How are Teenagers Represented in The Amazing Spiderman and The

Maze Runner?
My essay will focus on Levi-Strauss theory of opposites in a film and how teenagers fit into
these roles such as good vs evil and the hero vs the villain. As well as this I will mention
stereotypes and some of Propps character roles. I will be comparing two clips from The
Amazing Spiderman to the final trailer for The Maze Runner.
Generic teenage stereotypes in action adventure films vary but we generally expect them to
be clueless at the start and act older than they actually are. Often we expect them to act the
adults in films without losing their youthful charm. We expect to have a hero and a villain with
supporting characters such as the brains behind the operation and an object for the heros
affection. In these two films I am focusing on the helper role of Propps and the bully
stereotype alongside the hero role.
In The Maze Runner we have the bully through the character of Gally. To show he is a bad
guy he overuses violent physical contact and is shown as an outcast in the trailer. We get
this impression when we see a long-shot of him shoving Thomas showing not only his
physical size but his brute strength as he knocks Thomas off his feet with one push. He fits
into the general muscle stereotype as we dont see him coming up with any plans or doing
anything that really adds to the plot.
This is where the helper part of the character comes in. The helper and bully isnt the villain
as he helps the hero realise either his abilities or something important to do with the plot. In
The Maze Runner Gally helps Thomas realise his name. The bully isnt necessarily the
villain as they dont add anything to the plot or inhibit the heros quest but they are needed to
get the audience to empathise with the protagonist and help them along through giving them
valuable knowledge. For this they fall into the helper role of Propps theory.
Gally is also shown as this when a short mid-shot of him with a group of other boys shows
him as bigger than them due to him being closer to the camera and slightly separated from
the group. All of the boys wear dirty clothes but Gallys are slightly tighter again showing his
muscle and physical dominance over the other characters.
In The Amazing Spiderman the character of Flash is similar to that of Gallys in that he
contributes the same role but to a different film. In the fight scene we see Flash throwing a
ball at Peters head which immediately creates a bad guy image in the audiences eyes.
The use of the basketball (mise-en-scene) shows that he fits into the jock stereotype of
teenagers. The sporty and muscular character without a high intelligence. In both scenes he
wear figure hugging, if non-descript, clothing as with Gally. However, while Gally has no
reason that is obvious to bully Thomas, Flash clearly does it because he is threatened by
Peters intelligence. This apparent when we see Flash back down when Gwen mentions her
tutoring him.
In the basketball scene (after seeing him in the bully role) we see him in the helper role.
He is still carefully shown as the bad guy due to him verbally abusing the painter girl by
saying No, but I wish I did. When she accuses him of knocking over her paint on purpose.
However, he helps Peter realise he can do the right thing and seek justice for those who
cant themselves as, using his newfound abilities, he is able to not only humiliate Flash but
show everyone that he is better as basketball than they thought. While this isnt the only
thing it shows it is the only thing relevant to the scene. It also shows the extent of Peters
abilities. Flash is now shown as low through the high angled shot as Peter shoves past him
to get to the basket. This is a contrast to the fight scene as Flash is shown as much bigger

than everyone in the crowd through a birds eye shot of his holding the small boy and through
the use of low angles (from Peters perspective) looking up at Flash. So while Flash is
shown as a bully he isnt a villain as he helps not only the audience but Peter himself realise
that Peter is a hero.
One teenage representation here is of a stereotypical bully who has an underlying use of
helping the hero be the hero.
Another one of the roles teenagers are represented in is the hero or good guy who has
some sort of mission and leads all the supporting characters to succeed in whatever this
mission may be. We see this role reflected clearly in both of these films through the
characters of Thomas and Peter. The hero often starts as clueless and comes into either the
supernatural abilities that help him save the day or the knowledge that leads him to save the
day.
In The Maze Runner we see Thomas at the start as completely clueless and slightly whiny.
We see this as in the trailer at the start through a section of diegetic dialogue, Thomas says
I dont remember anything. So he clearly has completely no idea what is going on. This is
done to include the audience. We learn as he does and so empathise with him. We know
Thomas is the protagonist through him being shown in most shots through the trailer. A lot of
level shots and close-ups confirm that Thomas is the person we are supposed to be
following along with. Most of the shots are from his perspective, especially at the start in the
elevator. However, it is only about half way through that we start getting information that
leads to us seeing Thomas as the hero. First we see him as different through the use of
dialogue when Alby says Youre not like the others. Youre curious. After this we see shots
of Thomas finding the only clues both inside and outside the maze suggesting him as
important. This shows the representation of teenagers as only one will actually succeed in a
mission many have attempted before giving us one particular person to root for while the
others simply back up this main characters role. Gally allows the audience to root for
Thomas even more through us empathising with the victim of a bully. Everything is placed so
that the opposite ends up enhancing the others character (bully enhances our view of the
hero). This is an example of the directors preferred reading (we see what he wants us to).
This makes it more enjoyable to the audience as we get to see Thomas transformation.
We see this role in The Amazing Spiderman in the form of Peter Parker. In the fight scene
we see him as non-confrontational and an outcast. He doesnt challenge the teacher after
being told not to ride on his skateboard but does get back on it after the teacher disappears.
This shows him as slightly rebellious but also that he doesnt want to cause trouble. He
does, however, confront Flash when there is another person involved this shows him as
selfless and a strong believer in justice. This creates the representation of him being a good
guy and standing up for what is right.
In the basketball scene we see him as becoming the hero. He doesnt just help out the little
guy by sacrificing himself but he exacts revenge on the bad guy. Flash is carefully
presented as still being in the wrong even though it is Peter who is humiliating him now. This
is done through him being mean to the painter girl in the scene and never backing down
from Peter until he is shoved over. Peter is shown as weak through him wearing baggy
clothes while Flash wears tight clothes showing his muscles. This shows the representation
of teenagers being more mature without losing their youthful charm. There are two roles
seen here. The bully (helper) and the hero. This is a negotiated reading. The director wants
us to clearly see Peter as the hero but upon further analysis, Peter could be viewed as in
the wrong. The audience still, however, accepts that Peter is the hero. So its a negotiated
reading.

Overall, through use of mise-en-scene, camera work and general dialogue, teenagers are
represented as brave, and more mature than their age in The Maze Runner and The
Amazing Spiderman. They follow only the stereotype of the bully and The Amazing
Spiderman is more based around stereotypes than The Maze Runner due to it being set in
a more stereotypical location for teenagers to be in (a high school in a city rather than a
dystopian future in the middle of a mechanised maze).