Disability - Secret diary of a call girl analysis

At the beginning of the TV programme we are presented with a female, who first open the door to two males, one of which being the person who called upon her (who is disabled) assisted by his dad. The first shot in which is shown in the scene is an over the shoulder, lower angle shot. This first sets the scene as we grasp the ideas behind the scene through the female characters position. We can see that the first stereotype in which is used, is that disabled people are weaker than able people. This camera angle shows this through the superior stance of the woman who is position higher than the male who is in a wheelchair. His dad also assists the boy who is in a wheelchair, also linking in with the idea that disabled people are feeble and need constant attention to ensure that they are ok, especially from close family/friends.

We first notice the appearance of both of the main characters. The woman is dressed smartly, and has quite a lot of makeup on, this suggests that she is a woman who is certain in herself, and comes across as confident, however not overly confident as her clothes may represent confidence yet do not breech over this line to show arrogance, how makeup and facial features are enhanced, so we connote this with sex and experience on her part. We can see that the boy in the wheelchair has all black clothing on, which is very minimalistic, he is also fairly skinny, we can contrast this with the woman as he is the opposite of her, as he is unsure in himself and comes across as shy.

When we first enter the room of the call girl we notice that the walls are red. This could link in with many different ideas within disability. We often link red with a sign of love, which could show that as disabled people are often not presented as being in a sexual relationship, they are desperate to find it. However could also be shown as danger, as the disabled boy steps into a new ‘fantasy’ for himself, which he has no idea about, this could also be another reason as to why he has his dad with him at all times, as he acts as a reassurance to his son, as he speaks highly of his father as if they were friends rather than family.

Unlike most TV programmes, there is no noise in the background, this adds to the awkwardness of the scene as we are solely focusing on the actions and words, which we hear through the characters. Though intimacy levels in the programme are trying hard to be reached, the awkwardness within the programme ultimately over rules this.

In the last part of the programme the call girl begins to caress the disabled boy in a caring manour, using her hand to swipe against his face in gentle motions, she is constantly reassuring him that this is ok, but as well as this she is also ensuring that he is ok with it. As a character she pities him, feeling sorry for his disability. During this time we begin to hear the first sounds of music, which sound French, this begins to rise the intimacy levels, however in contrast with this we can see that it is still awkward for both characters, as the female character is unsure how to act around him, as well as the male character being unsure of how ‘it’ works.

Overall these scenes put together ultimately breech the idea that disabled people aren’t sexualised, however elements such as the awkwardness which is present through out the whole of the programme goes along with Paul Hunt’s theory suggesting that no matter how intimate TV programmes attempt to portray disabled characters out of their stereotypical selves, the stereotypes of them in which we know as an audience will override in the end.