Ryan Muldoon Q: Discuss the ways in which Plan B iLL Manors constructs the representations of collective identity.

. The establishing shot at the beginning of the video shows the setting where the video is based and where the actual film is based. The urban location in London provides the audience with an idea of what the film is about and the values that are going to be represented in turn. You see a large tower block with small maisonettes also in the shot and with the preconceived values that the general public hold against people from this kind of upbringing. The next shot then shows Plan B standing on the roof of a building, again, with the backdrop of suburban London providing the audience with an idea of where the video is set. You see him pretending to play the violin in time with the instrumental of the song and the way he plays it is almost in a way that mocks the upper class society. He seems to be pretending to play it in a very eccentric way and this could be seen as a way to mock people who look down on the lower classes of society with their very pompous mannerisms. In contrast to this, the next cut shot then shows him smoking a cigarette which then shows the audience the way he chooses to behave and again, puts this lower class stereotype into perspective with another mid shot cut into that showing a group of stereotypical youths wearing balaclavas and looking generally very intimidating. The music video then changes from footage of Plan B and the youths in the video to an animation, basically putting his opinions into a more simplistic form. He speaks about going on an urban safari which has negative connotations related with people from a poorer upbringing, saying how they are almost compared to animals, with the views being that of upper class politicians with no real concept of how people with low income households are brought up. He then makes a reference to a David Cameron policy that talks about how he had an idea where people would see someone who the general public would refer to as a chav or hoodie and for them to give them a hug and Plan B refers to this very sarcastically and states how he believes politicians are stupid and have no real sense of how people tend to behave. There are also many uses of high angle shots, one in particular showing a youth on a balcony, holding a can of beer whilst spitting over the balcony and the idea of this shot is to show how people tend to be intimidated, with the high angle shot used as a way of showing the youth to be dominant. You also see this person in particular dressed in a way that people do tend to relate to how a criminal would dress, wearing a black beanie and a tracksuit top and again, this is so that the audience can make the link between their stereotypes and the ideas pushed forward in the video. There is also a very effective use of lighting within the music video when you see Plan B and quite a large group of youths with him. You see quite a bright red light and this almost makes it look as if a flare has been lit or a fire has been started and this works well as again, this links to the fact how youths have this negative stereotype that when they are in large groups, they tend to misbehave and cause problems for the people around them and this is almost used as a way to show how when people to continue to push these values forward through the media, they end up conforming as a way to rebel against authorities and show that they do want to be heard. The lyrics throughout are also very effective because he says each line in an ironic way and does this to get across the stereotypes they feel people hold against them. For example, one of the lines are were all drinkers, drug takers which is used to show the audience that people will only end up conforming to these stereotypes when the media continue to force them upon people and again, is just another opinion of Plan Bs and what he believes people seem to think of the lower class society.

Ryan Muldoon You also see many children in the video and they are also used in the video to show how the stereotypes are not only held against the adults in this lower class society but the children and the upbringing that they have seems to also have negative stereotypes but by showing Plan B with a large group of people from a wide range of ages, it almost shows a familial bond and that when the media report negative reports about them, it only helps to bring them together and only reinforces their reasons for rebelling against the authorities. There is also a clip in the video showing John Prescott being egged by someone against his values and where as you would expect a politician to be quite reserved in this sort of situation, John Prescott actually reacts to this by punching the protestor in the face and this is also used as a way to show the audience that the representation of people in the media is largely influenced by people from a higher class and we do not tend to see this side of politicians, however, when it is the youth of society involved, it is instantly published in every tabloid newspaper and is used as a way to make out that the youth of today are bad people. There are also very effective uses of shot reverse shots showing how the authorities react to certain situations through violence, for example, when you see the Police Officer punch a protestor and this is then edited so that you then see the youth reacting through vandalism and violence which again allows the audience to put into perspective how people are portrayed through the media. A lot of close ups are also used within the music video and one which I believed was very effective was the one in which Plan B actually sticks his two middle fingers up towards the camera and this is almost used as a way to not only show rebellion but shows his general opinions towards politicians and the aristocrats in society who push forward the same values and is quite a clear message as to what he believes.