Hotel Babylon essay

 

In this Extract from ‘Hotel Babylon’ Ethnicity and Gender is represented in a clear and distinct manner. The scene shows a group of illegal immigrants who work in a hotel hiding when people from the immigration office come to inspect the hotel. In this scene people of races other than caucasian/english are represented to be less desirable and lacking in power in the viewpoint of the immigration officers. Women are shown to be strong heroes who are not afraid to say what needs to be said, and are not in the least afraid of those who try to oppose them. 

This extract contains many wide angle shots to show the variety of people and the location, which is obviously a hotel. Throughout the entire scene the camera is hand held in order to create a feeling of instability and uncertainty. At the beginning there is a low angle shot looking up at  the immegration officer as he walks in the door. This makes him seem intimidating and powerful. This is followed by a high angle shot looking down at one of the staff who happens to be black and the immegration officer casts a downward glance at him immediately showing the readers that this man is prejudiced and makes assumptions about people he doesn’t know. This high and low angle contrast is repeated when the officer finds Abraham vacuuming in the hallway, and the men behind him tackle him (wide shot). This once again shows that this man has unnecessary contempt for immigrants.  When Jackie is leading all the immigrants to hide there is a shot of them running down the hall and into a room through some bars. This shot emphasises the fact that these people are not free and are not welcome in the country they are trying to make a living in. Finally, when the staff are hiding in the cupboard there are several close up and over the shoulder shots that create a feeling of intimacy. The audience can empathise for these people who are worried that their livelihood is being threatened. 

There is diegetic sound playing in the beginning that sounds like elevator music. This sets the scene as the location is a hotel, and makes the audience feel at ease to begin with. The receptionist’s tone of voice is cool calm and collected even though she knows exactly what is going on, the gently gives a secret signal to one of the staff to go hide everyone. Jacky and the staff in danger however, are frantically shouting and crying in other languages. In the cupboard one can hear people whispering and breathing quickly. This adds to the feeling of urgency in the scene and once again intentionally  puts the audience in a position where they feel for these people and want them to stay hidden by the seemingly heartless people who are after them. The immigrations officer hardly says a word after his brief conversation with the receptionist, which shows that he feels completely indifferent to everyone at the hotel and has no sympathy for their situation whatsoever. 

At the beginning when the officers first arrive, the pace of editing is slow. This creates a sense of everything being normal, but really the audience knows that there is something wrong under the surface. As the scene gets more chaotic and hectic, the cuts become shorter and makes the scene feel like it is going faster. There is also use of shot reverse shot when  Jackie is speaking to Adam as he helps the lady who faints, and a match in action when Jackie opens the door. Overall there is continuity editing which helps create a seamless flow of action in the scene and increases verisimilitude which makes the audience believe in the world of the film more.

The immigrations officer walks in and he is wearing a suit, and he has several men walking behind him,  which shows that he is a person with power. The Lady at the reception desk is wearing all white and has blonde hair. She is the one who signals for the staff in danger to hide. This therefore presents white people as people with power and authority.  All of the immigrants are wearing cleaners clothing, chefs aprons and maid outfits. This shows that they have been put in positions at the hotel that require little to no skill. This point is further emphasised when Adam is able to help the lady who fainted. He was a doctor once and therefore knew exactly what to do. He even states “I wasn’t always a cleaner” proving that a lot of the people that have to hide are actually highly qualified but are overlooked because of where they come from.  Adam is a good example of a countertype, he is wearing a cleaners outfit and is seemingly normal, but he is actually a highly qualified individual working in a low skill job, which is rare in regular circumstances.

In conclusion, people of cocasion descent are presented to be in high positions of work and authority, despite people of other races being just as qualified as them. Jackie is a strong altruistic leader who is responsible for getting everyone to safety, and yet the lady and the front desk has a higher position than her even though Jackie is the one who is prepared to stand up for what is right. Women are presented as strong and capable people who are prepared to fight injustice and overcome challenges with persistence and empathy.