Les Revenants

 Stuart Hall argues that representation in media products will always make claims about realism. To what extent do you agree with this statement? Make reference to Les Revenants in your answer

Representation refers to the re-presentation of a place, a group of people or an event by the producer for the purpose of reflecting their ideology. In this essay, I shall argue that the producer of Les Revenants is presenting atypical and subversive representation in order to challenge the niche and specialised target audience of the show. I shall also argue that while the representation of gender in particular in Les Revenants is subversive, it also makes big statements about men and women are treated in real life. Les Revenants is a niche horror tv show set in rural France and produced by Canal+.

Hypereality refers to a representation that is more realistic and more relatable than the thing it is representing in real life. Typically film and media products are constructed through hyperreal representations. However, these representations typically do not portray real life, but instead represent a 'perfect' reality. Julie isa. character in Les revenants that challenges a number of stereotypical representations and expectations of how women should behave. For example, in the scene where she is followed by creepy child Victor (a typical horror film convention!), Julie is coded as not being hegemonically attractive. The MES of Julies oversized baggy clothing is subversive in the sense that it clearly does not sexualise her. Under her jumper she is wearing an oversized shirt, which has stereotypical connotations of masculinity. She is wearing no visible makeup, and her hair is messy and unkempt. By being coded this way, Julie is interestingly subversing the concept of the male gaze, and challening the idea that women serve a voyeuristic purpose for the assumed hetereosexual male audience. Julie's lack ofsexualisation is reinforced through the binary opposition constructed through her neighbour, who is represented in a stereotypically sexualised manner.  By challenging sexist representation of women, Julie provides the niche target audience an alternative to straightforward sexulised representations of women, and creates a more compelling and relatable reoprersentation to an educated and feminist audience. By appealing to a specific and niche audience, this help Les Rev ,inimise risk and maximise profit. 

Julie Personality:

• cold
• deep voice 
• enjoys horror films (Texas Chainsaw, The Exorcist)

USP: something different, appeal to a different audience 

(Les Revenants is a multi strand narrative)

The character Lena also subverts typical representations of gender, though she so in a completely different way. Lena is clearly cast because she is hegemonically attractive, though her dress andf personality are in many ways subversive.

Flirtatious and sexually motivated. Subversive and atypical representation. Clearly subverts sexist hegemonic values 

Lena is aggressive and assertive eg de rien connard! (thanks for nothing, dickhead!). Subverts stereotypical representations of women and expectations of women 

Lena reflects quite a significant changing values since the 1960s. Her brash and over the top manner would have been unthinkable, and she better reflects reality than many sexist, straightforward representations of women 

Scruffy and punky, yet also stereotypically feminine as well. Her representation is both atypical and stereotypical at the same time. which makes her representation complicated and challenging 

She's a highly relatable character