Mock Essay - Coming Down the Mountain - Disability

When we are first introduced to the two boys, the two different characters are visible straight away. The disabled boy's side of the room is childish, with colourful wallpaper and bed, emphasising on his lack of ability to mature due to his disability. Whereas his brothers' side of the room represents a typical teenagers room. When we are first introduced to the characters there is a bird eyes view of the room, which shows distance between the two characters due to one being disabled and the other normal. Sound is represented in the first clip as the normal brother is speaking in a narrative of how he would kill his brother in different ways. This shows his embarrassment and distress of having to look after his disabled brother, as if he would be judged by society as disabled people are often looked down on. Moving on to the end of the first clip, there is a close up shot of the disabled brother asleep. This shows him as a victim because he is unaware of what is going on around him in society.

Moving onto the kitchen scene, the abled brother is shown in a low angle shot which represents his power and control over his disabled brother. Whereas the disabled brother is shown in a high angle shot which highlights his vulnerability to society as disabled people are seen as a victim. During there conversation in the kitchen there is a shot reverse shot showing their conversation. The abled brother is allowed more time in the conversation to speak which shows his power over his disabled brother which highlights that disabled people are not given a chance to give there input and that they are not heard by society. The dialogue seperates the two brothers due to the way the parents speak to them. The parents speak to the disabled boy in a soft manner, making him feel safe and at ease and trying to assure him that he is equal to everyone else. Whereas when talking to the abled son, they snap and talk in a more harsh tone, making him aware of who is around, as if the disabled boy is a little child.

In the park scene when the disabled boy is trying to ride his bike, the disabled boy is shown through a gun scope view, highlighting that disabled people are a target and a victim from society; that they aren't equal to 'normal' people and should be treated differently. The shot then expands to show the 'normal' brother aiming the gun at his brother. This shows his hatred towards his brother and his embarrasment that his brother is not like everyone else and that he is different and that life would be better without his disabled brother, as if he is a 'freak'. The disabled boy's childlike mind is represented through a medium shot of him flying a kite and eating an ice cream, something that would be expected of a little boy playing in the park for the first time. This also represents his vulnerability to everything going on around him, as he has not grown into the mature teenager.

Overall, the extract reinforces the stereotype of disability as the disabled brother is portrayed as a villain for stopping his brother to do what a normal teenager would want to do. The disabled boy is also seen as a victim due to the way his brother treats and talks about him, as if he is 'alien' like due to the fact that he is different to everyone else because he is disabled.