Representation Media Theories

Laura Mulvey: 'The Male Gaze'

Laura Mulvey was a feminist theorist, and her theory focuses on the objectification of women. She believes that in the film industry, the camera acts as a man's eye, meaning that the men have the power to choose what women should look like. Men are in control of the media in general, dominating women's appearances in order to increase satisfaction for their audiences. In other words, women are portrayed as sexual objects to increase the amount of viewers who are watching the films. For example, in James Bond there are several long, close up shots of women wearing bikinis, with the camera zooming in on their cleavage and curves. In terms of horror, the phrase 'torture porn' is often used, which means that when women are being victimised, they will be wearing revealing clothing in order to increase their sexual factor, portraying them as helpless, sexual objects.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaze
http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Documents/gaze/gaze09.html

Independant Research - Reviews & Comments

True Blood


http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0844441/usercomments?filter=love

'Another Great HBO Series!':

I thought nothing could top "OZ"--HBO's excellent drama series about life in prison. Well--I was wrong! "True Blood" IS better. I'm very into horror movies--maybe that's why I love this so much. This shows a world where vampires exist--and are learning to coexist with humans. There's a drink called "True Blood" which is like real blood and the vampires drink it so they don't have to attack humans. They just want the same rights human beings have (the parallels between gay rights and vampire rights are obvious but amusing). This takes place in Louisiana. There we meet young, attractive and psychic Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin). She falls in love with vampire Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer) much to the disgust of her employer Sam (Sam Tramell) and sex addicted brother Jason (Ryan Kwanten). Then we meet friends and family of Sookie and the series just takes off from there. I'm only up to episode 8 of the first season and I LOVE it. It has great scripts, is never dull and has some good actors in it (Paquin and Moyer especially). There's some explicit violence, STRONG language and female AND male nudity--but it is always necessary for the script. Strong and vivid but fascinating. Recommended.

- Wayne Mallin, IMDB, 24 May, 2009





http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0844441/usercomments?filter=hate

'I Am Disappointed.':

The actors deliver really unconvincing performances, if you want my opinion. They seem to take the show very lightly, as if it were some kind of a regular, low budget family TV show (well maybe thats what it is, if you take away the family part). The only actor that seemed somewhat good to me was Stephen Moyer in the role of Bill, considering the poorly written, extremely short replies he had to say "What are you..." "Can I give you a call sometime...", I think he did good in bringing out the somewhat mysteriously scary part of a vampire that anyone with a vampire role must have, actually.

- Maxwazn, IMDB, 26 May, 2009






Buffy The Vampire Slayer


http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118276/usercomments

'Brilliance Of Buffy':

Buffy The Vampire Slayer, its misguided title put aside, is what I consider, and millions of other devoted fans believe to be a genuine and purely astonishing work of achievement in television history. With creative and daring story lines and terrific character development, the show that began its run on the WB as a mid-season replacement, became a dazzling cult hit resulting in a secure fan base and merchandising for as far as the eye can see.





http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118276/usercomments?filter=hate

'Buffy's Downfall: Sarah Michelle Gellar Can't Act':

I wanted to like this show. I really did. I thought the movie was entertaining enough, if rather silly. So I tried to watch Buffy a number of times. Unfortunately, Sarah Michelle Gellar was apparently chosen to play a Vampire slayer because she is a Dialogue Slayer! She's also a Scene Slayer. She does kill them dead with her complete lack of acting ability. Think about it... even after five years of training, Sarah Michelle Gellar still could not throw a semi-believable movie punch... I mean how difficult is that when you have instructors, directors and stunt choreographers trying to make you look good. How incompetent can you be? Very incompetent apparently.

- Lester Murdoch, IMDB, 16 October, 2008


The Vampire Diaries



http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1405406/reviews

 

'Not Twilight but not True Blood'
In this day and age it's the time of the Vampires. You have Twilight and True blood and Vampire Diaries but don't let them keep you from watching. While many tend to compare it with the two, it's actually very different. Vampire Diaries, based off a series written 15 years before Twilight,is about a girl Elena who just lost her parents when a new guy, Stefan Salvatore, comes to town but with Stefan also comes trouble, his brother Damon Salvatore. This show is definitely the middle of Twi and True Blood. It has a romance like Twilight and the intensity of True Blood. What this show has is a lot of twists and turns that you don't expect.

- chattygirl247, IMDB, 14 November, 2009



'Definitely worth a watch!':


Okay, so there's been an overload of vampires. 1st, Twilight, then Jennifer's Body and blah blah blah.. but Vampire Diaries is different, and definitely here to stay.

For starters, it follows the basic rules that apply to vampires, unlike Twilight where Edward Cullen just goes into Bella's house without any invitation, etc.

What's also gripping is the fact that it has other characters from the magical world, like Witches and all. It also sticks to its plot, so what we are seeing is actually a story which has vampires as a part of it, not the other way around.

Definitely worth a try, and one of the best shows of Fall '09.

- Anwesh Mishra, IMDB, 10 November 2009

Independant Research - Newspaper Articles

True Blood




http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv-and-radio/2010/may/21/your-next-boxset-true-blood


'Your Next Boxset':

Based on Charlaine Harris's novels, and developed by Six Feet Under's Alan Ball, True Blood is a breathtaking ride. From the opening credits – a brilliant, atmospheric montage dripping with swampy hellfire and Southern brimstone – to the witty choice of outro music (Beck's Timebomb as a Christian terrorist walks into a vampire lair), it's never less than totally entertaining. Initially, it's all about Bill and Sookie's steamy human-vampire romance; but pretty soon you'll be just as consumed by the adventures of her dim hunk of a brother Jason; her best friend Tara's encounters with backwoods voodoo; or bar cook Lafayette and his put-downs ("Who ordered the hamburger with Aids?"). It's got to be one of the only shows where a serial killer is one of the least exciting storylines. The episodes fly by, with each hour screeching to a halt – and then picking up exactly where we left it in the next. It's the perfect, "just-one-more" box set if you've got a weekend or two spare.


- The Guardian, Friday, 21 May, 2010





Buffy The Vampire Slayer




http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/03/13/AR2011031303058.html


'The Best Of High School TV Series':


Are we watching too much TV? Maybe so. Rarely have I received as many e-mails as when I sought help picking the five best high school television series of all time.

Some of the suggestions were what I expected. Other choices surprised me. Katya2, a commenter on my blog, was among many who urged the selection of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." The choice made sense, Katya2 said, because the monsters infesting the show were "often just an exaggerated or disguised version of ordinary high school problems - dating, social competition, parental pressure, etc."
"Buffy" was a clever horror show metaphor for high school life.


- The Washington Post, Monday, March 14, 2011

 
The Vampire Diaries

 

The Vampire Diaries is a mishmash of ideas we've seen before (a ring allowing a vampire to withstand daylight? Hello Buffy), brooding bad boys and clunking bad-emo-band dialogue about souls. Though its teen target audience might not necessarily cross over with True Blood, it still suffers by comparison.

-The Guardian, Tuesday, 2 February, 2010

Trailers

Below are the following three trailers for the horror tv programmes I have decided to study.


True Blood (2008) Trailer

Buffy The Vampire Slayer (1997) Trailer

The Vampire Diaries (2009) Trailer

MS3 Research Investigation Process - Introduction

     For this assignment we have been asked to research an area within the media that we have a particular interest in. For my individual project, I have decided to explore the portrayal of female roles in vampire tv programmes, and whether their roles have been subverted or not.

     I will be researching 'True Blood', (2008), 'Buffy The Vampire Slayer', (1997), and 'Vampire Diaries', (2009), in order to prepare for my production, which will consist of a print advertisement for a new vampire tv series, providing a picture of a woman on the front to show a representation of women characters in vampire tv programmes. I will be providing trailers, reviews, newspaper articles, images of several posters, and providing evidence that the roles are either subverted, or conforming.