What techniques do 500 Days of Summer and Summer with Monika use to convey the changes in the relationship between the main characters?

These two films are very different in lots of ways but also share a great deal of similarities too, for example 500 Days of Summer is a very modern, accessible, film which just about avoids cliché and has many interesting features whereas Summer with Monika was made in the early 50’s, in Stockholm in a world completely alien to a viewer such as myself.

However they also share lots of similarities, particularly in the how the characters’ relationship is depicted, for example the use of light to demonstrate how they feel. In 500 Days the background of the titles that tell you what day it is, towards the beginning of the relationship they’re very bright and summery, and use vivid colour palettes and bring an air of lightness to the scene and also works in reverse by getting darker, more depressing and using illustrations such as the leaves falling off a tree to portray his feelings towards summer. Likewise in Summer With Monika the actual make-up of the shots and mise-en-scene duplicate the feelings that are being shared, such as the early shots of the holiday on the boat are drenched in sunshine and very bright and warm whereas the shots in the city are dark and dingy and reflect the relationship turning stale quite accurately.