The Fall (Of Gender Stereotypes)

"The psychological thriller examines the lives of two hunters -- one is a serial killer who preys on victims in and around Belfast, Northern Ireland, and the other is a female detective drafted from the London Metropolitan Police to catch him" (NextGuide).

As Eve is away on vacation in Berlin, she has entrusted me, her dearest brother, with her sacred blog. I will not disappoint.

Stella Gibson, a Metropolitan Police Superintendent and senior investigating officer comes to act as a main character in this series. Drafted to Northern Ireland's Police, she and her team must identify and capture Paul Spector, A strikingly handsome yet innately devious therapist with an insatiable taste for the objectification, rape, and killing of women. Not just any women; Spector has a taste for independent, strong, professional women. Through the series' episodes, Gibson and her team work tirelessly in the hopes of developing a case, but are met with endless obstacles and difficulties. Spector, despite his loving wife and two children, - the classic vanilla family - lusts for Annie Brawley, his next target.

There is so much done right in this series. It is stylistically impeccable, leaving the viewer to wallow in its dark, insidious undertones. This is achieved through its ambient lighting and completely silent scenes, in which they make use of a sinister score, upping the intensity to a whole new level. The show features unique camera shots that add to the immersion, one such example is a free roaming camera that flies over Spector's house when one of his children wakes in the middle of the night, allowing us to see into each and every room, giving us, the viewers, a feeling of omniscience.

However, no matter how much that I feel this show is doing right, there are still things that I feel are done wrong. While it is apparent that this series is taking huge steps in turning a sexist genre on its head, The Fall, much like many crime shows, dangerously exploit the bodies of victimized women. However much they do this - which by my standards tends to be a lot more than any other series I have seen as of yet - it is the craftsmanship of each scene that gets under my skin. The camera lovingly lingers upon the women's terror, bound limbs, exposed flesh, and intense struggles. At first glance you may excuse it for a very direct way of getting into the mentality of the killer. However, the camera goes too far in its caresses, venturing deep into the realm of dark eroticism, indulging in skewed fantasies of objectifying women. This threatens to dehumanize the series' female cast members.

With the insertion of Gibson as a character, we begin to unearth gender stereotypes through language. An ice cold, professional woman with a medical precision to her speaking, which is so immensely succinct that you'd take her for a machine. Her character is largely influenced by cultural and social misogyny, meaning that she is not taken entirely seriously at her job despite being the most talented individual by far. She also elegantly exposes all the sexism inherent in attitudes towards her private sexual relationships. With this quote, she reveals the greater problem of misogynistic discomfort with a simple analysis of the reality of the situation:

"That's what really bothers you isn't it? The one-night stand? Man fucks woman. Subject, man, verb fucks, object woman. That's okay. Woman fucks man. Woman subject, man object. That's not so comfortable for you, is it?"

Ingrained in Gibson's composure is an even greater sense of independence. Most of her qualities shine through in her use of language. Her speaking is exceptionally succinct and powerful. She often intimidates her male co-workers and aspires leadership among them. She is undoubtedly the shining star in a cast of innately strong, capable, professional women. Spector goes out of his way to seek these kinds of women, perhaps because he finds them threatening and emasculating due to their career success. Despite their appearance of power however, Spector comes to overpower them and effectively render them helpless, which emphasizes male dominance more than anything.

Although Gibson is portrayed as arguably the most professional of all characters in the cast, she is still a subject of discrimination, simply for being a woman. That is a problem that is found constantly in society today. Much of our language is used in a demeaning way towards women. For example, bitch or slut. Few understand that bitch refers to a woman that is incessantly angry - or a female dog - while slut refers to a woman who has sexual interactions with various men. Which, if i may add, is considered a plus for a male, while women who do this are frowned upon. This is referred to as "slut-shaming" and is also an important problem in today's society as it is depicted in the show. Gibson as of yet has served as the paragon of feminism (in my opinion) in modern-day television.

TLDR: This show has a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. 'Nuff said.