Film Genre Flashcards
1
Q
What is a film genre? How do we recognize them?
A
- iconography
- plots
- themes
- style
- intended effect on audience
2
Q
How do we recognize genre?
A
Genres coalesce into a recognizable form over time.
Social origins of the horror film and the gangster film.
3
Q
Western films*:
Background:
A
- the most popular U.S. film genre from roughly 1900-1970.
- enormous cultural influence: a film genre becomes popular when it “speaks” to society’s concerns; in
turn, films begin to influence society in a complex mythmaking fashion - usually take place in an earlier era (1865-1890), west of the Mississippi River
4
Q
Typical plots:
A
- three sets of conflicting characters: the hero, the society, and the villains
- the hero remains divided between two value systems: of the town and of the outlaws
- the hero (or antihero) is separate from society but works to save that society
5
Q
Typical themes:
A
- the utility of violence by both so-called “civilization” and so-called “wilderness”
- reinvention of character on the frontier outside of confining Eastern social structures
- individual strength of purpose / “rugged individualism” / examination of toxic masculinity
6
Q
Effect on audience:
A
- audience “id” identification with/glorification of the hero’s vigilantism to achieve goals
- this aspect gradually changed as some writers and directors became disillusioned with U.S. society in the
1950s and 1960s
