Definitely, Maybe

definitely, maybe

From the producers of Notting Hill and Love Actually, Universal Pictures presents 'definitely, maybe.' Starring Ryan Reynolds- an upcoming star whose well recognised face in recent years is stealing every leading male role in the Rom-Com genre films. Starring alongside Sandra Bullock in 'The Purposal.' Also in this film, actresses such as Rachael Weisz and (Wedding Crasher)'s Isla Fisher. Not forgetting the incredible young actress, Abigail Breslin who's movie's include 'Little Miss Sunshine' & 'My sister's keeper.' 

With an undoubtably great cast of young hollywood, comes a great location for this Romantic Comedy- New York City.

The main plot, follows William Hayes (Reynolds), as he talks to his daughter Maya Hayes (Breslin)-just after a sexual education day breaks an out cry at her school- about his previous lovers, in a storybook fashion, using flashbacks to his young adult years. In order for Maya to guess which out of the three women mentioned is her mother- who William at the present time is divorcing.  

We see Hayes sitting in his office, a medium shot of him sitting at his desk, with diagetic noise being sounded from a prop 'pen' as he clicks it. Opening Credits appear in white text at the bottom, right-hand corner of a black screen between the brief scenes in the first five minutes of the movie.

We see him opening a letter- in a close-up, containing which is apparent divorce papers in the extreme close-up. The actors voice-over sets up an in-sight to what is currently happening in his life, which makes the extreme close-up of the papers more understandable to the audience. " I don't think anyone on their wedding day, thinks they'll ever be apart of the 47% of people who don't live happily ever after."

On the contrary, the scene develops with contrasting news and is apparent by a female collegues diagetic conversation (a medium shot of her), that William Hayes is doing well in his working life, cross-cutting back to a close up of him.

His voice over carries on to explain what he does for a living and implicates to the audience the extent of the scenery- the high raised office bulding in which he sits in seemingly fed up. The audience can see this is a high rised building due to the buildings which surround the office, through its windows. In a medium-long shot, perched in his chair, with his hand, over his face.

It cuts to a long- shot of him putting in his blazer and then to him leaving the building and into a busy city, which is apparent to be New York City- which we later find out. The voice over is still explaing various things but at this present time, he talks about his favourite days are those that he gets out early to pick up his daughter from school.

A mixture of shots are used as the charater puts in his headphones and talks about the perfect track for that day. Close-up, of his hand putting the ear piece in each ear and the same shot for the prop which is his MP3 player. Non-diagetic sound comes into the scene, which is music that is meant to be coming from the music player into his ears.

The screen splits into various arrangments, futhering the conformation of the City that he is in, with key features behind the close-ups and medium-long shots of him, i.e yellow cabs and the chrysler building. Non-diagetic sound is still playing from the music Hayes turned on from the mp3, as he walks across the city with the opening credits applied on screen.

At 3.57 minutes the screen expands again after the last credit has played out. Hayes is seen walking into what we find out is his daughters school, where mayhem has broken loose due to the children asking their parents about sexual relations, after a lesson at school.

As a romantic comedy would, this is one of the funny scenes in the film. As we see a group of no older than 11year old boys reading a book, ingrosed in sexual reproductive system. It is put across in away that the audience can laugh and enjoy the comical value of it.

Here, his daughter-Maya, is then introduced as the second main character in the plot. A cross-cutting between the main characters, introduces her at face value with the close up on an un-impressed Maya and a cautious Will. The action is very well edited so the cuts are clean into the characters development and movement. A long-shot is used, as the pair walk through the city towards the camera.