasons for these. A lot of the films also don't provide a satisfying ending, but then again that can be a problem for male and female audiences.

Women like to enjoy the process of film, like you said peoples motives etc. Its a pretty interesting subject when you get onto it. Why certain people have a taste for certain films. I mean with Shane's movies your riding a train through loads of limitations. Cultural aspects, social limitations, class limitations and just our current culture. Many people like to go to the cinema and be wowed constantly by Hollywood glitter. Our viewing tastes are constantly evolving and gender limitations are only a small part of a much bigger picture.