Romance

Bridget Jones opening scene analysis

 

 

When this clip starts the first thing that the audience notice is the setting. It is a small flat with dimmed lighting connoting sadness. The fire on in the background shows a calm setting. The mis-en-scene is a lady lying down on the sofa hopelessly, in penguin pyjamas and messy hair suggesting that it is around Christmas time and a time of love however, she has nobody. She is under a blanket wrapped up inferring that she feels trapped in this life alone. The wine and cigarette buns catch your eye connoting that she is lonely and represented by sorrow and despair. The phone is rested on a sofa chair and is closest to the camera. This phone is effective being there as it is not connected suggesting that nobody is trying to call her anyway. Then the non-diegetic sound is added to help create the mood of loneliness. The song 'All by myself' playing in the background backs up all of these features we that have just said connoting loneliness. This is effective as some of the audience can relate such as middle aged women who are alone and want to watch a romantic movie to make them feel better and gain faith in love.   

The next shot is a medium shot of the TV as she sits on the sofa with nothing to do, in this shot you see many book games and board games expressing her life is boring and she has all of this to pass the time. The shot then fades into another shot of her flicking through magazines. As she puts the cigarette down and the smoke is cleared she checks the phone. "You have no new messages", just like we inferred. This is effective as again the audience can relate. As she removes herself from the camera you see a shot inside her house attracting you to the setting. She appears on the sofa suggesting time has passed. Non-diegetic sound has been added, it is piano. This has been added to still emphasise the loneliness as she sits there finishing a glass of wine in seconds. The music is slow paced and relaxing to represent the importance of the emotion we should be feeling.

The next shot is a medium shot of her sitting on the sofa, she is looking down at the floor telling us she has given up. The non-diegetic sound changes into another love song that she sits there a mimes too while weeping. As the song becomes more up beat we get less laziness from the character and more energy making the audience feel more power. It then converts into a long shot as the title appears. The title is bold and peachy following the conventions that it is aimed at a female audience. However, it is not a new shot and the character is still appeared in the title as she carries on singing "all by myself" with her hand openly pointed towards to title.

In this opening scene it didn't follow any cliches or much conventions. No boy met girl and there was no prince charming and it didn't follow conventions such as falling in love. However, we still understood it was a romance from this clip due to the mis-en-scene and sounds.