Compare how teenagers are represented in the action/fantasy genre looking at The Hunger Games

and The Amazing Spider Man

Introduction
In this essay I will be comparing characters in both the Amazing spider Man and The Hunger Games
looking at how they are represented and shown to the audience.
In these action/fantasy films I expect to see romance and a lot of fighting including CGI and green
screens to add an unrealism touch to the films. I also would see different types of characters who
are represented in different ways such as a stereotypical bully compared to a geek.
Summary of the plots
The Amazing spider man is based on Peter Parker who is left by his mum and dad at a young age
with his Aunt and Uncle who raise him. Peter fines himself in the world when he discovers secrets of
his dads inventions and gets bitten by a toxin spider which gives him hero like abilities. Peter sees
that the world around him is corrupt and being ruined by criminals so he becomes a hero to save
people, alongside with a usual stereotype of a pretty blonde haired girl. But his path is not easy and
things evolve stopping peter in his objectives.
The plot of The Hunger Games is about 12 districts that range from wealthiest to poorest who in
which every year, 2 people are chosen to fight in a television programme called The Hunger Games.
This film is based on 2 of the characters called Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark, who survive the
games and are the joint winners after refusing to kill one another. But on their way to leaving the
battle area they get a week before hand in luxury where they are fed 5 course meals and have
training as well as large houses to stay.
Representation of Teenagers
Katniss Everdeen is one of the tributes who are from district 12; she is represented as very shy and
innocent at the start of the film where she is a nervous wreck and volunteering herself forward to
protect her sister Prim Rose Everdeen. When she is training however her abilities and knowledge is
shown where she is represented as strong and prepared ready to fight. She is very smart and has
excellent skills in archery, climbing and moving on foot. Her character is not the usual stereotype of
a woman who is looked at as weaker than a man and instead is much stronger than some of her
fellow tributes and her knowledge of understanding is much greater. Because her district is very
rural and poor she has had time to physically and mentally develop her skills. Katniss is also very
good at thinking outside of the box and using her ideas independently to achieve certain objectives.
Katniss is very brave and determined throughout the film for example where she is burned
extremely badly on her thy but still carries on doing what she has set herself. Her actions show her
personality where a lot of the time she takes risks and makes the decisions when around her fellow
tribute Peter Mellark. The audience would see her actions as strong and good and be impressed with
what she does, and possibly feel attached to her character. When she is hurt or scared Katniss never
shows much emotion and has a very strong emotional side and gets on with things, she is fast on the
ball of her feet all of the time reacting straight away to incoming danger. The camera angles used on
Katniss are close ups where her facials expressions and movement can be seen, 2 shots where she is
having a conversation with another tribute, bird eye shots above her to show the vast scale of
forestry around her compared to her being tiny but showing how much determination she has to
succeed in such a large area, and hand footage where the shots are jilted and not smooth filming to
show the panic and rush of her escaping the fireballs and collapsing trees around her. All of these
camera angles used on Katniss are Low angled shots to represent her as a powerful and strong
minded person, such as when she is being interviewed in front of the capitol she is seen from below
like she is being looked up at by the audience as they admire her.
Katnisss rival Cato however is represented as a very ignorant cocky, physically strong character. He
likes to hunt and when in battle doesnt care about killing another human. His emotional side isnt
shown much however can be looked at as weak because it is patched up by his anger and
determination. Cato isnt nice and is shown to the audience to make them think he is heartless and
represented at someone they despise and the stereotype of an evil person. The shots used on him
are medium and 2 shots which show him typically trying to kill the other tributes. Cato also is seen in
Low angled shots to show are he is very cocky and stronger than some of the other students. Cato is
represented as short tempered because he doesnt have the patience to wait which makes him look
weak compared to Katniss and Peeta who have much more sense and knowledge in what they do.
Cato is very similar to Flash Thompson from The Amazing Spider Man who is the school bully and
likes to intimidate people and make them look small and weak making Flash look big strong and
admirable. He is represented very similar to Cato because they both are short tempered and are
very muscular in their body build. The camera shorts used on Flash are also the same but include
close ups to show his anger and power over Peter Parker. The audience would look at Flash in the
same way but feel guilty for the victim of his actions which most of the time is Peter who sticks up
for himself but gets hurt by Flash.
Peter Mellark who is Katniss team mate in the Hunger Games in represented as strong and brave but
not stronger than Katniss who is very masculine. He is very caring towards Katniss and does things to
help other people. He is good at speaking and charming. His strongest skill is creativity, painting and
hiding, using these skills to watch the other tributes and stay safe. The audience would think of him
as nice and caring with a good personality trying to benefit others. He isnt very independent
however and is not as determined as Katniss.
Peter Parker from The Amazing Spider Man is the main character and is represented as being nerdy
and clever. He isnt however though a typical geek stereotype, he is shown as a nerd with a twist
who is adventurous and becomes the hero of the day, being strong and brave. Towards the end of
the film he is looked at as invincible and cant be stopped in his path but he is put to the test when
the world is danger. Peter is also represented as having a caring thoughtful side to him when he has
a romance with another school mate called Gwen Stacy which shows you a different side of him.
Peter is very much like Katniss is the way he thinks about things and is very determined to complete
tasks he sets himself except the fact that Katniss isnt a geek. High Camera shorts are used when
Peter is around bullies like Cato but when he is on his own or with Gwen the camera moves lower as
he is acts like he is actually in control of his own life. The basic camera shots 2 shorts, close ups and
long shots are included because he is a main character is seen talking to Gwen and Cato a lot. A
clever technique is used around Peter where a picture or prop is behind him in a scene to suggest
the Nerd he is represented as. The audience would see Peter Parker as a Geek with a twist who
becomes more popular through the film with a caring and kind personality who thinks about other.
Mise En Scene in the Amazing Spider Man
In the Amazing spider Man there are lots of props which reflect the cost of how much the film
budget is. Props such as the spider man costume which Peter Parker wears is blue and red focusing
on bright colours to attract the audience to him and make him stand out to the other actors in the
film. The school scene for example is very basic however with the classrooms set out in an American
style with some microscopes at the back, desks in front and stools. The lighting in the Amazing
spider Man varies with a lot of the film set in bright light or typically morning, but with the action
fighting scenes involving Spider Man usually at night.
Peters clothes are nerdy and dark with a brown coat and dark bag and trousers with black geeky
classes. He stands out among the other teenagers in the school as he doesnt wear bright clothes
and is positioned on the other side of the school when he is walking to represent him as strange and
not blend in with them. The audience dont notice this but would make them automatically think he
isnt a normal typical geek. Peters hair is brown and his style is spikey on top and brushed to the
side at the front which adds to his qwerky different unique look. He has a masculine but nerdy voice
because of the way in which he speaks and what he says a lot of the time relates to science and
equations.
Gwen Stacy is very much similar to Peter in their personalities and how they care for one another
which link to the romance between them. She is seen at school wearing fish tights up her legs with
black heels, as well a white jacket and black tight top with a black hairband. She also has very little
makeup on, to show her as a natural beauty with blonde and blue eyes which the audience
stereotype of teenage boys would find very attractive. Her voice is very soft and medium toned but
not too girly as she doesnt fit into that stereotypical dumb blonde category.
Non- diegetic sound is predominantly used throughout The Amazing Spiderman. It is upbeat and
sudden and pleasant to listen to which is mainly played over the typical action hero scenes where
Spiderman is saving the day. Diegetic sound is included however isnt used as much. Sounds of the
slamming of locker doors and background crowd voices and the bell to represent end of lesson.
The scenes in The Amazing Spider man are very different but using similar effective techniques to set
the mood and represent the characters in a certain way to the audience. The film is set in America,
the school scene is very basic and includes the things you would expect to see like lockers,
classrooms and an outside social area, but the different area of the school are used for different
events though the school day. They are very stereotypical for example the outside area is where
Flash Thompsons bullies kids most of the time where the extras are involved cheering and chanting
to make the fights more interesting. The classroom scene is where Gwen and Peter meet for the first
time where the romantic music is played and they first properly speak to each other.
When Gwen and Peter are together there is most of the time romantic smooth quite music in the
background to show that they are in love, whereas when peter is trying to save the world as spider
man there is loud fast action music to add a dramatic feel to it and represent Peter as a hero. The
music normally used is energetic and lively which can be noticed to start when Peter Parker turns in
to Spider Man, to show that violence and an important part of the film is about to happen. Calm
slow tracks are as well played in the scene where Peters uncle is killed to show how heartbroken he
is even though he doesnt show much emotion normally.
Mise En Scene in the Hunger Games
The props and scenery in the hunger games changed a lot throughout the film. The reaping scene
when the tributes are picked is very much minimalistic with very little props and lighting. This scene
is mostly made effective by pale makeup that all of district 12 wear to show there horror and scared
faces, whereas Effie Trinket is covered in make up with bright pink lipstick to show the difference
between the rich and the poor as well as showing the power the capital has over the districts. The
props used in this scene are ropes to keep the tributes in line, but without seating so they are forced
to stand showing respect. Two large clear bowls where the names are pulled out from and an old
brown table. The stage where the names are red from is positioned in front of an old brown
Victorian house with lots of leaves and ivory on it, that is gloomy and eerie which helps to show how
the effort made by the capital is represent as very little. High Angled shots are used to show the
tributes in the reaping scene to represent them as powerless and over ruled by the capitol.
Katniss Everdeen wears very poor and rural clothes when you first see her at her home district in
ragged old clothes that look much worn. When you see her in the reaping scene she has similar
clothes on but looks more from the 1930s war, which are very basic, plain and are industrial. The
third time you see her she is dressed by her stylist Sinner ready for her interview, she is wearing
very bright expensive clothes made to look like fire using red, orange and black, she is represented
her as much more fierce and powerful. Katniss has a very masculine voice which is deeper than a
normal girls voice and a lot of the time has very serious facial expressions and doesnt smile.
Peter Mellark is wears very similar clothes to Katniss Everdeen as he is from the same district
represented as coming from a very poor background. His voice is deep however is led most of the
time in the film by the other tribute Katniss.
In the Hunger Games, the reaping scene the sound is non-diegetic through the whole scene with
sounds only from the characters mainly Effie Trinket who reads out the name of the tributes, Katniss
who is upset and volunteers for her sister Prim. Also echoing sound of the microphone as well as
Effies hand rummaging in the bowl to pick a card. This is done purposely to make it look realistic so
that every sound you hear is natural and not added over the film so that it makes an eerie effect.
Although right at the end of the scene diegetic sound is used when Peter is picked a quite but slightly
dramatic music track is played which makes it more interesting.
Elliot Woodward C1 Media