Older people are represented unconventionally I the film pride as they don’t cornform to the traditional stereotype of being lifeess and disinterested in making a differnce to the world. The characters sch as Heffina and gwen aren't traditional with theur vews towards homosexuality and instead embrace and accept lgsm
Ladies go to the gay club:
This scene offers a representation of older people that differs from the traditional stereotype of old women; being that they have a lack of enthusiasm and are not willing to try new things or accept new societal ideologies. Within this scene, the ladies from the mining club in Wales are going to a gay club with one of the members of LGSM – Johnathon. On their way into the club, Johnathon asks the women if they are okay with it, to which Heffina - one of the older women – replies 'we want to see everything, don't we?' And Gwen agrees by saying 'even the rubber things' all of the women laugh following this. This differs from the traditional stereotype of older women as it reveals that they are fun loving and willing to try new experiences. Supporting this, when they are in the club dance music is playing and the women are all dancing with the men and it is clear that they are having a good time through their facial expressions – they are smiling to the men and to each other. This further reveals their willingness to have fun and indulge in new experiences, as well as accepting new ideologies that society presents. They are unbothered by the fact the men are homosexual – which is unexpected when the traditional stereotype is placed onto them. Likewise, the audience do not expect the older women to enjoy dance music as it is of a new generation, they would imagine the older women to listen to classical music instead and not enjoy dance music playing at the club, perhaps complaining it is too loud. Once they have left the club, they move to another and are walking in front of the men – they are laughing and expressing excitement as they walk down the stairs to the club. This shows, again, their willingness and acceptance of new experiences. Furthermore, they are quick to shut down the door man who tries to prevent them from entering as it is a 'men only venue'. Heffina responds to this man and the others laugh at her response and follow her into the club, this offers an alternative representation to older women as they are generally perceived as being overly nice and accepting of societal rules, whereas here they are disobeying rules and creating their own. The camera pans around the club and shows what each woman is doing, some of their actions may be shocking to the audience as they go against the traditional stereotype. For example; it may seem unusual that one of the eldest women is drinking a pint of beer – which is traditionally a more masculine drink, they would expect her to be drinking a more 'feminine' drink. Ending the sequence, two of the women – including Gwen, the eldest member of the group – are talking with the bar tender, questioning how he got into a leather leotard. Supporting the traditional stereotype of old people, Gwen cannot hear him when he responds and the other woman has to speak close to her ear – old people are often associated with having hearing and visual impairments, both of which Gwen appears to have. The man explains that he uses talcum powder to 'get into' his leotard, Gwen responds by saying 'lily of the valley I use' suggesting that she also wears tight leotards – which will be comedic and somewhat shocking for the audience as they expect older women to wear lose, conservative clothing, which the man's leotard is the complete opposite to. Overall, this scene offers an alternative representation of old people; the women do not conform to the traditional stereotype. Often this is seen through their attitudes, they do not shy away from new experiences and rather enjoy activities that they are believed not to through the audience's preconceptions created by this traditional stereotype.
In Pride the older people are represented in an unconventional way as actors such as Maureen and Gwen challenge the representation of old people and their lack of life and enthusiasm to try new thing.
They start off dancing quite reserved and very unprovocative as you would expect from someone of their age, however there is then a shift in mood and atmosphere where jonathan gets up and struts centre stage and invites them up to dance with him. A series of close up shots reveal Heffina and Gwen screaming and laughing as Jonathan is dancing provocatively with then which completely goes against what a stereotypical old women represent and they are breaking boundaries with their enjoyment of the dancing. this is followed by panning of their bodies and the camera comes in to focus with Heffina and her chest, this is a section that adopts the male gaze and sexualizes the old women which is unusual as film usually adopts this gaze on young, attractive women but instead the director as chosen to do this on the older women. this reinforces the ideology that they are all young at heart and they are going against the typical stereotype of old people, giving their characters more personality and life to support the realism of the film to reflect their real life characters.
The older people in Pride are represented in an unconventional way. It is clear throughout that the older people are not stereotyped, as they do not adhere to what typical old people are seen as. Gwen and Heffina in particular are very accepting of LGSM, for example letting them stay in their homes when they visited Wales and they actively want to help LGSM. The audience are positioned to see the older people as comical and we therefore enjoy and like them. However, not all the older people are represented in this way. Maureen for example is one of the older people who represent the older traditional views that people have regarding the LGBT+ community.
The sense of togetherness that the older community possess is clear throughout. One scene in particular is the final scene when the miners arrive on buses to London. There is a wide shot of a red mini bus approaching LGSM through a field, as people run towards it cheering with banners. The use of a handheld style shot positions the audience as a member of the crowed who is running towards the mini bus. Close-up's of LGSM and the older community embracing highlight that these people don't hold traditional views like Maureen does.
Following this, Gwen says "Where are my lesbians?" and the use of this line creates comedy as it is unexpected to come from an elderly person. Despite wearing stereotypical elderly peoples clothes, her personality doesn't match this. Her outward demeanour of being frail and old is juxtaposed by her 'one liners' within the film. The close-up shot of Gwen, stood in the middle of two lesbians with their hands on her shoulders is significant in this scene. It makes Gwen look like she is just one of their friends and part of the group. The use of this shot highlights that Gwen doesn't see them as anything other than her friends and this is unconventional, because the older and younger community don't normally mix in day to day life. When LGSM and the miners lead the march, there is on overhead shot of Cliff. He is stood still, soaking in his surroundings while others march on with banners, they are out of focus and Cliff is clearly in focus. Here, we see him admiring what is going on around him and the smile on his face shows that he is proud to be there. He then joins in the march and there is a close-up of his smiling face, this suggests a sense of solidarity and how he is part of both LGSM and the miners.
A slow motion wide shot of everyone marching past Big Ben positions the audience to see how everyone is marching together and at the front and this is due to the older people. This shot reminds the audience that without the help from the older miners, they wouldn't have brought buses full of people with them so they could all lead the march through the streets and it therefore connotes that the elderly in this film (apart from Maureen) are very accepting and open minded. The framing and slow motion of this shot emphasises the cohesion of the two groups. By them travelling down from Wales to London, it shows their dedication to want to help LGSM and repay what they did for the miners. It also highlights how they are willing to try new experiences.
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