Scott and Barry
The relationship between David and Goliath, Scott Hastings and Barry Fife, is that of protagonist and antagonist from their first appearance. The audience is positioned to sympathise with Scott who is the image of youthful beauty, grace, endeavour and vulnerability, the antithesis of Barry Fife. At 6.55, the camera dollies in to a low angle close up of Barry locking eyes with Scott as he raises his chin, narrows his eyes, turns down the corners of his mouth and glares at Scott. The camera cuts to Scott for a reaction shot looking defiant and pans to Liz, her face contorted in frustration and despair.
“The broadly acted world of the dance federation [is] exemplified by the tyrannical Barry Fife. He’s a throwback to the fifties: to an Australia which had a closed mind, atrophied with the values of a bludgeoning