Season 1, Episode 1: All The Way (1974)
Genre: Comedy
When Richie Cunningham ends up babysitting for a night with a girl who has a reputation, his expectations are high. Will they be exceeded or shattered?
Happy Days was created by Garry Marshall and ran from 1974-1984 for a total of 255 episodes over 11 seasons. It follows the lives of the members of the Cunningham family, especially the main character, Richie Cunningham (Ron Howard) along with Fonzie (Henry Winkler).
Analysis:
Mise en scene:
The main setting of Happy Days is the Cunningham's home, in which props are used which signal the decade that it is set in. The colours of blue, and beige that are most prominent in the kitchen, show that the Cunningham's are a standard working class, all-American family, which is backed up by the narratives of the episodes, such as this one, which shows Richie has similar desires to other guys his age. Therefore, this show exhibits a lot of realism.
Cinematography:
The most common types of shots used are tracking shots as the characters often move around whilst talking, but also medium shots when they are stationary and having conversations. This makes it seem like the viewer is observing the action from the point of view of an invisible character in the world of the show, helping them to feel more included and therefore, make the show more 'real'.
Editing:
The pace of cuts is slow, as the scenes are shown as if being played out in real time. However, during the title sequence, the individual actors are introduced, so the pace is quicker as short segments of them are shown.
Sound:
Because of the effect the viewer is watching everyday life, the sound is mainly diegetic, such as the characters talking, or cars moving, but there is also non-diegetic sound such as the theme song and a laugh-track, which although not a part of the narrative, is from a live studio audience. This gives the actors something to react to when performing, making it more genuine, but also connects the audience members to one another as it signals to them that there are others who understand and enjoy what they do.
Review:
Overall, I enjoyed this episode because I found it interesting to see Ron Howard as an actor as I am more used to seeing him as a director of films such as Apollo 13 and Cocoon. My favourite part of the episode was the story-line as it did not go as I expected but instead had a cleverer ending. I also found the settings of the houses and diner impressive as they were authentic to the era the show is set in. However, I didn't find the beginning of this show as funny as other American sitcoms I have seen from this era, such as The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970), mainly because I found that I couldn't relate to the characters as much. After this episode, I think I would like to watch more of Happy Days to see how the characters and plot will develop after the pilot episode.
Comments
Post a Comment