John meets Savannah on a beach, this is a romantic setting clearly showing the romantic genre of the movie from the beginning. John is on leave for two weeks and Savannah who is a college student has spring break. In these two weeks they fall in love. They each meet each others families and some friends, Savannah is also introduced to a key character. This is John's father who has an obsession with coins. We now realise that this is where the introduction of John at coin factories etc has came from. At this point, the movie begins to escalate and drama begins to unfold.
Before they leave each other at the end of the 2 weeks, they have an argument. This fight shows that even though they may want their love to be perfect, that fighting will still occur and is a test of their relationship.
They continue their relationship through letters and are expecting to build a life when he leaves the army. More drama is created when Savannah now breaks of the relationship, telling John how she has now engaged to another man. Their once, seeming to be unbreakable love, is gone. As well as this,m John's father is unwell, leaving his son in devastation. The audience have made emotional links with the characters at this point, showing the effectiveness the breaking of love and death can have on the audience even though they are not affected by the situation.
It turns out that Savannah is married Tim, a good friend of Johns, and is living with him and his son Alan. Tim has gotten cancer and he is at the hospital. John visits him there and Tim tells him that Savannah still loves him, giving the audience a confused feeling of what they now want to happen between these 2 main characters. Their relationship has a chance of being fixed, however, it is now in very a very delicate situation. John goes back to the war and two months later he receives a letter from Savannah telling him that Tim had died. In the last scene of the movie, they skip forward and we see John in civilian clothes and he is carrying a bike as he sees Savannah in a coffee shop. The film ends with the both of them hugging. The movie is concluded with a happy ending, leaving the viewers feeling uplifted and happy that happiness can be achieved after time with no hope and heartbreak.
John is a very kind person, who really takes care of Savannah. In the time before he meets Savannah and before he went to the army, he was a troublemaker. But this is how we see him in the movie. He has changed and also want to take a bit more responsibility with his father.
Savannah is the sweetest person. Her dream is to open up a camp for autistic children like Alan. But she had to put this plan away when her husband got cancer. She is also that kind of person everyone knows and care about.
This movie also includes mise-en-scene because John’s army costume backs up his story to make it believable. The setting of Dear John is very cinematic in a way where when the characters have a close up shot, you are still able to see the scenery behind them.
Dear John begins with, a Staff Sergeant in the United States Army Special Forces is lying on the ground in combat gear with multiple gunshot wounds to his body. Coins begin to fall over him as, in a voiceover, he recalls a childhood trip to the U.S Mint. He compares himself to a coin in the United States Military, and states that the last thing he thought about before he blacked out was "you".
The method used in the opening tittles gives an insight to what will occur later on the movie, but only some information is given therefor leaving the audience wanting to find out more. In addition to providing background information, this opening narration is important because it sets the overall tone of the movie. The titles are introduced in a simple manor, this gives more effect as it plays in with the romantic theme of the movie. The simplicity adds to the genre of love as it makes it seem more peaceful and natural. An almost dream like scene is made, the flash backs of the past with the softly spoken voice make it seem more at ease in contrast to the harsh images of the soldier being shot and badly injured. I think this entices the audience right from the beginning as they now know that something bad is going to happen in the latter scenes of the movie. I think this is very effective as it makes sure to hold the full attention of the viewers and almost ahas the left feeling effecting and emotional after this opening scene alone. 
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