Spooks - Representation of Ethnicity

In this short clip from Spooks, it shows the character Danny getting killed by a terrorist.  Ethnicity is represented unconventionally in this short clip. The stereotypical image of a young black man is not represented by Danny. The stereotypical image of a young black man is completely different to Danny. The perception we make of a young black man is that of a working class background, someone who looks quite strong and muscular. They are also often seen to wear quite loose clothing, similar to rappers like 50 Cent and Jay-Z and also wear in your face jewelry. With role models such as these rappers, we often find young black men to be associated with crimes, in gangs. In America 1/4 black men are in prison. People are often intimidated by young black men, mainly because of there “couldn’t care” attitude and the choice of language they use, and the sheer loudness of there voices. 

Danny is the complete opposite of this, and in some cases represents the stereotype of a young British man. This stereotype is that of quite a posh person, who has a very serious attitude. They tend to dress in suits and look quite suave. This is similar to Danny. In the short clip he is seen to be quite well spoken and is dressed in a suit. He looks to have a good job, working for MI5 and actually says to the terrorist “If I’d have been born somewhere else I could have been like you”. This shows that as a young black man, he has probably had quite a good upbringing and has worked hard. Danny is also seen to be quite wise and intelligent, which is not stereotypical of the black man. He is also religious, as he seems to mutter a prayer during the confrontation. While speaking to the terrorist, he seems quite proud and brave, as he stands up for himself knowing that he could be killed at any moment. So in this scene ethnicity is represented in an unconventional way, as it does not abide the normal stereotypes.

The terrorist who held Danny also unconventionally represents the stereotype of terrorism. Nowadays we consider terrorists to be Muslim. We also expect them to looks quite rough, with scruffy facial hair and turbans. Whereas in this short clip The terrorist looks neat. We can tell that he is from the middle east but he looks well kept, with slicked back hair and a suit. In the background of the scene one of the terrorist guards on the door does represent the stereotype of a young black man, as he is dressed in loose clothing, looks quite tall and muscular and is wearing a flat-cap.

The mise en scene in the clip creates tension, and emphasizes the bad situation Danny and his colleague are in. The room has quite neutral colours, with dark shadows being a stand out in the room. Also after Danny is shot, colours are added into the scene, which could represents the blurry picture you get when crying. The music is also very haunting and depressing. It adds to an eerie affect and builds to create more tension. There is a drum beat throughout the scene and around halfway through, middle eastern prayer music is heard, relating to the terrorist now being in control of the situation.

Overall I think that ethnicity is represented in a very uncoventional way. Danny represents the stereotype of a young British man, which is also true for the terrorist.