Ethnicity in Hotel Babylon

Ethnicity in Hotel Babylon

The clip begins with an establishing shot show a smartly dressed man doing his day to day routine at work. The male is a black male but does not follow the stereotypical view that many people hold towards black people. This is shown through his costuming, the fact that he is wearing a suit and the fact that he appears to be very kind and caring. However another male then enters the scene and this character seems to conform to the stereotypes that many people have about black people. This is shown through the way he speaks as he tends to speak using slang and the fact that he talks about drugs. The men contrast each other from the way that they speak, one very formal the other very informal, to their hair ,one is short and the others hair is in plaits. Shot reverse shot is used to show the conversation going on between the 2 characters. Their facial expression also add to the conversation but also how the characters feel it is obvious that the man in the suit is uncomfortable with what the other man is talking about and does not really want to be involved in the conversation that is going on as it is about a part of his life he is obviously trying to forget due to how different the men are from each other. The costumes that both the characters are wearing also links to the fact that they are either conforming or opposing the stereotypes applied to their ethnic group. The man in the suit is represented positively because he looks very professional and is giving people the opinion that he has worked hard to get away for the stereotypes that everyone has about his ethnic group whereas the other character is conforming to the stereotype that people have about his ethnic group meaning he is negatively represented.

In the second narrative introduces 2 female characters, they are shown working as cleaners which many people associate as a job that many foreign people hold. This is a negative representation of them as not all foreign work in the service industry.  As they begin to speak and two foreign accents can be heard clearly showing the audience their ethnicity. One of the ladies is very nervous compared to the other one suggesting that one is used to the situation that they are both in whereas the other is not. Multiple shots are used to give the impression that the cleaners are doing something that they should not be, something sexual, this is shown through the medium close up of the man in a dressing gown sitting on the bed and the close up of the money. The fact that one of them runs out of the room shows her positively as she is leaving the stereotypes behind and does not want to be seen as all the other people that fall into her ethnic group however the fact that the other maid stays into the room shows that she is happy to falling into that ethnic group as she wants the money due to the kind of job she is currently employed in. This is a negative representation as it shows the women to be so desperate for money that she will do anything to get a bit extra. The location and costuming reinforce that the women are still at work due to the fact that it is set in a hotel and are both still wearing their uniform

The third narrative code is introduced through a conversation between a 2 smartly dressed characters one male and one female, their conversation appears to be about other workers at the hotel, the female character appears to have a higher status than the male character because she tell him that he is worrying to much showing that she has the power over him but also that she is not worried about the other workers situation. When they enter both chefs are working on different sides of the room and are wearing different colours, one is wearing white while the other is wearing black, this reinforces the fact that they don’t get along and that they don’t want to be in each other’s company. When the chef in the black outfit speaks a foreign accent can be heard this shows that he is from a different county however when the chef in the white speaks a British accent can be clearly heard. The chefs appear to get along with each other while the two authority figures are in the room but as soon they leave both the chefs begin arguing. The foreign chef appears to be more dominance in the kitchen due to the fact the smartly dressed women calls him ‘Mr’ as a sign of respect.  The fact that they start arguing represents both the ethnic groups in a negative way due to the that they argue and makes them look very argumentative and difficult to work with which a stereotype that many people have about working with foreign people.  The close up of the knife in the foreign chefs hands also has a negative effect on his ethnic group as they are then seen as violent and a thread as it is implied that he is threatening the other chefs life due to the fact that the chefs are in an argument when he picks up the knife.