Love Actually: On the voice over and representing genre

Love Actually is said to be one of the most successful British rom com films to date, with an impressive ensemble of big name actors and actresses filling its scenes. Aside from this obvious reason for its popularity, it is also very successful in its easy merging of elements from both genres; romance and comedy. In the opening 2 minutes of the film, we see elements from both the genres directly juxtaposed against each other, effectively establishing genre in the first few minutes.

The first thing we see on screen is a muted montage of shots from an airport arrivals area. Some of these are slowed down somewhat, which adds far more impact to the reuniting of these nameless people. It reflects the idea that time stands still in a moment you want to capture. A voice over then begins, over lapping with these images and interweaving them. This voice over instantly draws the audience into the film and allows them to connect with a character they haven't even seen yet through just a voice. It adds a sense of vulnerability to the character as we can hear his thoughts. The voice matches well with the mise en scene of the scene as it is calm, soothing and informative. Also, many people would recognise the well known actor that speaks the lines, thus leading to the cliché idea of attractive male leads in rom coms. There is, along with this, faint music playing underneath the voice which lends an endearing quality to the scene, one of warmth and comfort. It easily reflects the feeling of love and happiness.

On the subject of titles, the main title of the film appears as part of the dialogue. The phrase "Love actually is all around" appears word by word, timed exactly to the voice over. As pointed out by a member of our class, the colouring of the words has been used interestingly. The centre word "is" has been highlighted in red, perhaps a subtle reference to the classic "I <3 ?" design.

It is after this that the audience is first introduced to the comedy aspect of the film. Another of the main characters, a male failing rock icon, is shown to be recording a new version of a classic, cheesy love ballad. This could again, be referencing the idea that this film plans to put a new twist on the rom com genre. This section is also purely comedy, compared to the scene prior to it, which was purely based on what love is and means.

Love Actually Opening minute