CUFFS Q3

HOW FAR DOES THE EXTRACT TRY TO CREATE A SENSE THAT IT IS PORTRAYING 'REAL LIFE?'


In this extract, we can see that some scenes try to create a sense that portrays real life.
An example of this happening in the extract, is when the extras get involved and get scared. In the extract, we see that when the police officers catch the criminals' breaking into the shop, they tell the extras to get away from the site to avoid any danger put towards them. After this, they start screaming, getting low and running away. This shows us how frightened they really are which also shows a sense of realism and how real the scene is.

Another example that shows how realistic the scene is, is the clothing the police and criminals' are wearing. This is an example of mise-en-scene as clothing is to do with the set. The police wear their uniforms and the criminals' wear dark black clothing with balaclava which is the stereotypical clothing for them. This shows a sense of realism as this is what we imagine them in and what we think of if they get mentioned, and that is what they show on the screen to us.

We also hear the sirens when they the police officers are in their cars on their way to the crime scene. This is one of the sounds that we hear that show some realism as when police officers need to get to the crime scene as soon as possible, they would put their sirens on so people can hear them and so the police can get through any traffic. This happens in the show as well because we can hear the sirens in one of the scenes when they are in their cars so this shows that they are trying to make the show as realistic as possible by using most features police officers would use.

A final example that shows the realism of the show is the timing that it would be on TV. The watershed time is 9pm which means that any shows aired on TV from 9pm and onwards would not be suitable for children. The show 'Cuffs' was aired on TV every week at 9pm. This tells us that this show is not suitable for young children to be watching on their own. In the extract, there is a scene where we see a group of 2-3 armed robbers, breaking into a shop and stealing different items. Parents wouldn't want their children to be seeing this, so that they don't do it themselves when they are older because they saw someone else do it. This shows a sense of realism because in real life, if there was a crime scene during the day, then police would tell everyone to clear the area as they don't wasn't anyone to get hurt and sometimes children are told to get away as well. The violence and swearing shows that the show is on at the correct time of night.

In conclusion, I feel that the extract does try really hard to create a sense that is portraying real life and I think that it does very well as nearly everything we see on screen about police officers, police scene etc, is done in real life the same way.