Trailer Analysis

Dear John

The Title of the film is 'Dear John', this refers to letters sent to soldiers during war; these letters are break-up letters from partners back home, this suggests the plot of the story already. Furthermore, John is a very common name which suggests that this could happen to anyone who is in the a similar position. At the start of the trailer, the girl has her bag knocked into the sea and John rescues it for her; this suggests he is her hero and he has almost won her. The music as they get to know each other is very slow because it is showing the speed their relationship is building up at; as the music stops completely they kiss, this suggests the major plot in the film because it seems as if nothing is more important in this film than their relationship.

The film is also from the author of 'The Notebook', this film is very successful in the romantic genre and so the audience will have high expectations for Dear John. The actors in this film are Amanda Seyfried who typically does RomComs and Comedies, whereas Channing Tatum is mostly in comedies and action films, this type if film is very typical for Amanda Seyfried but not for Channing Tatum so the audience will be surprised to see him in the film and will have mixed expectations, however these are well-known actors and this could appeal more to the audience.

The tone in the trailer is represented by the setting, when it is lighter the characters seem cheerful and happy, however when it is darker the music intensifies and they seem to be crying and almost depressed; this is also an enigma code as it makes the audience wonder what has happened. Also, when they are together they are on a beach which is a romantic setting, however when they are apart John is in a war torn and depressing environment, this literally shows that when they are apart John is depressed and unhappy.

In the trailer it appears than John has a bad relationship with his father and Amanda Seyfried's character is almost like his mentor as well as the stock Princess character that he has to win. Then his father ends up in the hospital and he starts showing John some compassion; this is very generic to this genre and is recycled time and time again to play on the audiences emotions. This is also an enigma code because it makes the audience wonder what has happened to his father.

The only binary opposition suggested in the trailer is Love vs Chaos, this is because when they are together their lives are in order and they are happy, however, when they are apart they seem to be incredibly unhappy and John is actually at war. Moreover, there doesn't appear to be a real enemy or any forcing opposition which effects the characters. The audience is positioned to be a voyeur to their relationship as you are watching them as a third party and not through one of the characters eyes; this allows the audience to create their own interpretation of their relationship.

In the trailer she says it only took a few weeks for her to fall in love with him, this is very generic to the genre as it acts as if it was love at first sight and a very fairytale relationship, this appeals greatly to the audience as this is what many of them want to see. Furthermore, she says at the end of the trailer that 'a lot can happen in 12 months', this is definitely an enigma code as it makes the audience wonder what happened. 

Finally the characters in this film are very generic because the male character is very manly as he is part of the special forces yet he is incredibly emotional, many films like to use this type of character; this is appealing to mostly the female audience as he could appear to be attractive to them, and also the female character seems to be quite smart and it appears that she can ride horses as she was at a stable, she can also play the guitar which can appeal to the male audience as they may see her as very lustful and attractive.