Breaking Sterotypes ; The Social Network

There are many re-enforced stereotypes in teen movies such as the geek being a loser,  playing chess and dresses like a dork however there are some teen films that break the conventional stereotypes of different characters. This allows the teen film to be different but to see teen films in a new light and perspective for example The social network.

Characters 

The Social Network breaks the stereotypes by its characters and their personalities. Jesse Eisenberg who plays Mark Zuckerberg is established a non stereotypical geek who's friends are also 'losers' like him. The social network is set in Harvard one of the top universities in the word. Instead of the typical themed characters where they are outcasts and lonely, Mark has a girlfriend which we see in the first shots and instead of him being this shy quite type he is portrayed as a confident person through how he carries himself and how he speaks. Although this comes across as cocky, this personality is usually seen through the people who are higher up within the high school chain such as the preps.

Mes-En-Scene

Mes-En-Scene allows the audience to connect on a deeper level with the characters through lighting, costume, props and setting.

Within The Social Network the conventional costume of mark is broken. While nerds (intelligent people) are the people who wear smart clothes as they take everything seriously Mark is seen wearing slippers to a court case. within teen films we expect to see the intelligent one being dressed appropriately to the serious occasion however we see him in Loose jeans, jumper and slippers this suggests he is not taking this court case seriously. This breaks the conventional view.

Posture also allows the audience to see the characters personality. Going back to not taking the situation seriously by the picture above we can see the difference in hand gesture. Where the lawyers have their hand together to signify the hard work. On the other hand Mark's hands are dangling like he hasn't a care in the world which is portrayed throughout the film.

Cinematography

Cinematography is used to show the contrast in characters however  the use of cinematography allows the audience to see how the film breaks the stereotype. In The Social Network the shots with Mark are mostly two shots where as with other films such as '16 Candles' and '10 Things I Hate About You' we see there are many single shots to show isolation. The Social Network use two shots to show his not alone - he has friends and girlfriends. This establishes in this movie his the normal guy with the regular life shown by directors in other teen films.

Sound 

When it comes to sound we definitely see a difference in music compared to other teen movies. For example when his at his campus home the music is quite mysterious but we hear techno. The music reflects what his doing but does not reflect him as a person the music has different waves which connotes him hacking into other peoples surfers.  Within most teen based movies such as 'Sixteen Candles' they use music which reflects the characters personality. In the scene below we see the boy walking up to the girl however the first shot used is a tracking shot of his feet which shows mystery. The music used is also used in the film Star Wars. From this we can see which category of the social pyramid he fits under. Although the music signifies danger. Its almost like his taking the mick out of him.