I decided to do the Look, Listen, Analyze assignment on a scene from The Wire season 3, episode 9, when Prez shoots another cop. I thought it was a great scene because it is really intense, but doesn’t actually show him shooting the cop, so as a viewer you are not quite sure what happened, just like no one else in the show knows.

Look- With the volume muted on the clip, the scene was just as intense as the first time I watched it. The cameras jump quickly from one shot to another, creating the atmosphere of fear and adrenaline as the cops chase someone through alleyways. The darkness of the scene also helps to create these feelings. Nothing is completely lit up, because the lighting is all though street light and from lights from buildings.

Listen –  I didn’t notice this when I watched it the first time, but McNulty and Prez’s radios are giving extra commentary to tell the viewer what the guy being chased down is. I also find it interesting that neither McNulty or Prez ever announced their assistance in the matter on the radios so that the other cop knows they are there. I have a feeling that if they had done that, the scene could have turned out differently. The lack of dialogue besides the police radios also make the scene more suspenseful.

Analyze-  The only way I really know how to describe this scene is suspenseful and intense. The camera work and the audio both lend to suspense, and when the camera zooms in on McNulty and his gun, the scene becomes more intense. I honestly thought McNulty was going to do something really stupid in this scene, but it turned out to be Prez.