Report 1:


Portrayals of Driving Behavior on TV,

does TV affect our driving skills?

Instructions for Reports G7, 459

Table of contents

  • Introduction
  • Observations of movies
  • Observations of advertisements
  • Observations of Children's shows
  • Conclusion



    • Introduction


    The information you are about to browse through is my interpretation of how television and movies affect the interpretations of driving on children and adults alike. I surveyed movies, commercials and children's programs, including cartoons, in order to further undeerstand how media affects all of us in any positive or negative way.


    Observations

    Movies

    Description

    The characters: A young man just getting out of law school is the primary character of this film. He truely is a nice guy, nothing aggressive can be associated with him at first.

    The situation: In the beginning of the film, the character is shown with his car that is packed with every one of his personal belongings. He tells another character, played by Danny Devito that he was evicted from his appartment. He proceeds to drive calmly to a clients house where he finds his client and a place to live.

    Relevance as a theme: Calmness is a positive attribute to have. Aggression often only leads to trouble. If you are able to think things out, you can make changes in life to your own advantage. This young man did not let negative happenings lead him astray from his goals.

    Analysis
    This was a generally nice movie. I think the music played in the background affected the flow of the characters in the film. A death was involved and this is where most of the aggression comes into the film. All the driving episodes were calm and truely mello. I could not believe that this movie had no driving aggression in it. There were matters where aggresssiveness would have thought to have been sparked, yet the main character continues to be calm in all that he does, well almost all that he does. I think this movie focuses on self control for the most part.

    Description

    The characters: Arnold Szwarzenigger plays a character who comes to the rescue of Vanessa Williams. His job is to protect her through the witness protection program. Arnold's character is a strong, aggressive individual with a mission you instinctively feel he will accomplish.

    The situation: A van comes speeding by and comes to a sudden stop where tires are screaching and smoke is floating in the air. The side door of the van opens and a mysterious man jumps out and grabs the character plaed by Vanessa Williams, who was walking along the sidewalk.

    Relevance as a theme: Aggression and speed come into play in this scene which took less than a minute during the movie. The whole situation seems to cry out for attention in the video. Is this how the creators of the film feel they need to catch our eye? Yet the movie is an action packed adventure, so it would seem that nothing less would be acceptable in the creation of the story.

    Analysis
    This was an action packed movie filled with aggressive acts. Driving was not a strong focus of this movie in my opinion. When a car came into the picture, aggressiveness followed due to the initial theme of the movie. The scene that I have pointed out lasted not more than a minute because the van was out of sight and a chase was not initially pursued.

    Description

    The characters: Jim Carey plays a lawyer in this film, he is described by his son as a liar. The son is around 6 or 7 years old and makes a wish that his father will not lie for a full 24 hours.

    The situation: Realizing he was late to meeting his ex-wife and child before they left town, Jim Carey gets into his car and foolishly speeds at unncessary rates. A police officer proceeds to pull him over and gives him a ticket.

    Relevance as a theme: This scene was similar to many in the movie, in that the character played by Jim Carey does many outragesous things, such as driving aggressively which landed him a speeding ticket. All actions have a reaction, some people are more likely to suffer the consequences than others, yet it all catches up with you in the end.

    Analysis
    This was a hillarious movie if you don't think of some of the negative implications that are pressent in the film. It is unfortunate that I myself found humor in his speeding through particular areas.



    Advertisements


    Description

    The characters: A narrarator in background.

    The situation: Advertising that there is information on their car on web tv. Driving through wooded area, inside car view, driving around bends fast, no other cars around.

    Relevance as a theme: A sporty car is being aggressively advertised here. No other cars are on the road, giving an impression that with this car you can own the road and drive as aggressively as you like.

    Analysis

    Description

    The characters: No characters were shown, only a person driving the car.

    The situation: A nice looking white convertible car drives slowly in a nice country environment as a man's voice advertise's the company.

    Relevance as a theme: Being a rental car company, they encourage lack of accidents while people use their cars. The commercial seems to follow through in promoting safe driving in a relaxed atmosphere.

    Analysis

    Driving seems to be portrayed as a wonderfully calming experience through this commercial offered by Budget Rent a Car. Yet in reality, so many people are often in a hurry that aggressive driving comes into the scene. I am sure Budget is aware of this and in their own way are trying to discourage aggressive driving behavior. Maybe even by driving their cars, you will be able to relax and enjoy yourself.

    Description

    The characters: A picture of a young caucasion man is introduced to the viewer. He recently got a new red Honda, and is reminissing of visiting his past girlfriend who used to cook for him, a picture of her is also given to the viewer

    The situation: The young man enjoyed driving his new Honda so much that he made his girlfriend upset. He makes it known that he is no longer with her, and that he misses her cooking, but not all of it.

    Relevance as a theme: The young man enjoyed driving his Honda so much that he lost his girlfriend, but that seemed ok to him. He drove in a non aggressive manner yet the commercial was laid out in a cartoon like fashion, this could lead to a question of validity of aggressive abilities here!

    Analysis

    The new car is portrayed as an object to fall in love with. The young man found a new love in his car. He lost his girlfriend who used to cook for him, yet he is still a happy person since he has his Honda. The cartoon like format of the commercial leads the viewer to think that all is happy go lucky with this Honda. Aggression can still exist, yet the commercial of a minute and a half or so seems to discourage any possible aggression!

    Description

    The characters: A voice of a male and an actual teenage female.

    The situation: A voice speaks about the Toyota vehicles that are shown, while the music of a piano plays softly in the background. A young girl also arrives home in her Toyta and yells out "Dad, I'm home!".

    Relevance as a theme: The Toyota vehicles is promoted as a vehicle that is more than a car, it is an object of dependability.

    Analysis
    This commercial seems to influence the dependability of the Toyota vehicles. Ensuring a father that his daughter will get home safely is a plus to any father!



    Shows for children

    Description

    The characters: A young girl and her teenage brother.

    The situation: The two are in a hurry to get somewhere and result in speeding recklessly. A police man pulls them over. The teenage brother is given a ticket for wreckless driving by the officer.

    Relevance as a theme: Youth drivers and responsability are often questioned by drivers with more experience. This was a stereotypical scene where a young driver is indeed driving wrecklessly and gets caught in the act. It is too bad that youth gets such a reputation, yet when films are made such as this one, the stereotype is only being reinforced.

    Analysis

    The good thing about this scene is that the teen was caught and punished for his actions. I feel that this shows the young viewers that if you do drive in an aggressive fashion, you will get caught and penalized for your actions. If a policeman would not have been involved, then that would have been even worse because that would have shown the viewer that it is possible to get away with bad behavior such as wreckless driving!

    Description

    The characters: Three cousins of Earl, as in the Duke of Earl.

    The situation: The three brothers went to the airport to pick up Rocky and Bulwinkel because Bulwinkel was to inherit some money from the Duke of Earl. The brothers were presenting themselves as taxi drivers. They too were to inherit the same money from the Duke of Earl. They had planned to drive Rocky and Bulwinkel off a cliff outside of England. They drove to cliff and tried to push the car off the cliff with Rocky and Bulwinkel in the car, yet it was not happening! So the brothers got out of the car and ended up falling down the cliff themselves in the car while Rocky and Bulwinkel were still at the top of the cliff.

    Relevance as a theme: Trying to be reckless once again only hurts the instagator. The brothers tried to be naughty but only hurt themselves in the end.

    Analysis

    Pushing the car over the cliff was a very aggressive act. The cartoon emphasized greed and how it encourages aggressiveness. There was a positive lesson to be learned in that greed and aggression don't always get you what you want in life. On the other hand the three brothers could have been seriously harmed, yet this is a cartoon once again where the brothers will still be fighting strong in the end!





    Conclusion

    In concluding this report, I do feel that TV has an influence on how adults and children view driving. Humor and aggression are thrown into so many driving situations that are seen on TV. The Rocky and Bulwinkel cartoon really got to me. The car was to be intentionally pushed over the cliff with characters inside?! I don't think that these film producer give enough credit to the reality of these situations. If a child sees something like this, chances are they will not take driving seriously, or not have a clue to the dangers actually involved in the operation of a vehicle.

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