Introduction
Codes and conventions refer to the symbolic, written, audio and visual techniques used to pass a given message in artwork (Fenich, 2008). In the movie, “10 Things I hate about you”, it is fundamental to note that the characters, Bianca and Cameron have been used to show how codes and conventions can be used to define the character and role of movie characters in a movie.
Bianca
Bianca is a charming, pretty young girl in college and a sister to Kate. She is used in scene development in the movie as she appears in most of the scenes in the movie. If not, she is being talked about in the different scenes. She plays a big role in the plot development because she contributes so much in the “10 Things I hate about you” as she acts as the hunted girl.
In the scene acted at the courtyard, it is fair to assert that Bianca is admirable. “What is there is a snotty little princess wearing a strategically planned sundress to make guys like us realizes we can never touch her,” Michael says this in a close-up camera shot. The close-up shot is meant to show the facial expressions that Michael puts to show how pretty and admirable Bianca is. The costume that she wears in this scene is also meant to show how admirable she is. (Elliot, 1834).
Bianca expresses innocence and honesty in the classroom scene during her French tuition by Cameron. The extreme close-up that zooms in Bianca and Cameron in the study room shows the innocence and honesty that is displayed on Bianca’s face when she says, “My dad just came up with a new rule. I can date when my sister does”. She says this innocently to Cameron when he puts to her that he knows that her dad does not allow his daughters to date.
In this scene, the facial expressions are exposed vividly with the support of music sound effects that play alongside to show how honest and innocent she is. She is also dressed in simple attire that shows how much she does not know about dating (Bryant, 1996). Her facial expressions and tonal voice reveal her desire to start dating if only her sister dates. Bianca is also depicted as protective and supportive, this is in the fighting scene where Joey punches Cameron, Bianca helps in the fight and they beat him up with Cameron leaving him in pain.
The full camera shots on them are meant to show the support and efforts that she puts in order to assist Cameron beat Joey for punching Cameron, for hurting her sister Kate and for paying Patrick to woo her sister. The aggressive sound effects in this scene are meant to show the efforts put to overpower an enemy by Bianca (Gross & ward, 2000).
Cameron
Cameron can be said to be keen. This is evident in the Courtyard scene where he keenly looks at Bianca. He stares at her and says, “Look…look at the way she smiles, and look at her eyes, man. She’s totally pure. I mean you are missing what’s there”. He says this to Michael as the camera takes a close-up view of him and Bianca to show how he is keen on admiring Bianca’s beauty (Bangash, 2000). The sound effects in this scene also show the keenness in the facial expressions worn by Cameron (Fenich, 2008). Cameron is also depicted as being patient in the study hall scene with Bianca. Bianca says in French, “Let me ask you a question, Cameron.
When are you going to ask me out?” This is a clear indication of Cameron’s patience in asking Bianca out. The camera shots on Bianca and Cameron show how Bianca’s patience has accredited to his dream. The burst shot focused on him alone shows how happy he is and the long shot focused on Bianca as she walks away from him shows how she is tired of his patience (Mcmillin, 2006).
Conclusion
In conclusion, it is fair to conclude that the codes and conventions used in this movie are fundamental in defining the character traits of the characters and in the revelation of their roles in the movie. It depicts the character of each actor in the real self and it gives him individuality in the movie.
References
Bangash, M. Y. H. (2000). Structural detailing in steel: a comparative study of British, European and American codes and practices. London, Thomas Telford.
Bryant, J. M. (1996). Moral codes and social structure in ancient Greece: a sociology of Greek ethics from Homer to the Epicureans and Stoics. Albany, N.Y., State University of New York Press.
Elliot, J. (1834). The American diplomatic code embracing a collection of treaties and conventions between the United States and foreign powers: from 1778 to 1834. Washington, Printed by J. Elliot, jun.
Fenich, G. G. (2008). Meetings, expositions, events, and conventions: an introduction to the industry. Upper Saddle River, N.J., Pearson/Prentice Hall.
Gross, L. S., & Ward, L. W. (2000). Electronic moviemaking. Australia, Wadsworth.
Mcmillin, S. (2006). The musical as drama: a study of the principles and conventions behind musical shows from Kern to Sondheim. Princeton, N.J., Princeton University Press.