Communication in the Movie `Never Heard’
Introduction
The effective communication process is very vital in ensuring the success of individuals or organizations. For communication to flow appropriately fundamental elements or components of the communication procedure must exist. In this paper, we shall discuss the communication process in the movie `Never Heard’ by ascertaining various communication elements adopted in the film.
Communication in the Movie `Never Heard’
The film depicts the life of David Banner, who was a gang leader and mistakenly faced an accusation for the death of an innocent citizen. He tries to reach out to his former girlfriend with whom they had a son while he was still in prison. A correctional officer helps him to get out of jail through a successful appeal, and when he gets out; he realizes that life is different from how left it, especially now that he is a changed man. He attends group therapy for men who recently left jail, and in the process, learns how to handle the challenges that he experiences such as having his former girlfriend refused to have anything to do with him (Weber, 2018). He finally proves himself and his ex-girlfriend comes to his graduation, where he proposes, and she accepts to marry him. The movie is not a `happily ever after the movie’ since there is a sad ending for Diggy who was shot while defending his friend Jalen from being killed.
There are elements of culture affecting the communication in the movie since the mode of communication in the ghetto is mostly slang, showing that the people around the neighbourhood preferred the use of slang for better communication. There is a need for listening in the movie through the use of the church, whereby communication was one way, although the results worked if one listened to the instructions (Berezan et al., 2016). Verbal messages are sent throughout the movie, whereby the characters communicated verbally with each other, giving each other the needed feedback on the necessary information. Verbal messages were prominent in the film since they are used for providing explicit instructions on different subject matters, and therefore leave no room for self-interpretation or misinterpretation.
Additionally, verbal messages were essential in helping the viewers to stay abreast of the way the movie is unfolding scene by scene. Non-verbal communication was also used, especially in instances where the messages to be conveyed were too emotional to be expressed or when the characters were in sync with each other and only needed to show a gesture to explain their feelings (Berezan et al., 2016). For example, when the drug dealer was threatening Diggy, the drug dealer used verbal communication for inquiring about the whereabouts of his money and uses a shooting symbol to explain what he would do to Diggy should he not pay him. Additionally, emotional messages are seen in the movie, whereby the emotions were expressed depending on the relationship between the characters. For example, Davis Banner’s messages to his ex-girlfriend were emotional since he wanted to explain himself to her, yet she wanted nothing to do with him. There are also instances of emotion where Diggy speaks to his mother about her need to quit drugs. He, therefore, explains the damage the addiction was causing to their family, especially in terms of forcing Diggy, a teenager to have to sell drugs to provide for his family.
The first scene where elements of communication are used is whereby David Banner is seen begging his ex-girlfriend to let him talk to his son while he was still in prison. While she accepts the charges for his call, she is too emotionally hurt to accept his request, hence giving negative feedback on his offer Therefore when Banner calls; Ms Givens says `What do you want? Because whenever you call, you’re always up to something’ (Weber, 2018). This scene shows effort from one end of the communication process and no energy being applied by the individual to whom the communication was being aimed. Secondly, there is active communication between Jalen and Diggy, whereby being best friends; they are in constant contact either in person or via phone. The elements of communication are fulfilled through them, with the two interchanging the roles of the sender and receiver, while their messages were in different kinds depending on the subject, and the feedback on those messages was instant (Mortensen et al., 2016). Therefore, this relationship engaged in active communication throughout the movie.
Communication is also experienced through the support group run by Mr Dorien Wilson, both in and out of prison. Through the support group, the members were able to discuss different issues affecting them, and they got the solutions from within the group. Therefore, this shows one crucial role played by communication that is, the exchange of ideas and providing mental and emotional support to the people who were in communication (Mortensen et al., 2016). There are scenes where the church is seen, and messages of hope and encouragement on the various issues of life. Religious communication does not necessarily depend on the exchange of communication, but rather on instructions being given and the instructions being received by the recipient of the messages. The preacher says, `Only the pure will see God, and therefore whatever it is, you’ve got to flush it out of you so that you can experience the goodness of God,’ Therefore when Banner calls, Ms Givens says `What do you want? Because whenever you call, you’re always up to something’ (Weber, 2018). The successful results from the execution of the instructions received show the effectiveness of the communication. An example is seen in the call for forgiveness from one of the sermons in church, which Ms Robin Givens heeds to and forgives Mr Banner, hence bringing their family back together.
The relationship between the people in communication provided the context for the communication elements in their communication process(Mortensen et al., 2016). For example, the interaction between David Banner and Robin Givens is deterred by the bitterness in Ms Givens on account of the way Mr Banner had abandoned their family when he got arrested. She is, therefore, unwilling to engage in communication with him since she feels that he betrayed her and does not deserve the opportunities that he was about to ask from him. Thus, her solution is to have the communication break down so that Mr Banner would not have any influence on her to make her fall for his charms again.
Communication between Jalen and Diggy is free-flowing since communication develops based on friendship and trust. The two share any piece of information between them, and this shows the importance of cordial relationships between people in the communication process. For example, Jalen says `everything we do on the streets, and you’re still afraid of bees’ (Weber, 2018). Even when Diggy finds himself in a forced situation of killing Jalen as a way of paying his debt to the drug lord, he still feels the need to communicate these findings to his friend so that he could run away from the imminent danger. The communication between the preachers found in the different scenes and the congregants is one-way, whereby the communication process depends on the need for the congregants to follow the instructions given to them for the achievement of the best results. Therefore, the success enjoyed by David Banner attributes to his following of the instructions given to him on account of seeking God as a way of finding peace with whomever he wanted to reconcile with other people. It is also through following the instructions of the preaching that Ms Givens can forgive Mr Banner, bringing in the possibility of them becoming lovers and a family once again when he proposes, and she says yes to his proposal.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the `Never Heard’ movie depicts how vital communication process is through the use of the essential elements in the communication, which in turn, aids in effective decision making.
References
Berezan, O., Yoo, M., & Christodoulidou, N. (2016). The impact of communication channels on communication style and information quality for hotel loyalty programs. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology.
Mortensen, M., Voutour, T. J., Gray, E., Anaruk, A., & Wilkinson, C. T. (2016). U.S. Patent No. 9,329,757. Washington, DC: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Webber, J. (Director). (2018). Never Heard [DVD]. Webber Films.