Video Analysis

This clip is from an early episode of British Sitcom "Peep Show", originally aired on Channel 4, now available to stream on Netflix.

The beginning of this clip is shown from POV outside a door, encouraging us to relate to Mark Corrigan (main character) as well as his trouble with walking past youths. This is a very common problem that relates to a lot of people. The sudden interruption of the door introduces a second character through fast pace, seamless editing between the door opening and Mark on the floor, showing both shot/ reverse shot of Toni. Most notably, the package he holds up is also in the shot of him looking up, creating continuity. We also get her POV. As a point, the entire series is filmed in POV. There are cuts between the larger picture of what the character sees and slightly more zoomed in shots, possibly symbolizing the character is focusing or is experiencing some sort of notable emotion. The zoom can also mean something pivotal to the episode is occurring. Such a zoom is used when Mark invites Toni over.

An additional quirk of the programme is being able to hear the inner thoughts of a character, meaning the monologue is usually played over a clip of what they're thinking about or doing. Gradually as the conversation is going worse, the camera cuts closer from a medium closeup into a closeup to communicate the embarrassment of what Mark is saying (making the face of the character more prominent, giving it more precedence in the sequence) When he's doing well with Toni (making fun of Jeremy's tapes) We are rewarded with long-medium shots from POV as they laugh together. At this moment the audience get relief from the second hand embarrassment. However, this is short lived as the introduction of yet another character (Jeremy), the creator of the tapes, builds up the tension once more. The very short intro he has while his own self-important thoughts play in the background lead up very quickly to closeups of Toni and Mark enjoying themselves, mirroring the earlier closeups and causing more cringe at how horrible it would be to be Jeremy in that moment. Following this, there is a lot of camera movement, causing distortion and panic, adding to the comedy of the scene as the realistic reactions are what make the show.

There is a quick establishing shot to communicate passage of time and closeup of a sauce Mark is cooking. The sauce also is zoomed in at some points while he thinks about what he did to Jez. There's a lot of jerky, quick camera movement from Mark to show desperation to appeal to Jez throughout this sequence yet Jez's perspective is slower and more controlled, showing how calmly he's ignoring Mark.The cut to a closeup of Jeremy's cool face chewing adds more tension. The 180 degree line is used during the last conversation. It feels claustrophobic as the shot is largely the characters in frame. On the whole, the clip's use of camera angles, zooms, and cuts, are very stylistic to the show. It offers a unique glimpse into the minds of the characters.

The pace of the editing is quite regular to begin with (only 23 cuts in the first minute) to keep movement and visual interest while not going too quick and perhaps losing some of the slow burns a few lines have. The sequence also has a kind of cyclical structure to it with there being a conversation at the table that got Mark into trouble and there being a conversation at the end where Mark has to deal with the consequences. The real charm of Peep Show is absurdist situations rooted in reality.