Sherlock analysis
- 1. Sherlock – Sherlock meets Irene Costume o At the beginning of the scene we see Irene wearing no clothing, which shows that the character feels powerful and strong as she doesn’t need any items of clothing to intimidate people she comes in contact with (including Sherlock and Watson). o Irene also wears high heels although we do not see them on her feet, only when she is taking them off. She is trying to use the high heels as an advantage over Sherlock to show that she has more power over him, but when Sherlock starts to retaliate and Irene realises that her intimidation tactics against Sherlock aren’t working she removes them and becomes more cooperative with Sherlock’s questions. o When we first see Sherlock within the scene he is wearing quite a few layers (shirt and long coat) as he is trying to hide information from Irene and feels that if he wears more layers than she cannot read him like he can with other people he meets. Sherlock is quite a closed character as seen by the many layers he wears, whereas Irene is more of an open character and so doesn’t feel the need to wear layers as she isn’t afraid of what people will think of her. o Dr. Watson, similar to Sherlock has a couple of layers to his outfit including a shirt and a coat which also shows that he is quite a closed character and could feel vulnerable and worry about what people may be able to deduce about himself. Dialogue o Sherlock has a monotone voice whereas Irene has more emotion to her lines. This is something that usually helps to define a male (and usually stronger character) against the
- 2. female character who is usually portrayed as the weaker gender, although this doesn’t affect the power authority between Sherlock and Irene as Irene is just as quick with her come backs as Sherlock. o Within the scene Sherlock speaks very quickly compared to Irene, especially when he’s talking about the case Irene mentions. This Sherlock is trying to show that he is clever and that he can see through Irene’s usually façade of wearing no clothes to get to her victims. Although Sherlock isn’t dazed too much when Irene isn’t wearing any clothes his speech becomes a lot quicker and fluent when she is wearing his coat, which shows he feels in charge because she accepted his offer of his coat. o Irene is more suggestive than Sherlock, something he chooses to pick on and be cruel to her about. Props o The use of the sofa as a form of interrogation. As when Sherlock arrives he is sat down and is answering the questions that Irene is asking him but when Irene swaps places with Sherlock, he begins to question Irene and she answers his questions. The difference in height at this point is a good way to differentiate between who in the scene has the power as it changes so regularly. o Guns – held by the two men who come down the stairs = terror/male dominance/enemy. Lighting o The whole scene is quite brightly lit to contrast to the darker clothing items that the characters are wearing until the point where the two gunmen come down the stairs. They come down
- 3. from the dark into the lighter lit hallway, which shows that these characters are the enemy and are here to cause a problem with the other characters. Camera work o When Sherlock is sat on the sofa and is being “interrogated” by Irene we see a high angle from the side and sometimes an over the shoulder shot from Irene to show at that moment in time she has the power and is asking the questions. Although this does swap during the scene and Sherlock begins to “interrogate” Irene. Although when Sherlock is asking the questions he seems to be more relaxed as he is using all the space within the room whereas Irene tried to use being right in Sherlock’s face as a form of dominance. The change between the camera angles and levels clearly shows the tactics each character is trying to use to outsmart each other within the scene. Editing o Quick/fast paced editing when Sherlock becomes more comfortable in his surroundings and with Irene – Rhythmic relationship which is also accompanied by the quiet violin music in the background, as the music picks up so does the tempo of the shots. Music o The violins backtrack for the scene is important to telling the viewer when the scene is becoming tenser between the two characters as we hear higher pitched notes. The high pitch of the violin can be heard when Sherlock is interrogating Irene for
- 4. the first time as well as when the fire alarm goes off and the action is picking up. Colour o Irene although wearing no clothes, is wearing red high heels which are accompanied by red lipstick and nail varnish which we would associate with evil or the enemy of the scene. o The two gun men wear all black whereas the main characters all have another colour to accompany this (such as white) which shows that the men are not to be messed with and mean business. Power/gender and how it’s represented within the clip o Irene’s power/authority over Sherlock is shown by the high angle looked at Sherlock as he is sat down on the sofa. The character of Irene feels comfortable and of higher authority in her own home, which is why she doesn’t feel the need to wear any clothes but this doesn’t affect Sherlock which is when we see Irene remove her high heels and put on Sherlock’s coat, as if to say that she has given up trying to intimidate him and will answer his questions. o Irene uses her sexuality/body to overpower men, which doesn’t work on Sherlock who retaliates with his words. o Men catering to women – Sherlock gives Irene his coat. o Sherlock dominated Irene towards the end of the scene as he made her put a coat on and tell him where she was hiding her safe. o Irene removes her high heels – she is removing her power/authority/femininity.