Love
Actually
The shots in this opening are very well done. On each of the shots of people kissing and/or
showing love to each other, while leaving everything else around it out of
focus, concentrating the audience's attention on the lovers. In most of the
shots the lovers may not be obvious if the camera hadn't made everyone else out
of focus, and this helps with the concept that love actually is all around.
Another effect which is engaged is the slow-motion when people are moving at a
fast pace, for instance someone is being lifted up in the air. This might be
the effect that the film is working for that love is perfect and its great.
At the end, the text comes up on screen saying 'love
actually is all around', in time to the narrator saying it. This would make the audience read it and listen to it, making the audience remember it and put it into their heads. Looking back on the
scene the audience can see how it all relates to the point through the
dialogue, and it all just slots nicely together.
The Notebook
The movie
focuses on an old man reading a story to an old woman in a nursing home. The
story he reads follows two young lovers named Allie Hamilton and Noah Calhoun,
who meet one evening at a carnival. But they are separated by Allie’s parents
who disapprove of Noah’s unwealthy family, and move Allie away. After waiting
for Noah to write her for several years, Allie meets and gets engaged to a
handsome young soldier named Lon. Allie, then, with her love for Noah still
alive, stops by Noah’s 200-year-old home that he restored for her, “to see if
he’s okay”. It is evident that they still have feelings for each other, and
Allie has to choose between her fiancé and her first love.
The trailer opens with a soft tune from a piano creating a
happy calm atmosphere, which is well suited to the setting of the white house
which overlooks the lake. It carries on through the trailer creating an idyllic
picture of their lives.
The diegetic sound of the bicycle bell and the teenagers
laughing shows the young, childlike characteristics they still possess.
There is a voiceover introducing the characters and
explaining their relationships, the voiceover also gives the audience a summary
of the plot.
However part of this voiceover comes from one of the main
characters played by James Garner, who reads the same story to his wife, who is
suffering from dementia, in a bid that she will remember that the couple in the
book, was actually him and her. When he’s coming to the end of the story, the
Elder version of Annie asks the question that all the audience will want to
know the answer to “who does she choose?” this creates excitement and makes the
audience want to see who she finally chose.
The trailer moves slowly from one clip to another, fading
into each clip makes it seem like the perfect love story, going to the present
time when they are older reminiscing back to when they were young and fell in
love.
Within this trailer we see the struggle they went through to
be together but still holding the question who did she choose. Problems like
social class are shown where they are sat around the dinner table talking about
how much they earn, Noah the lead male is dressed in a black shirt making him
stand out and be seen as different compared to the other characters in this
scene who are dressed in white.
It then has a shot of the title of the film, it’s a brown
and black background with handwriting in the back ground, “the Notebook”
appears in the centre of the shot and has a white light behind it making it
stand out more to the audience. The font of the title and the background
writing gives the impression of someone has written the story in their
notebook.
Comparison
Both films had strong beginnings, and both gave the audience
something to think about. 'Love Actually' and 'The Notebook' start the
audience off with a positive, happy frame of mind. Although, 'The
Notebook' ends off in tears! Both techniques work well for the films they
are a part of, and both set up the mood of the film very clearly.
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