Romance opening scene analysis

Dear John opening scene analysis

Dear John’s opening scene is set by the beach during the summer, which is recognised as a romantic and beautiful place. The first shot is a close up of one of the main characters, he shows of his body to the audience and plays a part in the general convention of a romance genre as the male is usually very attractive which invites more woman to watch the film. The background has a shallow depth of field which allows the audience to focus on him and his emotions he is portraying, rather than anything else that may influence the audience to become distracted in the background. The shot cuts to an over the shoulder shot of a group of girls and boys sitting on the edge of the pier socialising together, throughout this, the non-diegetic soundtrack music is very happy and cheerful which can add to the romantic setting by the beach. 

As the shot zooms in more, one of the boys of the group sits on the edge of the pier but accidentally pushes a girls bags of the pier into the water, as the girl gasps and is in shock that she has lost her personal possessions, the shot becomes an over the shoulder shot again, implying that the main character is overlooking the situation. The boy, who we hear is called Brandon, apologises and run towards the sea to try and get this girls bag before it’s too late. But suddenly the main character heroically jumps 20ft into the sea to save the bag instead. We are shown a close up of the girls face which connotes shock that this man risked his life just to get her bag, the audience realise that this girl will also be the other main character which is seen a general convention of a romance film as both a man and woman meet and eventually fall in love. The shot cuts to the man swimming to the bottom of the ocean to find this girls bag, in the corner of the frame we are shown the title of the film but it does not stand out, connoting that the audience are meant to focus on the frame more than the title. The title is coloured in white which can connote purity and innocence which can also explain how the man and woman eventually fall in love. The scene cuts back to a medium shot of the girl who is still in shock that this man went to extreme measures for her possessions. The shot cuts back to the bag lying at the bottom of the sea and suddenly we see a hand reach for the bag, the camera moves into a medium shot of the man who pushes from the ground back up the shore, throughout this he is seen as very calm and peaceful, and to jump off of the pier and swim to the bottom of the sea can imply that he is fearless and strong. As he reaches to the top of the sea the shot cuts back to the girl, but instead of medium shot, it becomes a close up and her eyes do not leave the man who has saved her bag and possessions, connoting that she is fixated by his strength and bravery for a stranger such as herself.

The shot cuts to a long shot of the pier and Brandon, who originally pushed the bag off the pier in the first place, only just reaching the shore and getting ready to swim to the bag. The audience find humour in the fact that in the distance of the shot, we can see the male main character walking up to Brandon already with the bag in his hand. We are then shown a long shot of both Brandon and John- the main character; both characters jucstapose each other as Brandon is out of breath and now seems quite embarrassed that he could not save the bag, and john is already back on the shore and still calm and composed, even though he has just jumped off a pier and swam to the bottom of the ocean and managed to swim back and still not be out of breath. As John walks up to pass the bag to the girl, the shot cuts to the her running towards him thanking him, her facial expressions show that she is amazed that this stranger to her has risked his life to get her possessions for her. 

As both main characters meet for the first time, they introduce themselves and throughout this medium shot the audience is shown Brandon in between the two characters in the background, still trying to catch his breath which can be seen as humorous to the audience. The scene also shows pathetic fallacy as these two people have met for the first time and the sun is shining and the mood is set as very happy and content. 

During their conversation we are shown a shot reverse shot between  Savannah, the female main character, and John. At the end of their conversation, John starts to walk away; the shot cuts back to a close up of Brandon and Savannah who also start to walk away, the shot again cuts back to John who realises he has walked the wrong way and has to awkwardly turn back towards Savannah. The next shot is a high angle shot of Savannah turning back to walk beside John, the shot tracks both characters while they’re walking and talking to each other and the non-diegetic sound becomes louder throughout, this suggests that this is the start of their relationship which will only grow stronger throughout the film. Savannah invites john back to hers for a BBQ but john insists he stays a gentleman and explains how he has to get back to his father, but agrees to stay for a drink. The shot cuts to a close up of john who becomes shy as she is starting to win him over. The shot cuts to a long shot of him hitting him board against the pier accidentally, which makes him embarrassed and connotes to the audience that even though he is this strong brave character, inside he is still shy and definitely likes Savannah. The sun is starting to set in the background of the shot which adds to the pathetic fallacy and is a general convention of a romance film and the sunset can be compared to a romantic setting. The long shot then becomes a high angle shot zooming outwards and bringing more of the sunset and the beach into the frame ending the opening scene in a romantic and happy mood as both main characters walk off together, leaving the non-diegetic sound to become the dominant sound in towards the end.