Analysis of S3 E1
Character archetypes
Identify which of
the following character archetypes of the crime genre appear in the selected
episode of The Bridge and briefly describe them
Investigator – Saga seems very focused and hard working
as she discovers a lot of information about the victim within hours. Saga likes
to find out all the information she can even when she is having ‘small talk’
with her new detective partner. She lacks an emotional side, as she couldn’t bear
to tell the female that the victim had her heart removed.
Sidekick – Saga’s partner is apart of the older generation. It is
clear to say that Saga is superior whereas, she is inferior. In other words,
Saga takes the lead and is smarter as Saga discovers the bomb a spilt second
before it was diffused and caused injuries.
Boss – The boss is a male and at the start, has a lack of care
towards hi career as he shows up late and careless.
Villain – The villain is not shown as the case continues!
However, the villain appears to be very cunning and smart.
Action and enigma
codes
Crime television
tends to use action and enigma codes. Action codes are a way to introduce a new problem, this
could be something simple e.g. a phone
ringing. Enigma codes are questions which are posed to the audience to leave them
hooked e.g. who killed Richard?
Here is a few I discovered in ‘The Bridge’
o
Who is the killer?
o
Is the sidekick
alive?
o
How will Saga react
to her new partner?
o
Who will the killer
target next?
The TV crime drama
has been left with an opening ending with still plenty of unanswered questions.
They have left the audience eager to find out what happens in the next episode
and if their unanswered questions can be solved?
What questions does
the audience have at the end of the episode? How is the episode structured narratively?
Is there an open or closed ending?
Representation of women
Women in the crime genre are often represented as victims, and in drama women tend to be represented
as overly emotional and family-orientated .
In ‘The Bridge’ subverts the representation
of women, as they are normally described as weak and emotional. However, these female
characters are represented as strong. As we see, two female detectives on the case
and they are portrayed as strong and determined to find the killer.
Saga lacks an emotional side to her which is surprising as most women are
recognised to be emotional and she doesn’t want to tell the other female that the
victim’s heart was removed as she starts crying down the phone. Saga doesn’t
react and completely shuts her down.
Butler’s theory is that gender is a social construct and there is no
gender identify behind the expression of gender. Masculine and feminine are
created through repetition. As, Saga doesn’t follow the stereotype of women it
supports Butler’s theory that the stereotype of women to be weak and emotional
has been discovered through repetition.
Halls’ theory is that media language is used to create representations
and stereotyping is often used to assert power. Saga has subverted the
stereotype of women and is now seen as powerful, hardworking and determined and
she is using that to assert power as she is lead on the case.
Narrative & Themes
Lighting – The dark lighting can convey something is about to happen and
this keeps the audience on their feet.
Sound - It has created a feeling of suspense as they play non-diegetic creepy
music, as the two detectives have just discovered the victim had her heart
removed by the killer.
Camera shots – Different camera shots convey specific feelings upon the
audience e.g. long shots help the audience recognise the setting and characters,
it can convey a specific theme towards the audience which can deepen their
emotions when watching.
Levi-Strauss’s theory is that binary opposites is what drives the narrative.
In ‘The Bridge’ there is a lot of binary opposites:
o
Detective vs. Killer
o
Light vs. Dark
