TIGHT JEANS - 2008 - DESTINY EKARAGHA

TIGHT JEANS (2008) - directed by Destiny Ekaragha

Tight jeans, directed by Destiny Ekaragha in 2013 is a short film which is centred around three black teenagers who are becoming frustrated whilst they wait for their friend. When a young white person walks past wearing super tight jeans, one of the teens asks the question “how can man wear jeans that tight?” - this questions sparks a debate about culture and race.

“I think sometimes laughter is the best way to talk about serious issues, because it stays in your head longer. Dramas are great and I’d like to do one, but at the moment I’m loving laughter.” - Destiny Ekaragha.

Expectations:

I thought that the title suggested something of a comedic nature - I predicted it would have a light hearted tone. The title gave some indications to me about the characters: perhaps they were young people, caricatures… I thought it could be literally about ‘tight jeans’.

Screen grabs and micro-element/narrative structure analysis:

SET UP - There is a montage of a market at the beginning of the film, which uses short and sharp cuts and fast forward to establish place and space. The mise-en-scene in the market alludes to what is going to happen in the film. There is a sign that says ‘men’s jeans’ and there’s lots of clothing hung up of which is brightly and boldly coloured. Throughout the montage, there is percussive, almost assertive music. It is important to note that the editing at this point is different to the rest of the film. When we cut to the council estate, the editing is smooth and slow, creating realism. 

At first, Ekaragha gives us time to adjust to the setting. She uses long shots of boys wrestling, and close ups of the 3 men we are observing fidgeting. Through these close ups, we can learn more about their charcater’s and their personalities due to the clothing they are wearing. All three of them are wearing baggy jeans and similar shoes, clothes typically associated with an urban environment. Furthermore, through their body language, we get the impression that they are waiting for someone, leaving the audience suspenseful.  

I really like this shot from behind. It seems quite voyeuristic and makes us wonder what they are looking towards. The camera slowly dollies on in them, in an ethereal manner, as if we are listening in on their conversation. All three of them are wearing hoodies, but the variations in colour tell us a lot. Theo, the boy in the blue, is a very level-headed, clever, seemingly wise character and the colour blue reflects his calm stability, the character Joseph, in the red, however, is presented as fiery, loud and impatient, contrasting with Theo. This contrast is emphasised through the fact that the colours red and blue or on the opposite ends of the colour wheel. Marcus, the boy in the middle, wearing an orange and grey stripy jumper, acts as the mediator between them - he is the one who begins the conversation about race and culture.

PLOT POINT 1 - The camera tracks the movement of the white person who walks past them. We are from the point of view of them and due to the use of the Kuleshov effect we are aware that the boys on the wall are observing the one walking past. There is a close up of his jeans, contrasting to their clothing, as the black men are wearing baggy jeans, which ultimately emphasises differences between cultures. Throughout this moment, there is no use of sound and it is completely silent, showing that they are staring, until Joseph breaks the tension with ‘why can I not wear jeans that tight.’

Whenever we observe the three boys from front on, the camera pans from left to right continuously, which shows them bouncing off each other in their conversation, diverting our focus to whoever is talking, but nonetheless allowing us to observe reactions from the others if we wish. For about 3 minutes, we pan and dolly around the characters’ conversation, with the occasional close up cut in to emphasise reactions.

The arrival of Tyrone is a light hearted break in their although comedic, quite deep conversation. There is a point of view shot from the balcony, looking down at the 3 boys sitting on the wall. They look very small, and all we can really see is their colourful jumpers, creating a sense of comedy. 

There is a parallel when a white man walks past wearing a tight, white shirt, and when Joseph delivers the line ‘how can man wear a T Shirt that Tight’, the film comes to an end and we figure that the same debate will be had. The light-hearted open, circular ending is comedic, but also allows us to reflect on the debate that has just happened. 

Dialogue

Dialogue is probably the most important part of this film. The speech patterns are very urban and naturalistic, and they use lots of swear words and slang, rooting them in their community. The debate that they have about culture and race is given a light hearted tone through the way that they address it, but Ekaragha stills covers the importance of these things. 

My response:

I wouldn’t say that this was my favourite short film, but I definitely think that it deserved all the awards that it won. Their debate kept my attention and I was particularly attracted to the mise-en-scene and the way in which is was used, creating realism and also giving hints about characters.