In this clip, I will be looking at its construction as a whole and how it links in regards to how it represents gender. Sound, Mise-en-scene, Editing and Cinematography have all been used by Davies to create a representation.
Our establishing shot is of the Master, in shallow focus so we can see only him in detail. He is on one of the main lines according to the rule of thirds, and already we can see that he is a dominant character, a stereotypical alpha male, as he demands the attention of the audience. Despite being out of focus, we can see the lift doors open and Martha, appearing very small in relation to the Master's head, stepping out. She is only a small thing compared to the Master visually, further asserting his dominance. This is a very stereotypical view of men and how they should act.
We appear to walk with Martha as she walks forwards, the camera moving in a tracking shot. The "spaghetti western" non-diegetic music suggests an almost typical western stand-off idea between the two characters. However, despite the inserts of her friends and family that have been edited in, Martha is shown ultimately to be alone and scared, almost in a little girl sense, as if she is going to get told off. The camera is tilted down with her as she kneels and, as the audience, we seem to be more on her side as we go down to her level. Her kneeling stance seems stereotypical. highlighting the dominance of men over women. It is also reminiscent of an execution, which is what the Master wants it to be. Once again, he is demonstrating his power, except this time over life and death.
The Master is further shown to be the dominant male as he is perceived from Martha's point-of-view at low angles. We hear him call things and people "children" or "child", as if he is the only adult in the room. To continue on with the sci-fi theme, we cut to shots of the Master's CGI rocket ships- edited and inserted in digitally after the filming had finished- as a voice over is heard. We also see a VFX (video effects) shot of the Earth with hundreds of metal spheres, with a chilling robotic tone to their voices. This continues the idea of him being the alpha male as we see a plan which we assume is too good to fail; however, since this is children's science fiction TV drama we would also assume that the "goodies" will prevail. The Master is in full control. The diegetic sound of the ticking clock is also indexical with the idea of villains, often counting down to some kind of bomb going off and also increasing the tension of the piece.
However, we suddenly have a close up of Martha's face, and her laugh seems to have been made louder in editing, so it is clearer that she is laughing at the Master. The use of quick cuts in the shot reverse shot editing demonstrates a slight change in power. Martha seems to be taking more of a dominant stand, which is uncommon as men are often portrayed as the more dominant characters, which we saw examples of during the clip. Through the use of flashback, signified through the quick fade-outs to white, and the flashback scenes shown in black and white, sepia tones, as well as the sci-fi swoosh sounds, we can see Martha's strength and belief in what she is doing, especially with her realisation of her love for the Doctor, shown through a mid-section shot. Although it could be argued that the love is more platonic, it is more stereotypical that the female friend will always fall in love with the male friend, so in this way Martha's strength despite the stereotypes of her gender is diminished slightly. Martha has been given a messenger-like role, almost like a disciple to the idea of the Doctor as a saviour from the tyranny of the Master. The symbolic disciple-like role is further highlighted through the slow-motion flashback that we see as Martha walks in the cold, her breath in the air, and the pained expression so obvious on her face. The pain the audience see demonstrates the pain she goes through for her love ad her beliefs. The fact that she is a woman does not change what she sets out to do, and demonstrates her in a stronger, more-empowered light, which is not particularly stereotypical.
We watch as the prayer-like muttering of the word "Doctor" becomes more intense as the soundtrack becomes ore orchestral and loud, in a huge crescendo. We see lots of quick close-up shots as people say the word, including the woman in red. We see her on the Master's side, and she is portrayed as a stereotypical trophy wife, to further highlight a stereotypically dominant idea of the Master. She is dressed in beautiful clothes, has blonde hair and is dolled up in a bit of make-up. This costume means we see her more through the "male gaze" than any other of the female characters. She has been quiet for the whole clip, and her stereotypical submissive nature juxtaposes with Martha's strong, non-stereotypical characterisation. The fact we hear her also saying the word, in a breathy voice especially to add to the idea of her being sultry and seductive, is used to highlight the strength of the Doctor over the Master.
With the visual effects of the white wave-like shield, the Doctor comes across in a Jesus-like way, as he seems to rise from the brink of death, much like Jesus did. The white colour here seems to be used as a sign of good and purity, and by having risen up to the sound of his name, he appears to be a saviour figure. The director chooses for the camera to tilt down, and our view is of the Master at more high angles, so that we look down on him with the Doctor. This demonstrates a shift in the power dynamic. The Doctor is now the dominant alpha male, and the Master is in the scared "little girl" stereotype that he put Martha in. This is also added by his screaming "it's not fair" like a spoilt brat, usually portrayed as girls, after they have had a toy taken away from them.
Throughout the clip gender is represented in many different ways. We originally see the Master as a dominant alpha male, but by the end he is presented as just a scared, little man. In almost the opposite way we see the disciple Martha become stronger and more convicted as time goes on, juxtaposing with the Master's stereotypical trophy wife who stays submissive and quiet, until the end where she begins to chant Doctor. We also see the rise of the Doctor as he becomes the dominant, alpha male, saviour character.
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