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In film theory,
genre refers to the primary method of film categorization. A "genre" generally refers to films that share similarities in the narrative from which they are constructed.
Categorizing film genres
Three main types are often used to categorize film genres;
Setting (fiction), mood, and
Film. The film's location is defined as the
setting. The emotional charge carried throughout the film is known as its
mood. The film may also have been shot using particular equipment or be presented in a specific manner, or
format.
The following are some examples of well-established genres in film. They are often further defined to form subgenres, and can also be combined to form hybrid genres.
Setting
- Crime film: places its character within realm of criminal activity.
- Film noir: portrays its principal characters in a nihilistic and existentialist realm or manner.
- Historical film: taking place in the past amidst notable historical circumstances.
- Science fiction film: a setting or plot defined by the effects of speculative (not yet existing) technology (i.e. future space travel, cyberpunk, time travel).
- Sports film: sporting events and locations pertaining to a given sport.
- War film: battlefields and locations pertaining to a time of war.
- Western film: wilderness on the verge of civilization, usually in the American West.
Mood
- Action film: generally involves a moral interplay between "good" and "bad" played out through violence or physical force.
- Adventure film: involving danger, risk, and/or chance, often with a high degree of fantasy.
- Comedy film: intended to provoke laughter.
- Drama film: mainly focuses on character development.
- Fantasy film: speculative fiction outside reality (i.e. myth, legend).
- Horror film: intended to provoke fear in audience.
- Slasher: A variation of Horror that focuses less on suspense and more on death and gore. Also calledSplatter film.
- Mystery film: the progression from the unknown to the known by discovering and solving a series of clues.
- Romance film: dwelling on the elements of romantic love.
- Thriller films: intended to provoke excitement and/or nervous tension into audience.
Format
- Animation: the rapid display of a sequence of 2-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement.
- Live action
- Documentary film
- Musical film: songs are sung by the characters and interwoven into the narrative.
Target audience
- Children's film: films for young children; as opposed to a family film, no special effort is made to make the film attractive for other audiences.
- Family film: intended to be attractive for people of all ages and suitable for viewing by a young audience. Examples of this are Disney films.
- Adult film: intended to be viewed only by an adult audience, content may include violence, disturbing themes, obscene language, or explicit sexual behavior. Adult film may also be used as a synonym for pornographic film.
Criticisms of film genres
What genres are not
There are other methods of dividing films into groups besides genre. For example
auteur critics group films according to their directors. Some groupings may be casually described as genres but this definition is questionable. For example,
independent films are sometimes discussed as if they are a genre, but in fact independent production does not determine a film's storyline, and they can belong to any genre.
Some have argued that genre needs to be distinguished from
film style. A film's style concerns the choices made about
cinematography, film editing, and
sound, and a particular style can be applied to any genre. Whereas film genres identify the manifest content of film, film styles identify the manner by which any given film's genre(s) is/are rendered for the screen. Style may be determined by plot structure, scenic design, lighting, cinematography, acting, and other intentional artistic components of the finished film product. Others argue that this distinction is too simplistic, since some genres are primarily recognizable by their styles. Many historians debate whether
film noir truly is a genre rather than a style of film-making often emulated in the period's heyday.
Are film genres definable?
A genre is always a vague term with no fixed boundaries. Many works also cross into multiple genres. In this respect
film theory Robert Stam has noted:
A number of perennial doubts plague genre theory. Are genres really 'out there' in the world, or are they merely the constructions of analysts? Is there a finite taxonomy of genres or are they in principle infinite? Are genres timeless Platonic essences or ephemeral, time-bound entities? Are genres culture-bound or trans-cultural?... Should genre analysis be descriptive or prescriptive?....While some genres are based on story content (the war film), other are borrowed from literature (comedy, melodrama) or from other media (the musical). Some are performer-based (the Astaire-Rogers films) or budget-based (blockbusters), while others are based on artistic status (the art film), racial identity (Black cinema), location (the Western) or sexual orientation.Robert Stam,
Queer Cinema, 2000, p.14
Many genres have built-in
audiences and corresponding publications that support them, such as magazines and websites. Films that are difficult to categorize into a genre are often less successful. As such, film genres are also useful in areas of
marketing,
criticism and consumption (economics).
Hollywood story consultant John Truby states that "...you have to know how to transcend the forms so you can give the audience a sense of originality and surprise."{{cite web | last = Truby
| first = John
| authorlink = John Truby
| title = What's My Genre?
| publisher =
http://www.writersstore.com/ Writers Store
| date =
| url = http://www.writersstore.com/article.php?articles_id=46
| accessdate = 2007-07-31 --> Some [screenwriters use genre as a means of determining what kind of plot or content to put into a screenplay. They may study films of specific genres to find examples. This is a way that some screenwriters are able to copy elements of successful movies and pass them off in a new [screenplay. It is likely that such screenplays fall short in originality. As Truby says, "Writers know enough to write a genre script but they haven’t twisted the story beats of that genre in such a way that it gives an original face to it".{{cite web
| last = Ward
| first = Lewis
| authorlink =
| title = Interview: John Truby on Screenwriting and Breaking In
| publisher =
http://www.scriptmag.com/index.php Script Magazine
| date =
| url = http://www.scriptmag.com/earticles/earticle.htm
| accessdate = 2007-07-31 -->
It makes sense for writers to defy the elements found in past works and come up with something different or opposite to what's been done before. Originality and surprise are the elements that make for good movie stories. For example,
spaghetti westerns are known to have turned the western film genre upside down by making the good guy be bad as well as good. Prior to them, westerns had what are now considered genre clichés, such as Hero wearing white hats, bad guys wearing black hats, and the good guy always beating the bad guy in a shootout. The cliché western disappeared after the spaghetti westerns broke the "rules" of the genre.
Sometimes, however, it is up to the public to make decisions how films are defined. For example, a new, English word that describes a film is
YUG, which is a genre of films that are really, really bad, making it really, really good.However, genres like Yug are not really effective in ordering films, as people have different opinions towards films, therefore making the difficult situation of placing films into specific genres a lot worse.
References
External links
- Genres of film at the Internet Movie Database
In film theory,
genre refers to the primary method of film categorization. A "genre" generally refers to films that share similarities in the
narrative from which they are constructed.
Categorizing film genres
Three main types are often used to categorize film genres;
Setting (fiction), mood, and Film. The film's location is defined as the
setting. The emotional charge carried throughout the film is known as its
mood. The film may also have been shot using particular equipment or be presented in a specific manner, or
format.
The following are some examples of well-established genres in film. They are often further defined to form subgenres, and can also be combined to form hybrid genres.
Setting
- Crime film: places its character within realm of criminal activity.
- Film noir: portrays its principal characters in a nihilistic and existentialist realm or manner.
- Historical film: taking place in the past amidst notable historical circumstances.
- Science fiction film: a setting or plot defined by the effects of speculative (not yet existing) technology (i.e. future space travel, cyberpunk, time travel).
- Sports film: sporting events and locations pertaining to a given sport.
- War film: battlefields and locations pertaining to a time of war.
- Western film: wilderness on the verge of civilization, usually in the American West.
Mood
- Action film: generally involves a moral interplay between "good" and "bad" played out through violence or physical force.
- Adventure film: involving danger, risk, and/or chance, often with a high degree of fantasy.
- Comedy film: intended to provoke laughter.
- Drama film: mainly focuses on character development.
- Fantasy film: speculative fiction outside reality (i.e. myth, legend).
- Horror film: intended to provoke fear in audience.
- Slasher: A variation of Horror that focuses less on suspense and more on death and gore. Also calledSplatter film.
- Mystery film: the progression from the unknown to the known by discovering and solving a series of clues.
- Romance film: dwelling on the elements of romantic love.
- Thriller films: intended to provoke excitement and/or nervous tension into audience.
Format
- Animation: the rapid display of a sequence of 2-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement.
- Live action
- Documentary film
- Musical film: songs are sung by the characters and interwoven into the narrative.
Target audience
- Children's film: films for young children; as opposed to a family film, no special effort is made to make the film attractive for other audiences.
- Family film: intended to be attractive for people of all ages and suitable for viewing by a young audience. Examples of this are Disney films.
- Adult film: intended to be viewed only by an adult audience, content may include violence, disturbing themes, obscene language, or explicit sexual behavior. Adult film may also be used as a synonym for pornographic film.
Criticisms of film genres
What genres are not
There are other methods of dividing films into groups besides genre. For example auteur critics group films according to their directors. Some groupings may be casually described as genres but this definition is questionable. For example, independent films are sometimes discussed as if they are a genre, but in fact independent production does not determine a film's storyline, and they can belong to any genre.
Some have argued that genre needs to be distinguished from
film style. A film's style concerns the choices made about
cinematography, film editing, and
sound, and a particular style can be applied to any genre. Whereas film genres identify the manifest content of film, film styles identify the manner by which any given film's genre(s) is/are rendered for the screen. Style may be determined by plot structure, scenic design, lighting, cinematography, acting, and other intentional artistic components of the finished film product. Others argue that this distinction is too simplistic, since some genres are primarily recognizable by their styles. Many historians debate whether film noir truly is a genre rather than a style of film-making often emulated in the period's heyday.
Are film genres definable?
A genre is always a vague term with no fixed boundaries. Many works also cross into multiple genres. In this respect
film theory Robert Stam has noted:
A number of perennial doubts plague genre theory. Are genres really 'out there' in the world, or are they merely the constructions of analysts? Is there a finite taxonomy of genres or are they in principle infinite? Are genres timeless Platonic essences or ephemeral, time-bound entities? Are genres culture-bound or trans-cultural?... Should genre analysis be descriptive or prescriptive?....While some genres are based on story content (the war film), other are borrowed from literature (comedy, melodrama) or from other media (the musical). Some are performer-based (the Astaire-Rogers films) or budget-based (blockbusters), while others are based on artistic status (the art film), racial identity (Black cinema), location (the Western) or sexual orientation.Robert Stam,
Queer Cinema, 2000, p.14
Many genres have built-in audiences and corresponding publications that support them, such as
magazines and websites. Films that are difficult to categorize into a genre are often less successful. As such, film genres are also useful in areas of
marketing, criticism and consumption (economics).
Hollywood story consultant
John Truby states that "...you have to know how to transcend the forms so you can give the audience a sense of originality and surprise."{{cite web | last = Truby
| first = John
| authorlink = John Truby
| title = What's My Genre?
| publisher =
http://www.writersstore.com/ Writers Store
| date =
| url = http://www.writersstore.com/article.php?articles_id=46
| accessdate = 2007-07-31 --> Some [screenwriters use genre as a means of determining what kind of plot or content to put into a screenplay. They may study films of specific genres to find examples. This is a way that some screenwriters are able to copy elements of successful movies and pass them off in a new [screenplay. It is likely that such screenplays fall short in originality. As Truby says, "Writers know enough to write a genre script but they haven’t twisted the story beats of that genre in such a way that it gives an original face to it".{{cite web
| last = Ward
| first = Lewis
| authorlink =
| title = Interview: John Truby on Screenwriting and Breaking In
| publisher = http://www.scriptmag.com/index.php Script Magazine
| date =
| url = http://www.scriptmag.com/earticles/earticle.htm
| accessdate = 2007-07-31 -->
It makes sense for writers to defy the elements found in past works and come up with something different or opposite to what's been done before. Originality and surprise are the elements that make for good movie stories. For example,
spaghetti westerns are known to have turned the western film genre upside down by making the good guy be bad as well as good. Prior to them, westerns had what are now considered genre clichés, such as Hero wearing white hats, bad guys wearing black hats, and the good guy always beating the bad guy in a shootout. The cliché western disappeared after the spaghetti westerns broke the "rules" of the genre.
Sometimes, however, it is up to the public to make decisions how films are defined. For example, a new, English word that describes a film is YUG, which is a genre of films that are really, really bad, making it really, really good.However, genres like Yug are not really effective in ordering films, as people have different opinions towards films, therefore making the difficult situation of placing films into specific genres a lot worse.
References
External links
- Genres of film at the Internet Movie Database
Film Genres
An award-winning, unique resource of film reference material for film buffs and others, with reviews of classic American-Hollywood films, Academy Awards history, film posters
Introduction to Genre Theory
Generic analysis; Appendix 1: Taxonomies of genres; Appendix 2: Generic textual features of film and television; References and suggested reading
The Media and Communications Studies Site
Chanan, Michael (nd) 'On Documentary: The Zapruder Quotient' [link added 22/05/2000] (1174 hits) Chandler, Daniel (1997) 'An Introduction to Genre Theory' [link added 11/08/1997 ...
Film genre - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In film theory, genre refers to the primary method of film categorization based on similarities in the narrative elements from which films are constructed.
Genres
Critical analysis of landmark international and independent cinema.
FilmFlex Site Map - Film Genres
FilmFlex - Film Genres
UK Film Council - Genre
In compiling a database of films released in the UK the RSU allocates up to five genres to every title.
Amazon.co.uk: Film/Genre: Rick Altman: Books
Amazon.co.uk: Film/Genre: Rick Altman: Books ... Film/Genre (Paperback) by Rick Altman (Author) "Of all the concepts fundamental to literary theory, none has a longer and more ...
The Kite Runner -Genres
Genres. We tend to understand films through the conventions that they use in telling their story. Conventions can cover such things as characters we expect to see ...
screenonline: Social Realism
The most 'typically British' of all film genres ... The most 'typically British' of all film genres. Better than any other genre, social realism has shown us to ourselves, pushing ...
