English Observation Number 2

English Observation Number 2
How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days
Britni Vrbensky



    Sure it is a chick flick. I agree with that completely. But, this does not change the fact that this is a movie about a columnist and how she goes about her writing. When we are first introduced to Andie we get the sense that she writes about things that she herself has had to deal with. She is the 'how to' girl at the magazine Composure. The target audience of this company would be women in their twenties and thirties. Andie likes writing for the column, but her real passion is shown in a political piece that she prepares but is scolded for trying to use. When one of her friends gets into a little trouble with their editor Andie comes in to save her and ends up agreeing to write a how to column about all of the wrong things to do in a relationship.
    One of the ways that they depict Andie to be is too smart for the position that she has at the magazine. She went to many years of school and would be more interested in writing a political piece, but that gets shot down right away because that is not the type of writing that is geared towards the women that read Composure. I think that a lot of people can relate to this in their writing. We are constantly having to think about what type of audience we are writing for and even if we are not completely committed to the type of writing that we are doing we still have to consider the audience.
    I am going to have to say that this is a very good portrayal of what a real writer would struggle with. This has so much relevance to me and what we just read last week about audience. Even though Andie knows what and who her target audience is she still has a passion for a different kind of writing all together. I think that any of us that might end up getting into a job that we are good at, but that we do not necessarily love will be able to relate to this type of trouble. We now know that it is important to consider your audience and that is something that Andie is doing through out the movie.
    Although Andie wants to submit this piece she knows that it is not going to be a hit with her audience or boss. Instead she continues to write her how to column and in the process of trying to 'lose' a guy she falls for him. We get to see a little bit of his life as an advertiser at another magazine company. He is not portrayed as a writer, but as an advertiser which is a branch of communication that can be considered. I have to say though that the way that Benjamin is portrayed seems to be a very cliche' form of a guy in an advertising position. All he is really concerned about is whether or not he is going to get a deal with this jewlery company and strikes up a bet with his boss. The way that they make him seem rather uninvolved with the rest of his work could be some what of an exaggeration and just an act for the movie. I think that in a real situation this would be someone that was concerned with all aspects of their work.
    Towards the end of the movie things come out into the open for both Andie and Ben. She has to publish her story but instead of leaving it as her normal how to column she adds in more detail and the fact that she has actually fallen for this guy that she attempted to 'lose' with bad dating habits. The piece is given to her editor and she is told that it is one of her best pieces.         Although she is told this Andie has gotten the opportunity to go for a job interview for a newspaper in Washington and of course jumps at that. I think that this is something that is a very good portrayal of a writer and what we would do in our own lines of work. Because Andie wants to write political pieces if she gets a job at a newspaper where she is able to write things that she has a passion for this would be the best.
    I was unsure about using this movie for an observation, but once I got into it again I realized how relevant it really is with what we are dealing with right now in class. Because so much of the focus can be placed on the audience that Andie is writing for I would have to say that this movie properly portrayed how this would be for a real writer.