[FILM ANALYSIS] Notting Hill (opening scene)

Analyse how the opening of Notting Hill establishes rom-com genre conventions andreaches the target audience through technical codes, characterisation and narrative.

Romantic Comedy films, or Rom-Coms, are comedy films usually based around the theme of two people falling in love, and the events caused by this relationship. "Notting Hill" is a popular UK rom-com about a recently divorced man living with a Welsh roommate, who runs a travel bookshop in London when he meets, and falls in love with, a Hollywood actor. The film was written by Richard Curtis, who is famous for writing rom-coms and TV shows such as Four Weddings and a Funeral, Blackadder and the Vicar of Dibley, as well as founding Comic Relief.

Richard Curtis' fame and experience means he has a lot of influence over the rom-com film market, making "Notting Hill" a good example of a romantic-comedy, using a number of common film conventions.

THEME

In most rom-com films, the main characters in the film meet through unusual circumstances - for example, in Notting Hill, the character of Anna Scott (Julia Roberts) happens to go into the sop owned by Will Thacker (Hugh Grant), before they meet again in the street. This is a recurring theme in rom-com films, with another theme being that at least one of the main characters is an ordinary, everyday person, while the other holds some sort of fame - for example, in Notting Hill, Anna is a famous Hollywood actress, while Will is a shopkeeper.

Side characters, who serve the purpose of comic relief, make up a large part of the conventions of rom-coms. These characters mainly serve the purpose of adding comedy to the film, while occasionally providing to the plot. For example, the character of Spike (Rhys Ifans, shown right) plays a minor role in the main plot, but provides a lot of the comedy in the opening scene.

MISE-EN-SCENE
In rom-coms, use of costumes reflect the mood of the character, and the film in general. Most characters wear very casual clothes, to show that they are all just average, everyday people. However, their costumes will still make use of bright colours, to give the film a lighter mood. For example, Will is seen wearing a blue, unbuttoned shirt, making him seem very calm and casual. Anna (shown left) is an exception to this rule - she is seen wearing all black, with a large hat and sunglasses. The hat and glasses make her seem like she is trying to hide herself, while the use of black could show her desire to remain unnoticed. However, the hat and sunglasses are still very fashionable, showing that she is very important.

The use of the scene itself also reflects on the film's mood - the film takes place on a street full of shops, with most of the shops having brightly-coloured store fronts. It is also very sunny in most of the shots, although the street itself seems to just be a regular street in London. As well as giving the idea that the people in this scene are ordinary people, the combination of bright colours and sunny weather make the scene seem lighter and happier.

CAMERAS AND EDITING
The opening titles of Notting Hill are made up of the names of the cast and crew involved in the production of the film, occasionally written in cursive writing, and transitioning in over a montage of different awards ceremonies and other special events. The use of the montage sets the mood for the film - the clips and text transition through slow fades, and the people in the clips seem to be quite happy. These clips also break some conventions of films, such as the 180° rule, as the clips are from a number of different locations and clips. The text also makes use of bright colours, such as white and light green (shown right) to add to the light atmosphere.

In the first scene of the film, when Will is walking down the road, the camera pans along the street to show him in the middle of the shot, with the surroundings behind him usually being relevant to what he is talking about at the time, which helps set the scene of the film.

AUDIO
The film uses popular songs made by a band outside of the film production company (third-party). These songs are not unique to the film, unlike other soundtracks, but are instead licensed for use by the production team. This gives the film a real-world feel, as the songs are real songs, not just songs written for the film. This also gives the film an interesting and varied soundtrack, as you get a wide variety of songs.

CONCLUSION
Rom-Com films try to relate to people in the real world by giving the film a real world feel - real locations, real songs, real people, etc. Use of elements such as soundtrack and mise-en-scene help to reflect this real world feel, and "Notting Hill" manages to make use of these elements and more in the opening scene of the film.