Hotel Babylon – How is the representation of ethnicity constructed in the extract?
This extract is largely based on ethnicity and cultural background as it is based on the story of immigrants, who are mainly of a black ethnic background, working in the hotel and the immigration officers, generally of a white ethnic background, trying to find them. This representation of ethnicity and the way in which it is constructed is shown significantly through the use of sound, camera work, editing and mise en scene.
At the beginning of the extract, we see the immigration officers approaching the hotel reception in order to locate the immigrants. The police officers are white and are all very well dressed, which shows their level of authority. At this point, the music is a high intensity and the footstep sounds added help to add anxiety and panic of who is approaching. A ticking sound could be showing that the time is decreasing for the immigrants and showing that they need to hide and it also shows the power that the officers have over everyone. The camera angles used here involve a lot of close ups and zooming into close ups, this again, shows the authority and perceived importance of the officers. In terms of editing, there are many shots and a motivational shot is used to build tension and create an atmosphere. At this stage of the extract, the mise en scene shows a busy scene with many people involved, this also creates an atmosphere of panic and emphasizes the importance that the immigrants get away.
During the next few scenes, some of the people have been warned that the immigration officers are at the hotel and they have to pass the message to the immigrants so that they can hide. The man who passes on the message is of a black ethnic background and he is very well dressed, implying to the audience that he is important in the hotel and perhaps in charge, this goes against the general stereotypes of black people. The need to tell everyone what is happening means that very fast paced editing is used and a blur is created. The fast editing shows the desperation of the hotel workers as it emphasises their determination to hide everyone. Authority is then shown through the use of camera angles; the camera quickly pans downwards when informing the lady in charge of the immigrants what is happening, this implies that perhaps she is classed as less important than the other workers. The same music is used throughout most of the extract but with varying paces and volumes, at this point it is very fast and louder than in other parts to show the little amount of time available and therefore the rush that is being created. In these scenes, the mise en scene changes a lot as shots are taken from a variety of rooms and places inside the hotel. Therefore showing that there are many emotions at once among different people and depending on their situation.
Next, we see the immigrants all being rushed into a small room to hide, the mise en scene here is very plain and this could be used to show that they are seen to be less important by the officers. Here, a sense of calm falls upon the room for a split second until the lady in charge notices that one man is missing, the atmosphere then returns to panic and despair hope that their friend is safe. The camera then slowly pans up the missing friend and the slow paced shots show that he is in his own world and is completely oblivious to what is going on. The camera then skips back to the immigrants in the room. The music is slower at this point and this emphasizes the binary opposite of the British officers and the foreign immigrants as the music is always much faster when the scene is focused on the officers.
In the next scene we see a shot of the missing immigrant worker with the officers in an opening lift behind him, he is still unaware of what is going on at this point. The officer walks out onto a red carpet which shows his perceived importance. The shots are quicker when the officer is walking after they have caught the immigrant to show is power over the immigrant. When the worker falls over his hoover the shot focuses on this to make it obvious that he has been caught. In terms of the mise en scene, it is very basic in the hotel hallways and this could link to the kind of lives the immigrants are living. Also, the colour red appears again on the man’s boiler suit, as it has done subtly throughout the extract, and this infers danger which links well to what is happening. The main boss acts very much at this point as if he thinks of himself to be far superior to the immigrant and this is shown in the style of shots used and then emphasized when the camera pans down, as he looks down, towards the workers abandoned hoover as though he is metaphorically looking down on the man. Emphasizing that at this point the significance of ethnicity, this is because the foreign immigrants left in the room hiding feel terrified and almost as if their time is up, whilst the British officers just feel more empowered.
In the next scene, we see the man who was caught being taken away by the officers, as he is dragged through the main reception, we see other people look on and beg for them to let him go, whilst realizing that they can’t do anything about it. The reception is very busy at this point and has an exotic feel to it which shows the variety of races present in the hotel. This is also shown as we can clearly see a range of people from different cultural backgrounds, and a typical Italian waiter which shows diversity and equality, promoting the fact that the hotel welcomes all races.
The following few scenes show the arrested man’s friends and colleagues in sorrow and emptying his locker, the camera shot briefly shows us a poster of his national football team which says to the audience that he is proud of his background. The music at this point is very slow and sad, to perhaps show that the colleagues of the arrested man are reflecting on the recent events and feeling deep sadness for their friend but also a sense of relief that they are safe themselves.
In the final scenes of the extract, we see the camera panning round the canteen to show and emphasize on the fact that the hotel is home to a wide range of nationalities. However, everyone is sitting at separate tables with other people from their respective nationalities; this follows the stereotype that ethnic groups stick together. The music at this point reflects the overall mood running through the hotel. There is loud conversation however at some of the tables and then it goes much quieter when the camera gets to the table with the man and woman and this represents their ethnicity and the fact that they are praying. The camera work used here concentrates on the eye contact that the two workers are giving each other to perhaps show their relationship or that they are sharing the same feelings about the day’s events.
Overall, ethnicity is presented in many ways throughout the extract; sometimes more obviously than others, and it is made clear that the hotel is full of a very wide range of ethnicities and cultural backgrounds.
