The opening scene of Cuffs used diegetic sound to contribute
to the verisimilitude of the police procedural. The sound of seagulls and waves
crashing on the beach can be heard. This creates realism as it immediately lets
the audience known where the show takes place as it is a familiar sound that it
typically heard at a beach. Also, the sound of police sirens over-lap the
seagulls and waves as Ryan, one of the protagonists, races through the streets
of Brighton. The non-diegetic sound contributes to the scene as the percussion
and deep strings create tension and propels the action forward. The
superintendent's speech creates a sound bridge over the opening scene as well
as the scene that follows in which we meet the different social groups which
are typical in Brighton.
Cuffs reflects the social, historic, and cultural contexts
of the 2010s. Superintendent Vickers’s speech describes the ideal police interactions
with the public and emphasises the dangerous situations they will have to find
themselves in. This is ironic as we see on screen that Ryan is trying to take
control of an unflattering brawl between a drunk group of men, most likely part
of a bachelor party, and a nude couple on the beach. Modern Brighton is
represented as being a bustling sea-side resort that hosts stag groups as well
as quiet middle-aged holiday makers and a place with a diverse community with
black police officers as well as an equal number of female police officers; it
also features representations of gay officers which would not have been the
case 50 years ago. In the course of this episode of Cuffs, the superintendent's
mission statement for the police is challenged and tested because the force is
not always shown to receive the respect and support of the public that he hopes
for, for example: the rudeness of the stag-do to Ryan, the way that Benson
threatens Ryan with a screwdriver and the lack of support from the shop owner
in witness crimes.
In the uses and gratifications model, Blumler and Katz
suggest that audiences use media to gratify needs. In Cuffs, audience pleasure
comes from the way which we empathise and identify with the characters which
are fully rounded, rather than one-dimensional figures. In the early interactions between Jake and
Ryan, the audience learns a lot about their relationship and how they talk to
each other. Viewers know that Jake isn't as professional as Ryan and that he
hasn't had as much experience as the other new officers. The audience also
notices that Ryan isn't fond of Jake because he looks him up and down while
talking to him. This tells the audience that Ryan has the impression that some
people have to fight for what they want, while Jake seems to have gotten his
position solely because he is the Superintendent's son. It is obvious that Ryan
would be harsh with Jake because he does not want to give him special
treatment. However, Ryan's response is still a bit surprising because most
people will assume that because it is his first day, he should assist him and
be gentle with him, but Ryan was extremely harsh with Jake. Ryan's dialogue is
stern and judgmental, indicating that he isn't playing around and that he
expects Jake to learn and become a professional police officer. Jake's dialogue
is very soft, and when he does utter something, it is light-hearted and
innocent. Another thing the audience sees is that he laughs and doesn't appear
embarrassed or phased by something Ryan does. He has no idea what he's doing,
but he doesn't want Ryan to think less of him because of it.
Watching Cuffs provides audiences with entertainment and
diversion; audiences consume media to escape from their everyday lives. Cuffs
provides entertainment and diversion because the film language is so
convincing. The use of sound creates meaning as when Amit, a young Asian
teenager, enters the corner shop, you can hear diegetic pop music playing on
the shop speakers. This music is upbeat, energetic and bouncy. This reflects
his current mood as he had just spoken to his mum and so was happy to hear from
her. However, when Amit is looking for what to buy. A group of racists enter
the shop, with Benson being the leader. As they enter, the diegetic pop music
gets drowned out by sinister and dramatic non-diegetic music. As the group gets
closer to Amit, the music gets louder as the threat increases. This creates a
lot of tension as the viewer knows something bad is about to happen, and the
rise in volume creates a rise in suspension. It also shifts the entire tone of
the scene from being a regular day where a teenager is going out to buy food,
to a soon-to-be crime scene where violence is inevitable. Also, the dialogue
from Benson immediately tells the audience that he is a racist, looking to
trouble this innocent boy. For example, he uses slurs such as 'raghead' and
'musi'.
Also, in that scene, camerawork is used to create meaning,
especially at the very beginning of chapter 4. In this chapter, the boy is
stabbed by the racist with a screwdriver. However, because of the use of
camerawork, the audience do not see the murder happen, but instead the camera
tracks-in to the only witness, a young boy in the back of the shop, who has
importance later in the episode. Because of the fact that Cuffs is a series
shown before the watershed at 9:00 p.m. it means that there cannot be any
scenes which are unsuitable for children and families. This means that the
series cannot show the actual stabbing occur on-screen, and so they imply it by
showing the after-math of the boy falling to the ground with blood spreading
around him. This tells the audience that the boy has been stabbed and has had
serious injuries, yet doesn't scare children by showing the brutal crime on the
screen. In that shot of the boy on the ground, the camera slowly rotates
clockwise to a canted angle as the racist, Benson, steps on his curry packet.
Benson stepping on the packet represents the fact that the boy has been
murdered, as when he does step in it, all the insides of the packet burst out
the bag and spread around the floor, just like how the blood seeps out of Amit.
The next shot of Amit from above also includes the same rotation. This matches
this shot with the last one as they both rotate at a simultaneous speed. It is
also in this shot that the viewer can see blood spread across the ground,
leaking from Amit.
The demands of policing are extremely high in today's
society. Firstly, Jo is trying to get
permission to interview the shop owner's son, the only witness of the shop
stabbing, yet cannot due to the fact that the shop owner is upset with the
police. This is because, firstly, he had to wait three days for the police
after his shop was vandalised, secondly, his son was shouted at on the bus and
thirdly, his mother was abused on the street, yet the police never did
anything. This shows that a demand of policing is being able to be patient and
tolerant as Jo has to deal with the fact that she couldn't speak with the only
witness of a stabbing. Also, another demand of modern policing is being able to
take abuse from the public, even if the police are trying to help. This is
evident in the scene where Jake, Ryan, Donna and Lino are chasing a shoplifter
through Brighton. After catching the criminal, Jake is shouted at by a member
of public who is also filming him. He tries to get the phone away from him and
calm her down, but she gets even more angry and spits in his face. This shows
how, even if the police are trying to help the public by catching a thief, they
are stilled abused and shouted at. Also, in the scene before that, Ryan spots
his son out in Brighton on his free period instead of being at school. Ryan
then has to get out the car and tell his son and friends to return to school.
This shows that, even at work, Ryan still has personal demands he must deal
with.
We learn a great deal about Jo during the press briefing
scene about the incident in the corner shop. We learn as much about her
personality and private concerns as we do about how she handles her professional
life. The two shot of Jo and Vickers entering the press conference allows the
audience to see Jo's concerned expression. You can see her searching
Superintendent Vickers face as she wants to get closer to him and understand
what he is thinking. This leads us to sympathise with her not only at a police
detective but also as a human being who feels lonely and rejected. The body
language of both police officers show how tense they are. This allows the
audience to see that Jo's private troubles are weighing heavily on her mind.
Jo's heart drops when Superintendent Vickers asks any witnesses to come
forward. The next shot cuts to the shop owner and only eye witness in their
home, watching the press conference on television. This makes the audience
sympathise with Jo as we feel bad for her and they fact that she wasn't able to
get any information out of the boy. We are seeing Jo at second remove on the TV
screen performing; she is very empathetic as she reads out the parents'
statement about the stabbing. We also know that Jo is extremely brave when it
comes to dealing with scary or difficult situations. In the next few scenes
where the crew have to raid Benson's house, she is seen to take charge and head
straight into the building, even though backup is yet to arrive. This is
because she has gained emotional attachment to Amit and wants to find the
stabber as soon as possible, and also because she is extremely professional and
wants to do her job at a high level, even if that means risking her own life.
