Stranger Things & The Killing

 The mark scheme

Level 4 comprehensive response- Show knowledge of the source and the context

Level 3 Adequate response

Level 2 Minimal response

Level 1 No response

For the January exam we will be asked a 30 mark question on elements of theoretical framework plus context, 

1. What was the first episode of stranger things called?- the Vanishing of will byers

2. Who wrote it?- the Duffer brothers

3. What was the release date?- august 15th

4. Which film company distributed it?- 21 laps Netflix

5. Which ear was it set in?- the 1980s

6. Can you name any historical events which are represented in Stranger Things?- The red scare

How characters are represented 

Joyce Bryce- Shown as a matriarch, Slightly unhinged and unreliable, Overprotective mother stereotype, Van Zoonens theory as she is viewed by the male characters as quite untrustworthy 

Dustin Henderson- A loveable innocent friend with a heart of gold and insanely loyal, his lack of front teeth are played laughs and make him seem more vulnerable and younger. The key example of a person in the buddy comedy genre 

Mike Wheeler- The main protagonist who is shown to be quite prone to anger compared to the rest of his friends, whilst also being loyal and caring about everyone including Eleven, clearly given some level of struggling in his character to make him more appealing. also shown to be a love interest early on for eleven.

Jim Hopper- shown to have a deeply traumatizing past as we first see him surrounded by alcohol bottles and clearly hungover, he starts off as a pretty carless officer. Shown to be the only character with a level of authority as the chief of police. Stuart halls theory of representation applies here as there is a large juxtaposition to his role and his personality.

DR Martin Brenner- We only see him for a few scenes in the first episode but from what we are shown with media language , music and appearances he is supposed to be the shows primary antagonist. Eleven is shown to have a connection to him referring to him as Papa and being more comfortable with him, however as he is the villain and Eleven is running from him it seems that the relationship is not an actual caring one.

Nancy Wheeler

Eleven

Will Byers

Lucas Sinclair

Steve Harrington

Johnathan Byers

Stranger Things S1 EP1

-Sci-fi elements with lab lights flickering

-From the horror setting to a suburban home 

-Cuts to the boys playing dungeons and dragons

-From the reactions of the boys you can tell their power dynamic in their friendship

-Father shown to be a quite carless person not showing his son and attention

The Demogorgon, it got me is a reference to later in the show

-The bikes they ride are a clear reference to E.T

-The lack of imagery of the beast chasing Will adds to the fear of the unknown

-The lack of any authority figures in Will's house shows a sense of loneliness and fear of abandonment

-Creature is clearly supernatural as its control over electrical appliances are shown and its ability top disappear and reappear wherever it pleases

-Cut to Hopper surrounded by beer passed out on the couch light a cigarettes' on his balcony, he is clearly loosing hair and has an undesirable physique, showing him as carless and untrustworthy

-Links to the idea that adults are untrustworthy

-We see the Byers household where it is shown to be hectic with both adults working long shifts and neither knowing where Will is

-When the boys are at school we see that they are bullied for their differences, where Dustin is mocked for his lack of teeth and Lucas is racially abused

-Elements of the romance genre with Nancy and Steve

-Steve is shown to be quite carless and laid back and not caring about whatever Nancy says

-Hopper arrives at the police station and is shown to be completely carless and would rather joke on with all the other cops

-Joyce comes in hysterical after not knowing where Will is for a few hours

-First look at DR Brenner and we enter into the lab and see the growth. Intertextual referenced to ghostbusters and more elements of the Sci-fi genre 

-Distrust of the government

-Eleven is shown to be nervous, deprived and vulnerable as well as somewhat feral with her face being covered in dirt 

-She is mistaken for a boy by Benny , who is originally shown to be quite aggressive however quickly changes when he sees how in need she is

-The boys seem to have a good relationship with their teacher as he shows of AV equipment, further showing their Buddy comedy ties

-Hopper is shown to be quite aggressive to begin with 

-Flashback to an interaction between Joyce and Will showing us there strong bond

-Many intertextual references top horror movies and horror characters

-Benny feeds Eleven and begi9n asking her questions, making him seem more of a caring individual

-First element of Eleven's powers are shown where she stops a fan, more supernatural elements and further dividing her from the norms of a female in shows

-They find Will's bike in the middle of the woods before we cut to several people in a room listening to phone conversations, showing that the government is on to them and attempting to cover something up