Comparing and contrasting Romantic comedies

The two romantic comedies I was comparing and contrasting were how to lose a guy in ten days directed by  Perrie made in 2002 starring Kate Hudson  and Just like heaven directed by Mark Waters made in 2008 . The first difference between these two films is they are made by two different studios so there is bound to be differences between the two films of the same genre. Just like heaven belongs to DreamWorks which was created by Spielberg and How to lose a guy in ten days was created by paramount, However DreamWorks is part of paramount.

The beginning of How to lose a guy in ten days starts off with the incidental music starting when the studio titles appear and continues throughout the titles creating a sound bridge. Which creates the atmosphere of a fun bouncy uplifting feel to the movie from the word go. This is different to the incidental music at the beginning of red dragon and Halloween as the music in both of those particular films was very dark and dreary so you instantly know this film is the polar opposite to that. The colours in this movie also contrasts to those present  in the horrors as the titles were red , and black in the horror titles whereas in this romantic comedy the titles are pink and orange and look very subtle and soft which is very stereotypical of romance and love. The images behind the title are also very female orientated as there are bright glossy magazines with female related queries.

In comparison to horror the main character is introduced in these opening titles where in Halloween the characters were not introduced until after the titles had ended. This is shown visually by her being present in the articles and clips of her life springing up and sliding on to the screen. This Creates the effect also of a magazine being photo shopped for one of her articles. The bounce to the titles also gives a lively atmosphere which is stereotypical of a romantic comedy as everything is seen to be perfect. As the final title swipes in “the lose a guy” part of the film title is bolder implying this will be her next article.

Both Romantic comedies present two very independent empowered successful women with glamorous jobs such as in How to lose a guy in ten days the women is a magazine journalist whereas in Just like heaven she is a doctor. Both jobs are very respectable implying this is a key feature of romantic comedies (for the main woman to be this powerful figure). Another similarity between the two romantic comedies is the fact there titles stem into their main action and don’t stop until about four minutes into the film. Implying this also is a key convention of this genre, this along with the sound bridge at the start of both films as the studio title appears infers the genre is a rom com as it sets the atmosphere instantly as upbeat and exciting in both films. Both romantic comedies also contain well known popular songs such as Katie Melua whose song features in Just like heaven suggesting romantic comedies aim to be up to date and with the times so there films see fresher and more realistic.

As How to lose a guy in ten days continues into its opening scene two girls are presented as friends and colleagues from there closeness and banter which is stereotypical of girls having girly chats about boys. As the titles end the last name is the directors this is the same in Just like heaven inferring this is the person of main importance. The main actor is then presented to us. It is made obvious this is the main male in the film as he very attractive and handsome which is stereotypical of all male leads in these types of films the same is apparent in Just like heaven. The man is wearing a leather jacket and riding a motor bike suggesting a stereotypical rebel character giving him the appearance of someone very cool and good-looking, therefore living up to obvious male lead role. The woman in the scene with the male lead are power dressing again creating the idea of a perfect world where women have dream jobs and therefore the audience aspires to be like them.

Like How to lose a guy in ten days the title background in Just like heaven is formed of pink fluffy colours implying the genre of this movie is also romantic comedy as pink is a connotation of romance. After the studio title mentioned previously the camera then switches to an aerial shot floating down, rotating down to a rose garden and again roses are a connotation of love. The clouds the camera floats through is a play on words because the word in the of film title “heaven” give a connotation of clouds. This is revealed as a daydream which is stereotypical of women who dream of a perfect world.


Like How to lose a guy in ten days her job is evident as she is wearing a green medical outfit a connotation of doctor. The titles continue as mentioned previously as the action continues and the female lead is revealed as an overworking friendly girl shown by a close up of the coffees she keeps drinking which is a connotation of tiredness but also determination to work to the best of her ability as she does not stop. The shot reverse shot between her and her sister reveal her sister to have the opposite life to her as she has a family and kids where it is revealed the female lead only has her job as her co workers say to her in the bathroom “at least you only have work to worry about”.

This is different to How to lose a guy in ten days ,even though romance is the centre role the background story is very different implying there is a wide diversity in the different types of rom coms available.

In conclusion there are wide range of similarities and difference in these rom coms but in the opening sequence there is a lot of similar conventions that are presented as always being  used  in romantic comedies  such as the vast majority of songs being  played throughout as in both films as the songs are instantly springing u again and again suggesting this is used too help the story along and reveal what is happening to the characters  more clearly through song. Both books are novels this is why they may have been made into movies as there is already an existing audience for them.