Genre is a category which you categorise films and other pieces of literature or music. For example movies would be put into certain genres for what they depict in their films such as a film about monsters and murder would be in the genre of horror. There are various genres but the main and popular ones are usually action, horror, comedy, romance or sci-fi. Sometimes there are sub-genres where two genres come together in a film such as the action-adventure genre which is very popular.
Advantages
There are many advantages to having films be categorised into genres. One of these advantages of categorising films into genres is for film goers and the audience to know what they can expect for a certain film when going to see it so they wont be disappointed as what to expect from a certain film. Filmmakers also benefit from categorising films into genres in order to attract a certain audience to their films as some film goers prefer a certain genre over the other so categorising a film into the horror genre will attract an audience who like that particular genre. Genres can be used to work out myths and fears and also if there was no genre there would only be one type of film coming out all the time and the audience would be bored of this so different genres can provide fresh material. Also genre can be seen as a reassurance in a dangerous world as movie goers can feel happiness from a certain genre such as comedy which can lift up their spirits on days they are feeling down
Disadvantages
There are also disadvantages to having genres. One of these is that we should be understanding of how a film is functioned in relation to genre rather than being defined by a certain genre. We should also note that a genre will only function depending on the audiences understanding of such genre.
The genre of the film my group have chosen will be a sub-genre of horror/thriller which will contain the conventions of gore, voilence, blood, mystery, death and action.
The origins of the horror genre start of in the late 1890's when in 1896 there were many short silent films being produced and one of these is a three minute long french film entitled 'la manoir du diable' ( the manor of the devil ) which is also credited as the first vampire film. After this more and more horror films were being made due to thier increasing popularity due to audiences liking to be shocked. Some notable horror films were frankenstein and bram stokers dracula which are both credited as classics. Horror films used to be about monsters and would rely on tension and suspense to scare an audience but now more and more horror films use gore and voilence to reach the same goals seen with the zombie films being released in the 1960's -1980's. Now horror films usually focus on a murderer who goes around the film killing people and uses the gore as the main attraction for audiences.
Some good examples of the horror genre would be director George Romero http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_A._Romero He is credited as '' the godfather of zombies '' and is noted for his films about zombie apocalypses such as ' dawn of the dead ' ' night of the living dead ' and ' day of the dead '. Due to these films he has created his own sub-genre of zombie horror films and has also improved gore in horror films due to his zombies and George is so well known he is even a character in a zombies add on to the game series called call of duty which shows his effort into the horror genre has been recognised.
Another good example of the horror genre would be Signourey Weaver. She is a famous actor who is known for being in one of the greatest horror films of all time called 'Alien'. At the time main characters in horror or action films would be men but instead it was a women who was the hero of the film who combatted alien creatures in a futuristic space setting.
One particular film of the horror genre that i think is a good example of the horror genre is the blair witch project.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D51QgOHrCj0.
The Blair witch project is about three students filming a documentary in the woods about a famous myth of a serial killer. During their filming they realise they are lost and being stalked by the same killer they are documenting their film about. The Blair witch project is a good film of the horror genre due to its realism and making the audience believe that this happened and is a true story when it is not. The actors in the film are not famous and genuinely come across as students who get lost in the woods. The suspense from the film starts at the beginning where it says that 3 students went missing in the woods and that their bodies have not been found but only a camcorder which shows the last remaining footage of their whereabouts which sets the mood for the rest of the film. The film is shot using handheld cameras which effects it making it more realistic as the camera shakes when the characters are running through the woods whilst being chased which gives you a feel of the atmosphere and makes you feel involved in the tension of the film as you see everything from their point of view. This makes the movie even more suspenseful and keeps you on edge but the scariest thing about the film is that you never see the killer, only hear him. Not seeing the killer in the film but knowing that he is there is what makes the Blair witch project so scary and makes it one of the best films as you hear that he is chasing you and combined with the shaky cam makes an experience like no other.
Bibligrophy :
Author : Bram Stoker Title : Dracula
Filmogrophy :
Year : 1999 film : The Blair witch project Director : Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sanchez
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