How is gender represented in Shallow Grave?

How is gender represented in Shallow Grave?

One way gender is represented is that men are the more aggressive gender. This is evident when a character asks Juliet to dance and David then becomes aggressive towards him. This is stereotypical of the male gender as they are seen to be the more aggressive gender out the two as well as the more violent. The violent nature of David is evident when he says the other character is going to “end up in a f...ing bin bag”. This shows males as more aggressive and violent as David is being threatening. This matches the stereotypes as men are seen as more violent.

Another way gender is represented is through the costumes they wear. This is more obvious with Juliet as she is wearing a very low cut dress. This stereotypes women as liking to show off their body as well as being more concerned about their appearance as she is wearing a lot of makeup. However, Juliet is not the only one who is stereotyped in this way as David also is stereotyped. This is because David is wearing a smart suit and proper gentlemen are stereotyped to be well dressed and to wear very smart clothing such as ties which David is doing. This is a contrast to Alex as his clothes are more untidy and casual.

Another way males are stereotyped is when Alex is smoking. At this point, only Alex is smoking and no one else is. This makes him seem less concerned about his health than Juliet as men are not seen to care about their body as much as women do. However, this is not the only way he is stereotyped. Another way he is stereotyped is with his costume. Men are sometimes seen not to look after their appearance as much as women. This is most evident when Alex is pouring them drinks as his costume has become untidy and scruffy as his shirt is untucked and his tie is undone. This could fit the stereotype of men not caring as much about their appearance as women.

However, at one point, Juliet goes against the stereotype of women. This is when Alex and Juliet go to dance. When Alex is thrown on the floor, Juliet comes and stands over the top of him. This reverses the stereotypes as the shotis then switched to Alex’s point of view as he is looking up at Juliet on a low angle. This makes her seem the dominant character between the two of them and also makes her seem more intimidating as she seems to be much bigger than him and also more aggressive as her foot is on his chest.

Another way that gender is represented is women as fun loving. This is evident when Juliet tells Alex that they should dance. This shows them as more fun loving as a male did not come up with the idea and it was Juliet’s idea. This makes her seem more free willed than men as she wants to enjoy herself more than what the males do. This is evident when David does not join them on the dance floor and is sitting on his own. This makes him seem like he does not care about having fun and wants to be on his own. This fits the stereotype that men are individuals and only wants to do what they want to and do not like to have the same type of fun women do. This also reverses the stereotype again as she tells Alex to go dance with her and she is taking control again.

Another way gender is represented is women as more happy than men. This is seen most of the way through this scene. This is however, most evident when all the characters are sitting together. We can see this though the facial expressions on the characters faces as Juliet is happy all the way though whereas David looks angry and concerned all the way through. This is also shown when Alex calls Cameron over and then says he thought he was someone else. This made Juliet laugh at the joke and Alex as he is the one who caused it, but David seems unhappy with it and does not even react to it. This also stereotypes men as being emotionless as Juliet is constantly happy whereas David does not seem happy thought the whole scene. All the emotions are shown through mid-shots and close ups.

A final way that gender is represented is when Alex is pouring them drinks. This shows men as drunkards as he slightly drunk when he is doing it. This fits the stereotype of men drinking alcohol all the time and not caring what they do to their surrounding people. This is also evident when Alex calls out that he wanted the children put down as he is shown as not caring about other people’s feelings as men are stereotyped to do. Diegetic sound is also used with the drinks running into each other and the music that is being played in the background

In conclusion, both genders are represented through stereotype within this scene as they are both shown to be what they are stereotyped to be. This makes both genders seem as if they are what they actually seen as in the public eye. This creates the message that men and women are complete contrasts to each other, as men, to women are seen to be violent as David is seen as here and women are seen as calm and free willed such as Juliet is here.