Overview of Findings

After analysing five openings and three whole films of the genre teen romance, we have gathered an in depth, detailed overview of what a successful opening should look like. To conclude our findings, we have took a note of what we found was common throughout the openings and the whole films

Full length film analysis 

Stock Settings

Findings;  

• Throughout many of the films me and other people in my group analysed, there would commonly be a contrast between urban and rural settings. A stock setting of many of the films are inner city areas however, there is sometimes an occasion in which the main characters visit a more rural area such as a beach. Textual Evidence; of this would be be that in films such as Princess Diaries, A Cinderella Story and New York Minute, the whole film is set in an urban area, however in The Last Song, the main character moves from New York City to a beach setting in southern Georgia. 
• High schools were also a stock setting throughout a lot of the films our group analysed.  This is a common concept of teenage life to attend high school therefore is a obvious setting to be used to show their lifestyles. Textual Evidence; of this would be films such as Mean Girls, A Cinderella Story and Never Been Kissed which use the high school the main characters attend as their stock setting. 
• We also found that it appears to be key to introduce the stock setting or region as a whole first before the characters are introduced. 

Stock Characters 

Findings; 

• The stock characters were very much so the pretty, blond and popular female character who falls for the handsome, 'jock' type male figure. This links to the fairytale type of storyline. Textual Evidence; of this would be in Mean Girls when Regina George gets with Aaron Samuels and also in Dear John. 
• The main male character often has a key interest in a certain sport. Textual Evidence; of this would be Will in The Last Song, Aaron in Mean Girls, and Austin in A Cinderella Story. The sport varies but usually makes them a popular 'jock' character.
• We also found that another common pairing was for the female character to be an outcast and more geeky who happens to get together with the 'hot' male character. Textual Evidence; of this is used in A Walk to Remember, Princess Diaries, Mean Girls, A Cinderella Story. 
• The stock characters are usually part of a particular clique, whether this is the female or male characters, and the cliques tend to be very separate from each other and don't involve in social activities with each other. Textual Evidence; this is displayed very well in Mean Girls, A Cinderella Story and Step Up.

Themes

Findings; 

• Love and romance are the obvious themes displayed in all of these films because of the genre being teen romance and these are displayed through various different features.
• Death of a close family member commonly appears to be apparent in this genre as it affects the main character. Textual Evidence; of this would be in films such as Raise Your Voice, A Cinderella Story, The Last Song. 
• Jealousy is often portrayed as a theme towards the popular girls, as the outcast girls often are shown to feel threatened by them. Textual Evidence; Mean Girls portrays this aspect with Cady attempting to become like the popular girls and succeeds.
• Heartbreak and a 'rollercoaster of events' within the relationship often occur in teen romances due to other people.

Narrative

Findings; 

• The typical narrative we found throughout many of the whole, individual films we looked at to start with introducing us to the main character in which the film focuses on, usually popular or an outcast type character, then to meet a boy. As the relationship progresses, there are ups and downs which affect this relationship. In most cases this returns to a happy ending. Textual Evidence; of this would be in practically all the films we watched. Films such as Dear John are affected more in a negative way than others.
• Some of the films end on a more negative note. Textual Evidence; in A Walk To Remember, the main female character dies due to cancer. 

Iconography

Findings; 

• In the US, drinking is illegal under the age of 21 however a lot of the films show an element of drinking within teenagers such as at house party's. This shows the rebellion within teenagers and that this is a common  Textual Evidence;  Mean Girls and The Last Song show this. They also show sex, drugs as well as alcohol and this is a common concept which surrounds the teenage generation.
• Cars are often shown in the films which are set in the US which means driving is legal at the age of 16. 

Film Opening Analysis 

 

Creating an enigma 

Findings; 

• Almost all of the films watch create some sort of enigma, whether this is by not showing characters or not highlighting setting, we are still left needing to know more information. An example, in Step Up, we are not shown any key characters and only shown vague examples of what the setting is like. The use of this helps to keep the audience engaged by using the element of surprise, as they will be left longing to know what happens.
• They are a very common element to use and appear to be successful. 

Introduce Key Characters
Findings; 

• Characters are often not introduced until the end of the opening sequence as they seem to be secondary to setting, for example in Princess Diaries. 
• Characters are often introduced in their primary setting, usually their home for example in a Princess Diaries and New York Minute.

Introduce Key Themes

Findings; 

• Step Up shows a key contrast between two groups of people which helps identify the possible themes of jealous or rivalry between the two groups being displayed.
• A Cinderella Story introduces the immediate theme of love between the girl and her father which doesn't necessarily reflect on teen romance, but still highlights the theme of love for a family member

Introduce Genre

Findings; 

• Many of the films introduce stock settings in which we would associate with this genre for example, with Step Up, we see a place in which two groups appear to socially interact through dance and for the two groups of people, this could be where they commonly interact with each other. 
• Family is often associated strongly with the genre of teen romance as teenagers, in most cases, live with their parents as they have no reached adulthood yet. A Cinderella Story shows this aspect in the opening sequence by her father and her being the main focus. Also, in Princess Diaries we see the main girls mother.

Use of Titles

Findings;  

• The titles are very often in brighter colours, with the exception of A Walk To Remember and New York Minute, we often see yellows, pinks, reds which connote the romance but also the innocence of youth. The black which is occasionally used could connote the rebellious attitudes towards life. 
• Not many people, especially teenagers being their target audience, take much notice to the titles, this is why although some of the films do take up around a minute purely through title sequences for example