Essay
Steve Neale - Prime Suspect
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- WJEC
Crime Drama: Prime Suspect QUESTION: How does Prime Suspect use genre to attract audiences?
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How does Prime Suspect use genre to attract audiences?INTRODUCTION:
The television industry uses genre to attract audiences by using conventions that the genre
is known for as well as implementing different elements unexpected of the genre. In this
way, not only can they attract audiences who enjoys the conventions but also interest
audiences by providing them something new. Steve Neale, a film theorist, proposes the idea
that whilst common elements of a genre, in this case, crime, offers audiences a pleasing
sense due to its familiarity, pleasure can also be gained from having our expectations
challenged.
POINT 1. Realistic Depiction of Police Work (convention)
Steve Neale states that in media there is ‘the pressure… to maximise the profitability of
capital assets and to repeat the formulae marking previous financial successes’. 'Prime
Suspect', 1991, therefore attracts the interests of crime drama enthusiasts by offering them a
realistic depiction of the workforce through conventions of the genre. For instance,
iconographies of forensic sciences and corpses are portrayed with close-up shots. This
enhances the realism of the investigative process. It also enabling audiences to interact with
and invest in the show by closely examining the evidence. Moreover, the use of these
conventions is not just a matter of repeating successful formulas. The producers of the crime
drama used them with intentional and careful thought, particularly through the use of close-
up shots, to create a more authentic representation of what it is like to work the police force.
It is graphic, gruesome and disturbing. Yet, this will attract audiences as it satisfies their
desire for crime.
POINT 2: Female Protagonist (difference)
‘Prime Suspect’, however, was not like most crime dramas for its time in the 1990s. Its main
difference lies in the fact that there is a female protagonist, DCI Jane Tennison, first written
by female author Lynda La Plante. This representation of a female lead in a crime drama
was refreshing for audiences who were looking for something different from the typical male-
driven storyline. Steve Neale states that ‘difference is absolutely essential to the economy of
genre…’ and the decision to adapt La Plante’s novel into a drama illustrated the importance
of difference in a genre. Not only did Jane’s character challenged the traditional power
structures, but her character also made the show relevant to the targeted audience at the
time, in which they were women and would have been fighting for their rights in the
workplace. Her experiences as a woman in a male-dominated workplace brought a unique
perspective and added depth to the show's storytelling, which appealed to female
audiences.
POINT 3: Male Suspects and Female Victims (convention)
Nonetheless, ‘Prime Suspect’ did indeed conform to the conventions of crime dramas by
having male suspects and female victims. George Marlow is suspected of killing Dellay
Mornay, as well as five other victims who were all females. However, discovering this truth
was not an easy job, as George has exhibited unconventional traits and behaviours during
the interrogation. For instance, in episode one he has broken down in tears which was
unexpected of a man to do, especially in front of a female. This has led audiences to
question if George was perhaps not the suspect, as his tears showed his frantic worry, only
to be proven by the end of the series that he was the killer. Steve Neale states that ‘Genres
may be dominated by repetition, but are also marked by difference, variation, and change.’
This different approach to conventions may attract audiences as this ambiguous portrayal of
the perpetrator adds a level of complexity and depth to the story.
POINT 4: Sexism in the Workplace
Steve Neale proposes the idea that ‘desire is always a function of both repetition and
difference. It is founded in the difference between on the one hand the initial experience of
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