A-Level Media Studies: BONUS SESSION 3 - Les Revenants key scene analysis

I pinched these off Jodie, and thanks to Luce and Sophie too for your excellent contributions!

camille coming home

character introduced by establishing montage of french alps
low-key natural lighting emphasises supernatural genre (not an explicit reference, making it subversive)
MES of middle class home e.g. photos on walls and suburban exterior- easily comparable to hawkins
julie lives a stereotypically working class home
diegetic knock on door, tracking shot follows mum out onto lowkey lit hallway, see hands gripping onto fridge - convention of horror genre
reaction shot of mum looking at camille's hands
hear a low drone sound
cuts to long shot of kitchen/living room - binary opposition as they are on different sides of the screen, life and death, reinforces middle class
2 simultaneous genres - reaction and soundtrack are horror, camille eating sandwich is teen drama,contrapuntal sound does not match up with what is being shown, unsettling
tracking shot walking down corridor positions audience with mum, camille asks to get her bathrobe, soundtrack speeds up (like heartbeat) and emphasises mother's stressful emotion, psychological horror as audience shares the same emotions as mum
scene reinforces hegemonic, middle class norms - whole cast is white

works as a carer - stereotypically female, MES of baggy clothes subverts this
long shot of julie sitting at bus stop - isolation and lowkey lighting is horror, audience relates to situation, MES of rains connotes misery and isolation (understand her character)
victor slowly walks up to bus stop - he is abject (he doesn't below there), repeated soundtrack connotes coming back to life
cuts to simon at the pub - appeals to younger female audience
frequently cuts from narrative to narrative - establishes a number of character arcs
cuts back to another binary opposition - opposite to camille, julie getting off bus
producers make it clear she is working class - walks through rough areas
lowkey lighting in her flat
shot of victor standing in garden - her calm response is subversive, shows she is level-headed, lots of characters to identify with
clothes are stereotypically masculine and nerdy - subverts feminine stereotypes
close up of holding hands positions audience with julie - preferred reading is that we find him creepy, maternal, proairetic code suggests that she will look after him, very unconventional
the show is exotic for british audience - all stereotypically french and attractive, french alps

for younger, female target audience
dead and alive - paranormal romance as lena fancies simon
window symbolises barrier between life and death - stereotypical symbolic code
simon knocks on door - adele reacts by screaming and crying, she is middle aged which provides the audience which relates to her with gratification, as younger man wants to be with her

both shows end on a closing montage which sums up the key scenes, characters and themes
explains that is it 4 years later
high-key lighting suggests this was when things were good
deliberately uncomfortable - whispering
relatable for younger, teenage audience
cross cutting between scenes - shows that the scenes are happening at the same time and makes it clear that they are different people
hot and cold lighting - sex scene is red, bus scene is blue
cut to black is symbolic of death
'le petit mort' - link between sex and death, camille gets up and starts screaming because she also feels it, it causes her to die
leaves the audience with lots of questions so they continue to watch
high production values - funded by french alps tourism