There are a lot of particular techniques which help the movie makers to create specific structure of the movie, to make it interesting and capturing. Moreover, many directors refer to the special way of telling the background information about the characters, substituting the boring flashbacks and description with the subtext.
Subtext is the specific technique when the background information about the character or the events is told as the part of the dialogues, the part of the movie. The viewer gets to know more and more about the characters and the movie becomes more understood, the behavior and actions of the characters more motivated and obvious.
Gehring (2010) “These self-referential moments, which will be limited to actual film footage introduced into the narrative, tell the viewer something about a central character or add an ironically insightful subtext to the picture.” (p. 68). Watching The Hangover (2009) and Due Date (2010), it becomes obvious that the subtext plays an important role here, even those the purposes of the technique are different.
The Hangover (2009) is the story about friends who have decided to have a hangover in Las Vegas. Having driven to the city and having rented a room in the hotel, friends go to the roof remembering their college times and drink for a good night. The morning in the hotel is awful, friends find a tiger in their bathroom, a child in the room and cannot find the groom.
The Wedding is in several hours and friends are unable to remember what happened and try to recollect the previous night in minds by pieces. The movie structure is particular as the heroes find out the events of the previous night vise versa, noticing some things or using the hints they have. Piece by piece the heroes find out where they were yesterday remembering the events and trying to find the groom.
The disappearance of the groom is one of the most disturbing facts as the wedding is soon and friends do not know what they are to tell to the bride. Finally, when all of the places have been visited, when all of the events are recollected and the stories are told, friends appear at a deadlock. However, they remember the situation which happened to them when they were in college and the mattress at the roof.
At the end of the story, friends understand that they were to live the previous night in reverse order as they got to know each other better, they remembered the times they were younger and could allow themselves to have fun.
These people were together for many years, they came through many situations and when they appeared in the complicated one they managed to solve the trouble referring to their memories. The subtext plays an important role in this movie as it shows the friendship relationships and the role of the memories.
Turning to the discussion of the Due Date movie, it should be stated that the role of the subtext is different here. The movie structure does not differ from the most movies where the events flow, but the role of the subtext is special.
The main characters get to know each other by means of the subtest, telling the stories of their lives, presenting the events which do not have any connection to the main plot the characters become closer. Many events happen in the movie and most of them are not related to the plot, to the main idea of the traveling. Two main characters appear in different situations which prevent them from their final destination.
The subtexts, additional stories and absolutely strange people which appear on the way of main characters help them become closer to each other even though it seems that those events, vise versa, distract them. The role of the subtext is different here in comparison with The Hangover.
Comparing and contrasting The Hangover and Due Date from the point of view of the structure and the subtexts, it should be stated that the difference is laid in the way the events are presented and in the way the subtext is provided.
The Hangover shows the versa structure, when the events are recollected in the reverse order, while in Due Date the main characters just drive to the place of final destination dropping in some places on their way. The role of subtext is different as well. In The Hangover the director wanted to show that being friends from college, people have the same associations, they are able to think and act in one and the same direction.
The stories about Mike Tyson and a baby which come along just show the attitude of friends to the same events which are not related to the main idea of their search.
Additionally, trying to find the groom the friends appear in the situations whish show that they know each other pretty good, they are able to predict the behavior and thought which could be in this or that situation. The scene, where they understand where the groom is, is the confirmation of the fact that the college friendship is the closest.
The role of the subtext is to show how people are going to behave in the situations different from their usual environment, to show the real nature of people and to make sure that the viewer is able to understand the background information about some of the characters.
The behavior in the strange situations and in their natural environment is different, that is why trying to show the characters from different angles and in various circumstances the director of the movie tries to avoid the discussion and portrayal of the characters which my be boring. The director of these two movies gives the viewer and opportunity to get to know the characters themselves.
Moreover, the distraction from the main line of the discussion helps the director to pursue several purposes and to offer the viewer several lines of the plot. Even though the subsidiary lines are too short to impact the mood of the movie, they make the presentation vivid and avoid the routine.
Therefore, it may be concluded that the role of the subtext is crucial in the movies even though this specific technique implementation does not affect the central plot line. The subtext helps to understand the main characters better and influences the attitude of the viewers to the movies.
The Hangover (2009) and Due Date (2010) are the movies which implement the subtext greatly. The main plot is run on the background of the stories which are not related to the main idea of the movie directly but helps to see the whole picture better.
Reference List
Gehring, WD 2010, ‘Analyzing those movies within movies’, USA Today Magazine, vol. 139, no. 2786, p. 68.
Phillips, T 2010, Due Date, motion picture, Warner Bros, New York.
Phillips, T 2009, The Hangover, motion picture, Warner Bros, New York