Movie Analysis Essay on Legally Blonde

Introduction

Conflict is a common aspect of our day to day interaction with other individuals. Moreover, almost every relationship is inevitably vulnerable to dispute since it is a behavior. Nonetheless, conflict can be expressed via non-verbal or language behavior. In most cases, conflict arises when there is a power imbalance between two or among many individuals. Thus, the leading cause of conflict is the competition for power as an individual tends to exercise over the victim. Despite the film "Legally Blonde" being more of a romantic comedy, it focuses on the several conflicts Elle Woods pass through to overcome the dumb blond stereotype where her journey starts with her leaving to Havard in an attempt to follow her ex-boyfriend and ends with her realizing that she is more than just a pretty face.

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Characters in the Movie “Legally Blonde”

The main character is Elle Woods, a young, smart, pretty woman who seeks self-transformation through attending Havard law school. She is also determined to follow her ex-boyfriend Warner at Havard. The film also features Warner Huntington, Elle's ex-boyfriend, and currently Vivian's boyfriend. Vivian Kensington is Warner's girlfriend, who is jealous and intimidated by Elle's confidence and intelligence. The movie also features professor Callahan, a professor at Havard law school, and Brooke Windham's defense attorney. Nonetheless, Emmett is depicted as a young lawyer who is interested in Elle.

Communication in the Film “Legally Blonde”

At the start of the film, Warner and Elle go out for dinner together, which makes Elle think that she is going to get a proposal from Warner. As a result, Elle agrees and makes a lot of contributions to Warner's conversation with her. However, the difference in the context of Warner's and Elle's conversation makes it appear likes they are holding a parallel discussion, although they are engaging in one discussion. Warner is planning on how to end his relationship with Elle so that he can leave to Havard while Elle expects Warner to propose to her. Furthermore, Warner is looking for a more serious wife who will meet his family's expectations and support his future career in politics, all who are qualities that Elle does not possess.

"Legally Blonde" employs the use of non-verbal communication in the entire scenes of the film. For instance, Instead of writing an application letter to Havard law school, Elle formulates a video. Moreover, Elle is aware of her sharp sense of self; through out the entire film, she takes advantage of her appearance. During her first day in Havard, Elle wears "serious" sunglasses and jacket to demonstrate her idea of how law students should behave. Nonetheless, in the middle of the film, a group of women is taught by Elle on how to perform a snap and bend to draw the attention of a man. Thus, the snap and bend gesture is designed to convey a coded message to the men in case a woman feels interested.

Furthermore, several characters in the film do not believe in Elle's intelligence. For instance, before leaving for Havard law school, Elle visits a college counselor who makes several gestures and tonal variation in an attempt to hint to Elle that she is a stereotypic blond with no ability to attend the Havard law school successfully. However, Elle's high self-esteem leads to her not paying keen attention to the counselor's message. Consequently, Elle stops the pretense on her law student image later in the film and decides to be her real self.

Nonetheless, Warner uses one down message while speaking to Elle. His method of questioning Elle on how she made it to Havard shows how surprised he was about Elle's successful application and admission to Havard law school since he regarded Elle not to be intelligent enough. However, in one remarkable scene, Elle's belief in her appearance wins her colleague a date. During the scene, Elle makes use of language, but the belief in her beauty plays a critical role in advancing the scene. Thus, had Elle been depicted as a frumpy or a character with low self-esteem, the scene would not have worked.

Conflict in the Movie “Legally Blonde”

The need for power aggressively drives conflict in the movie. Power refers to the ability of an individual to manipulate and control events or people. Consequently, every individual holds a considerable measure of power, which can be significantly used during conflicts. Nonetheless, power can either be positive or negative, depending on how people use it to their advantage. In the film, Callahan guarantees Elle an advancement in her career if she gives in to his demand. Moreover, he intentionally makes the working environment unfriendly for Elle; he clarifies to Elle that unless she accepts the sexual offer, she will not become the lawyer she dreams about. It is thus evident that Callahan is exercising power negatively to control the decisions of Elle. In the process, a conflict is created, as Elle attempts to retaliate.

Furthermore, after witnessing the exchange between Elle and Callahan, Vivian fails to understand Elle's reactions and concludes how the law internship was awarded to Elle, resulting in a conflict between Elle's and Vivian's opinions. Nonetheless, Brooke Windham employs her power while firing Callahan and replacing him with Elle as her attorney. In this instance, the use of power is positive. However, positive power still creates conflict between Elle and Callahan.

The presence of power significantly impacts the degree of conflict. As a result, conflict can shift the balance of power. For instance, in an attempt to humiliate Elle, Vivian applies the use of lies. Vivian informs Elle about her costume party, Elle responds by showing up at the party only to find out that none of the people present in the party are in costumes.

It is evident that Vivian deceived Elle about the dressing code; her primary goal was to hurt Elle's feelings by causing embarrassment to her. Consequently, the act leads to conflict between Vivian and Elle as Elle feels pain hence the feeling of vengeance.

Nonetheless, conflict arises when Elle arrives at Havard and involves deception in her talk with Warner. Elle pretends to be surprised at seeing Warner at Havard; she proceeds by purposely issuing false information to warner. The false information is meant to trick Warner into believing that Elle had forgotten about him coming to Havard law school. Thus, a conflict is created by the deception since Warner is aware that the information is a lie, Elle is purposely issuing the false information, and Elle hopes that Warner will believe the information.

Conclusion

In conclusion, conflict is a natural aspect of our daily life. The process of interaction with friends, workmates, family, and employers is vulnerable to conflict. Moreover, numerous factors work towards accelerating the probability of occurrence of conflict; these factors include deception and the need to exercise power over others to manipulate them and ultimately establishing control over them. Undoubtedly, the method of communication among people dictates the probability of conflict arising between them. Nonetheless, people inevitably deal with conflict differently.