Happy-Go-Lucky (2008)

Director: 

Mike Leigh

Writer: 

Mike Leigh

Storyline

Happy-Go-Lucky gives an insight into a young women's life, Poppy Cross. Poppy is a primary school teacher in London, we see her take up her own hobby's and we also see her help to deal with some trouble children. During the story we see her Happy-Go-Lucky attitude towards life. 

Enigma codes

As soon as we see a picture some questions in the audiences minds are raised. Firstly we ask why she is travelling by bike? This then leads the viewer on to ask where she is going? Is she going to meet anyone? If so, who? We also ask who is the lady we can see? It soon becomes clear that she is the main character because she is the first person we see and she is also the main focus of the camera. However before this becomes clear another question would be is she the main character?

Mise-en-scene

From the first shot of Poppy we can see that she is in a city. It doesn't take long for the viewer to see that she is in London. The opening sequence for this film is quite different to the other social realist films I have looked and so it doesn't seem very conventional. Due to the small shots, quite quickly moving shots it is difficult to see much in a lot of detail. As the opening sequence nears it's end we can see in a lot more detail where she is and what she is wearing etc. The area she moves into doesn't look extremely nice however it is not as run down as your conventional social realist setting. She doesn't dress extremely smart which would suggest that she doesn't have as much money as some however she dresses colourfully and as you would expect for someone with a Happy-Go-Lucky attitude.

Lighting

It appears to be quite a nice day in the opening sequence of Happy-Go-Lucky and so the lighting is quite bright. This reflects the attitude of the main character Poppy and it also makes the audience feel happier and more relaxed about watching the film.

Characters

We only meet one in the opening sequence and that character is Poppy. Unfortunately we don't learn much about her character at all during the first few minutes and I think it's very difficult to tell much of her personality too. We know that she has a Happy-Go-Lucky attitude from the title of the film and her clothing also suggests this as does her actions. Throughout the whole of the opening sequence Poppy seemed to have a smile on her face which obviously shows she is happy!

Shot types

Whilst the titles are running we see a series of long shots and close-ups of Poppy on her bike.  The long shots give the viewer a sense of geography as we can almost make out where she is and it also allows us to see what she looks like, how she's travelling and what she is wearing which is enough to raise some questions within our minds. The close-ups allow us to see the emotion on Poppy's face which also allows us to ask questions but it also gives us a bit more information about the character as we can see that she is happy. 

Editing

Also whilst the titles are running the shots only fill half of the screen. They slide on and off screen leaving the rest of the shot space for the opening credits. I think that this is effective because it allows you to see what Poppy is doing but you can also see the titles. The action isn't too much and so it doesn't detract from the titles. As we get to the last shot with the titles it then spreads across the screen so the audience can now see the action full screen. The camera seems to allow Poppy to walk into the shot rather than already being focused on her. This is effective as it allows the audience to see where the location is and also makes the shot more interesting.

Sound

The sound during the opening sequence is almost all non diegetic sound. Most of the sound heard can only be heard by the viewers and it is soft, cheery music that we can hear. This sound fits in with the personality of our character as she is also very cheery. The sound fits with the pace of the editing of the shots because it's not too racy but it isn't too slow either. The only piece of diegetic sound we hear during the opening sequence is right at the end when the music becomes quieter. We hear the bell on the shop door and, to me, this signals the end of the opening sequence. 

This is the opening sequence to Happy-Go-Lucky. 

In my opinion the opening sequence ends at approximately 3:54 minutes in. I think that the bell on the door ends the opening sequence!