Character Representation

Discuss the representation of terrorists and the couple in the extract from ‘spooks’

In many ways the Arab terrorists and the white, English couple in this drama have been presented as binary opposites, casting a sympathetic light on the English couple, this has been done by using matters such as the sound used, including the dialogue, mise-en-scene camera angles and editing. However there are also sections where the audience is given an opportunity to see the terrorists in a kinder light, partly through the use of sound and dialogue, and the character of the female terrorist Khatera although as at the beginning of the episode we as an audience are encouraged to feel more inclined that the terrorists are in the wrong.

One of the ways the drama represents these characters is through mise-en-scene. At the start of the episode, we are presented with a mundane looking street and Adam and Fiona’s kitchen. The couple are dressed in pale colours and the kitchen is made to look warm. There is, I think, also a definite feel that their home has been lived in due to the clutter in the kitchen and the focus on the coffee pot. This I believe is to produce a casual atmosphere where most people would feel comfortable which allows the audience to see that Adam and Fiona are just a normal couple. In contrast to this we are shown a claustrophobic scene in the terrorists' car, where almost everything, including their costumes is black, which is often associated with bad. The difference in colour is enforced by Fiona and Adam’s car which is painted white, this I think is meant to establish which pair we as an audience are encouraged to think is bad, and which is good. In the room where Fiona and Danny are being held by the male terrorist, Ahmed, the mise-en-scene is very limited as other than the chairs and later the can of petrol, there is little in the room, also the colours in the room are mostly a harsh blue which could be meant to show a coldness on the part of the terrorists. One of the strongest items that reduce support for the terrorists in one of the earlier scenes is the photograph of Fiona and Adam’s son, making him someone whom the English couple have to protect, which would give the terrorists an irredeemable factor. In favour of the terrorists the hotel room where Khatera is holding Adam is like most hotel rooms in the fact that it is made up of warm colours such as creams and reds, whereas this is typical it could also be in support of Khatera as an individual character. This view I feel is supported by that setting being the one where she opens up to Adam, and recounts the tragedies in her past, during which she becomes more sympathetic and regretful about Adam’s situation providing a side to the terrorists which the audience can relate to.

Another method through which the characters are represented is through the camera angles. For the English couple, especially when they are together in their kitchen at the beginning, wider frames are used, allowing for a more comfortable view of the scene. When in a scene together, they are often shown in two shots or over shoulder shots, so that they are both in the audiences view together, which on watching this episode I get the impression that it is to present the characters as two people who are very close together, inspiring sympathy from the audience. In comparison the terrorists Ahmed and Khatera, though rarely in a scene together are often show separately in head shots, or close shots where only a section of their faces is shown. This provides a more intense view of the scene as the audience is made to focus on the two terrorists and the action in the scene. Because their faces are not completely shown at first there is a certain mystery about the terrorists which in my opinion gives them a binary opposition with the Adam and Fiona as mystery inspires mistrust. Also in the room where Fiona is being held the camera is often positioned lower than Ahmed so that it looks up to him, making the character look stronger and in a position of power over Fiona which is likely to make the audience support Fiona.

Another aspect used to cast the terrorists in a darker light to Adam and Fiona is editing, this is especially shown in Danny’s death scene in the series of cutting between the scenes and the characters. For a long section of the scene the footage is cut between Fiona and Adam when Adam is being ordered to choose whom Ahmed should shoot. This is occasionally joined with shots of Khatera who shows a more human approach to Adam’s situation but other than that she is most blurred out of the images, focusing attention on the English couple and Ahmed. The camera remains focused on Danny for a longer period of time, only lifting entirely when he is about to be shot as he starts to confront the terrorists, cutting occasionally to Ahmed to show the audience his reaction. Editing techniques such as this in the episode does little to gain an audience’s sympathy from the audience.

Most of the sympathy towards the representation of terrorists is achieved through sound in this episode. Though the background music changes pitch and frequency in the scenes it continues throughout, providing a sound bridge to each scene providing a consistency. This might be to show the equal desperation for Adam and Fiona but it also could be to show a similarity between them and the terrorists, building for them a sense of equality in that respect at least. The dialogue between the Adam and Fiona and the terrorists casts equal sympathy for both sides in my opinion. Whilst the English are able to come out with lines such as the terrorists killed a bus full of children the terrorists are able to come up with incidents of how they saw their family die, how to the English Arab children’s lives don’t matter to the English and how a wedding ceremony as bombed, among other incidents. Because of the sheer quaintly of loss the terrorists suffered it could be enough for the audience to support them but most of the lines are delivered by Ahmed who seems indifferent in comparison to Khatera, who is the sympathy character of the two terrorists. However the terrorists are also shown in a very dark light by their dialogue by lines such as Ahmed’s when he tells Fiona how her son will be able to watch her burn on the Internet and Khatera’s revelation that they planted a bomb inside of her. Both of these show cruelty, perhaps the most intense being the bomb as it shows that the terrorists are prepared to harm their own for the greater cause, and whilst it gives a better light for Khatera it is only on her as a character, and not as a terrorist. But on a whole I believe that the dialogue provides I think an equality between Adam and Fiona and the terrorists

In conclusion I believe that this drama series has tried to present the English couple and the terrorists as binary opposites, casting the English couple in a better light, using things such as editing, camera angles and mise-en-scene. I also believed that the terrorists are redeemed, mostly through sound and dialogue, especially that of Khatera. Apart from this however I believe that we are encouraged to support the English couple over the terrorists.