Conclusion

Throughout this semester I have unintentionally focused on the family aspect of each film in some way. A characters development is often affected by their relationships with those closest to them, or in another sense, their family. The steps in making a romantic comedy are often easy to identify. Boy meets girl, boy and girl disagree, one or both realize that they are falling in love, someone does something to ruin the relationship, they realize that neither can live without the other, and then they reunite followed with years of happiness and love. However something that I think people forget about but is still important is the main characters relationships with those who surround them.

As human beings we are affected by who we surround ourselves with. We are shaped by what we hear and see and our views of love or other relationships are skewed according to our surroundings. One example of this is in “You’ve Got Mail” where Joe has an aunt and half brother who are significantly younger than he is due to his father’s and grandfather’s multiple marriages. This has seems to prompt Joe to look for the right relationship instead of the easy one. He seems determined to do things the “right way” and is willing to give up a sexual relationship for an emotionally fulfilling one. Joe sees his father and grandfathers relationships as flawed and while he has a good relationship with both he aunt and half-brother the choices that his family has made has affected how he choses to live his life.

“It Happened One Night” is another strong example of how a characters family can play a part in their behavior. Ellie’s choices to go against her fathers wishes in the beginning of the film is her way to fight and gain freedom from a relationship that she sees as oppressive. Her choices cause her to grow as a person and to recognize that her father does love her and that he did have her best wishes at heart. This relationship between a father and daughter is not an new phenomena and can be seen in many romantic comedy films. A father holds a large amount of control over his daughter and how she choses to deal with it is a major decision. Ellie’s surroundings while she lived with her father contributed to her naivety and she was forced to grow up a good bit because she had yet to do so.

In both these films the character’s choices are made in part due to the choices that their family has made. Each film represents a different end of the romantic comedy timeline but both highlight the idea that while our families might not be making our decisions for us they are still always there in a sense and their choices have a lasting impression on us.

While not all of the films have such a direct tie to family they all do follow the same pattern. The main character has a group that they identify with or a significant non romantic relationship that has had an effect on them either directly or indirectly. “Pillow Talk” has a different sort of family aspect due to the lack of blood relatives but instead has family that the character has chosen. People who the character has surrounded themselves with are just as significant as a mother or overbearing brother. Jan and Brad have both isolated themselves and therefore their relationships with others have a different dynamic. This isolation from others makes it harder for characters to open up and relate. Both are hard set in their ways and change does not seem possible because there is no one to disagree with them.

Having non-personal relationships can have just as strong of an effect on a character as deep ties to someone. When someone is surrounded by others who disagree than they either reevaluate their opinion or revolt and later realize who was right while having no personal relationships hinders personal growth and eventually the person becomes so lonely that they seek out conflict and then come to understand the significance of what others think and that change might be necessary for them to be happy.



The importance of family and relationships with non-romantic characters was not something that I noticed at first but always seemed to linger in the back of my mind. However after looking through other responses and reflecting on the films along with discussions about the films I realized that it had been something that was prevalent in each film. In some films it was much more subtle and did not play as major of a role as in others but it was most certainly a part of each film. The family dynamic is one that does not go away even if someone’s genetic family is not around. Instead relationships push and aid characters in realizing what they want and who they want to be.