Love Actually

 

Love Actually

'Love Actually' is a romantic comedy which is hugely popular to watch at Christmas. The opening of this film is of an older male trying to sing a recognisable song. The song is a soft sounding song which is usually found in the opening of a romance because the tune is usually high. This makes the audience understand that this is a romance.

The characters in this opening are dressed smartly suggesting that the people are higher classed and that they have an important job. With the older man, he starts out wearing a colourful top which suggests that he is not the usual expectation of an old man. Also, as he swears a lot he may come across as being rude and disrespectful but in a funny manner. The other men with him in the recording studio all seem to dislike the man as he keeps messing up. As the scene changes into the shopping centre, the characters change as they are all dressed in coats and scarfs with the Christmas feel. This scene makes the audience see the expectation of Christmas with families smiling and laughing which is what Christmas is meant to be about. The audience may feel that they can relate to the film as they have experiences with Christmas which will be happy times and also some sad times but overall they will be able to see the meaning of Christmas and what it is about.

The camera shots of the opening scene changes between medium shots, close up, and long shots. These are all there for the audience to gain more of an understanding of what the characters are like and their personalities by the way they are standing with body language and in facial expressions. The close up in this opening is where the old man is singing and the camera use of a close up allows the audience to know what the character is feeling. The medium shots at the beginning of the new setting allow the audience to know the change in setting and also the time of year. In this case it is at Christmas as the camera starts at a low angle shot and pans up the Christmas tree. There is also a long shot of the shopping centre which allows the audience to know the setting and to also engage into the film as they will want to know what is going to happen. Also the long shot may allow the audience to relate to the film by the past experiences.

There are some enigma codes which attract the audience. Some include the many characters which are involved in the film which will engage the audience more as they will want to find out what happens to each of them. Also, the change of character in every scene which might attract the audience's attention because they will want to see the outcome of each of the characters and if they manage to find love. By having such famous actors and actresses in the film, the audience might be more engaged to the film as they will want to see the attractive couples in the film. These well-known actors may attract a wider audience because they will be recognised from different film.