In The Fault In Our Stars' opening two minutes men, women, older and younger people are all represented. The opening represents young people as those who are having the biggest problems; cancer. Although the parents and doctors are also going on the "same journey" as them it is obvious to the audience that the real story is going to be about the 17 year old Hazel Grace Lancaster. We have a representation of Hazel as a naturally pretty, young girl who just so happens to have cancer, shown by the gas tube going across her face and into her nose. In such a short time the audience sees women as strong and flexible but there is nothing to compare this to apart from the support group leader who is soppy and emotional, therefore the traditional stereotypes so far of men and women are challenged.
Audience:
The target audience of TFIOS is teens, due to the majority of the cast being youthful but also it establishes the idea that there will be teenage topics discussed: love, relationships, teen cancer and sex. It can also be considered to have a popular girl following as the book was very successful in the teen girl audience. The audience would consume this text in order to escape from their own lives into either a love or cancer story, to identify what they nope to obtain in the future i.e love and happiness but also it allows the audience to see what their lives could have been like and therefore appreciate what they have. An audience member may also consume this text in order to aim for a relationship similar to the one shown through Hazel and Augustus in terms of love not the cancer side of it and by the audience viewing this film it can become a talking point between friends and so can establish a relationship in that sense. As the film is based on the best selling book by John Green this could extend the target audience to any age that would have read the book and then chose to view the film.
Institutions:
The producer of TFIOS is 20th Century Fox which is a media conglomerate. It is a large production and distribution company which may suggest why they chose to make a film from a well known, best- selling novel.
Media Language:
The text is communicating messages of love, the effects of cancer on relationships not only within in the family but also teen relationships and how positivity can be displayed by all even in the worst of situations. These messages are communicated through Hazel and through various tools used by the media. The first being the typography of the sub titles; they are of a childlike, handwriting type and so fit in well with the target audience of teens. The messages of love is communicated through the quick editing of the flash forward of Hazel and Augustus' love story; the kissing in the street followed by what the audience can only expect to be a sex scene, shows the possibility of a love story to brew between the two characters even if the audience has not yet directly met Augustus but from an analysis angle it can be understood as this flash forward being a dream Hazel wishes to have where she is cancer free and in love; further backed up by Hazel in the local shopping mall where she looks at a couple kissing and and appears to be jealous.
There is an establishment of the main character within the first few seconds of the film when the audience sees an extreme close up of Hazel's eyes and then face. This shows the audience who the film will be about but also it makes the oxygen tube instantly recognisable to the audience showing that she once was a normal healthy girl but soon we realise she is not any more; she is only dreaming about what her life would be like without cancer which results in multiple shots without her oxygen tubes followed by her shutting her eyes and then rejoining reality.
The use of non-diegetic sound through Hazels voice over behind her blankly looking at stars because it does not occur in the word of the text which also gives the audience a sense of the story line and as she begins to talk it allows the audience to predict how sad the film intends to be. The exact quote said by Hazel talking about sugar coating sad stories, "it's just not the truth... this is the truth", which
gives a negative, mysterious effect on the audience that wants to find out more. The audience then discovers that her normal life is sitting at home watching TV, going to doctors appointments and then going to support group but the rest of Hazels life will not be shown until later in the film. The use of a long shot (below) shows Hazel's normal lunch much like any other persons but then it closes in on her two pill bottles; establishing her as a cancer patient trying to live a normal life. Following this the audience experiences an extreme close up of the book 'An Imperial Affliction' which states "pain demands to be felt" this is emphasised as it has been circled by Hazel and it suggests to the audience that this quote will play a part within the film as it is focused on for a few seconds.
Narrative:
The theory of Todorov applies to the text through his five stages: The equilibrium is the normal day to day life of Hazel, the disruption is when Hazel meets Augustus but the audience does not within the first three minutes show the recognition, restoration or resolution.
The theory of Levi-Strauss applies to the text through the many possible binary opposites which can be drawn; love and hate, healthy and unhealthy, adult and child, young and old etc.
Genre:
The genre is romance but the hybrid- genre is romantic comedy-drama. The audience is able to understand this through the use of different generic conventions: couples, happiness, break-ups, video games and the Amsterdam trip. The genre of a chosen film is very important in securing views from the audience in particular, for example an audience member may choose to see TFIOS because of the cast but mainly due to the story line and therefore genre.
Summary:
In conclusion, the first 3 minutes of TFIOS is a slow pace clip but it does allow the audience to get a rough jist of the story line but yet it does not give the whole story away. Although the audience can understand parts of the upcoming scenes due to Hazel's dream but it is not enough to reveal the entire film and therefore still encourages the audience to continue watching it.
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