Audience Theory- Hypodermic Needle 'City of God' and 'Scarface'

Tyree

Task 3.2

Hypodermic Needle Model

'City of God' and 'Scarface'

The hypodermic needle model is an audience theory suggesting that an intended message from the media is directly received and accepted by the receiver (the audience). We can apply this theory to two extracts, one from the Brazilian film 'City of God' and 'Scarface'.

City of God

The extract from this film featured the main antagonist, Lil' Ze horrifically torturing two young boys and wannabe up and coming gangsters. He backs them up into a corner and shoots them both in the feet, he then forces a third boy to choose and kill one of them. I found this particular scene to be darkly comic because of the sound of what the scene is like if you describe it with words (to me, anyway) but when watched on screen, then I see why this scene can be deemed very disturbing to any viewer. The actual film itself also features a 'nature vs nurture' psychology of Lil' Ze, you see, he was born and brought up in a 'favela' (which is the slums) and violence is the only thing that he knows, so naturally, Lil' Ze developed into a dangerous drug kingpin and crime lord.

The way that the film- makers shot this scene (and the film) was through the use of shaky cam; which is a cinematography technique where the camera is hand held, creating a realistic and gritty tone. This is mainly used in action films for dramatic effect, but when it is used for films like this, I think it enhances the look and tone of the film. It makes a documentary feel and makes the film seem very realistic, which is good when you want to make the audience feel tense.

With this being a film from Brazil, I don't think many people would be affected by this film and told to kill in the English speaking countries like the US when it was released. I think that this film would have been more affective to Brazilian audiences, due to the harsh reality of an otherwise fictitious film, also the film was completely shot in a real favela to add to the realistic tone.

Scarface

The extract from this film was the entire final shootout scene from the end of the film, this is when Tony is being attacked by several rival gangsters and he is jacked up on cocaine, and starts to go on a violent rampage. Unlike the audience members from when the film was initially released, I didn't find this scene very disturbing or anything, but I do see why it sparked some controversy. I think this scene in particular was a lot of fun, it featured very cathartic and over- the- top violence which just added onto the action packed excitement of the film. This scene has the stylised sensibility of an 80's action movie which contrasts compared to the rest of the film which is very dark and serious. 

The film was shot and edited in a very 80's cheese way, there is a lot of smoke filling the scene within the camera shots and the blood effects in the film are very over the top, quite like an overly violent cartoon. Every time somebody is shot it seems like that the bullets explode once they hit the persons' body. The scene takes itself very seriously which, to me just adds on to the fun and enjoyment of the scene.

Me personally, don't find this scene disturbing in any way, mainly because I have watched a lot of violent action and horror films over the years, so I am desensitised to when it comes to film violence and I think nothing of it when I see it. I don't think that the 'hypodermic needle model' works particularly well with this extract because this film is very cheesy and not at all that disturbing. 'City of God' on the other hand is a bit more possible because of the ultra realistic tone of the film.