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HORROR GENRE ANALYSIS

Genre analysis a2

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Page 1: Genre analysis a2

HORROR

GENRE ANALYSIS

Page 2: Genre analysis a2

WHAT IS GENRE?

• A genre is a specific type of music, film, or writing. Your favorite literary genre might be science fiction, and your favorite film genre might be horror flicks about cheerleaders. Go figure. In music, genre refers to musical style such as jazz, salsa or rock.

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FILM GENRE

• In film theory, genre refers to the method based on similarities in the narrative elements from which films are constructed. Most theories of film genre are borrowed from literary genre criticism. • Besides the basic distinction in genre between

fiction and documentary (from which hybrid forms emerged founding new genres, docufiction and docudrama), film genres can be categorized in several ways.

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DEFINITION

• Staiger classifies Andrew Tutor's ideas that the genre of film can be defined in four ways. The "idealist method" judges films by predetermined standards. The "empirical method" identifies the genre of a film by comparing it to a list of films already deemed to fall within a certain genre. • The apriori method uses common generic

elements which are identified in advance. The "social conventions" method of identifying the genre of a film is based on the accepted cultural consensus within society.

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HOLLYWOOD GENRE VS. PURE GENRE

• Martin Loop contends that Hollywood films are not pure genres, because most Hollywood movies blend the love-oriented plot of the romance genre with other genres. Jim Colins claims that since the 1980s, Hollywood films have been influenced by the trend towards "ironic hybridization", in which directors combine elements from different genres, as with the Western/Science fiction mix in Back to the Future Part III.

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CATEGORIZATION

• It is hard to draw up a classification of genres. This is because a genre is easier to recognize than to define and therefore most academics today agree that any genre cannot be identified in a rigid way.

• Furthermore, different countries and cultures define genres in different way.

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EXAMPLE

• A typical example are war movies. • In USA they are mostly related to World Wars,

whereas in other countries also movies related to wars in other historical periods are considered War Movies.• For example, while both The Battle of Midway and

All Quiet on the Western Front are set in a wartime context and might be classified as belonging to the war film genre, the first examines the themes of honor, sacrifice, and valour, and the second is an anti-war film which emphasizes the pain and horror of war

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GENRES AND SUBGENRES

ACTION• Disaster film• Martial arts film• Spy film• Action thriller• Superhero film

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COMEDY

•Comedy film• Comedy of manners• Slapstick• Parody film• Black comedy• Romantic comedy film

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DRAMA

•Drama film• Crime drama• Historical drama• Docudrama• Legal drama• Psychodrama• Comedy-drama• Melodrama• Tragedy

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HORRORMY CHOSEN GENRE

• Horror film is a genre that aims to create a sense of fear, panic, alarm, and dread for the audience. These films are often unsettling and rely on scaring the audience through a portrayal of their worst fears and nightmares. • Horror films usually center on the arrival of an evil force, person, or event.

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ABOUT HORROR GENRE

• Many Horror films include mythical creatures such as ghosts, vampires, and zombies. Traditionally, Horror films incorporate a large amount of violence and gore into the plot. Though it has its own style, Horror film often overlaps into Fantasy, Thriller, and Science-Fiction genres.

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HISTORY

• By the end of the silent era, many of the main genres were established: the melodrama, the western, the horror film, comedies, and action-adventure films (from swashbucklers to war movies). Musicals were inaugurated with the era of the Talkies, and the genre of science-fiction films wasn't generally popularized until the 1950s. One problem with genre films is that they can become stale, cliche-ridden, and over-imitated. A traditional genre that has been reinterpreted, challenged, or subjected to scrutiny may be termed revisionist.

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EXAMPLES OF HORROR FILM

• Saw - Two men are held hostage by a psychopath, who is set on teaching his victims the value of life by putting them into demented life or death games.

• A Nightmare on Elm Street - Freddy Krueger, an evil being from another world, stalks a group of teenagers and kills them through their dreams.

• Friday the 13th - While trying to re-open a summer camp, a group of camp counselors are mysteriously murdered by a machete swinging slasher.

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SUB GENRES OF HORROR

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COMEDY-HORROR

• Comedy-Horror combines comedy with traditional horror movie themes and characters. Because of the subject matter, Comedy-Horror films can cross over into the Black Comedy sub-genre. Comedy-Horror films aim to scare the audience, but also provide comical outlets that let the audience laugh at their fear.• Examples: Beetlejuice, Zombieland, Shaun of the

Dead.

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TEEN-HORROR

• Teen-Horror is a sub-genre that revolves completely around a teenager or a group of teenagers. Typically, these movies have a large cast and a clear hero or heroine. Teen-Horror films often play upon traditional teenage issues, such as dating and prom, and turn them into suspenseful and thrilling situations.• Examples: I Know What You Did Last Summer,

Scream, Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

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MONSTER-HORROR

• A Monster film is sub-genre of Horror that centers on a struggle between human beings and a monster(s). Often, the monster in the film has been created in an “experiment gone wrong.” The monster usually serves as a villain, and the film portrays a hero or heroine that ultimately saves the world from the monster. Although these movies commonly fall into the Horror genre, Monster films have a long tradition within Science-Fiction and Fantasy film as well.

• Examples: Aliens, Godzilla, Creature from the Black Lagoon.

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SLASHER

• Slasher film is a sub-genre of Horror film that revolves around a psychopathic killer. This killer stalks and murders his victims in extremely violent and memorable ways. Though it centers on a specific killer, the violence is what sets Slasher films apart from other horror films. A Slasher film will devote more screen time to portray murder and mayhem than a traditional Horror film.• Examples: Halloween, My Bloody Valentine, Black

Christmas.

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SUPERNATURAL-HORROR

• Supernatural-Horror film is a sub-genre that includes ghosts, demons, or other depictions of supernatural occurrences. Often, Supernatural-Horror films combine elements of religion into the plot. Common themes in Supernatural-Horror films include the afterlife, the devil, and demonic possession. Unlike Religious Thrillers, Supernatural-Horror films are not limited to specific religious elements and can contain more vivid and gruesome violence.• Examples: The Exorcist, The Ring, The Omen.

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ZOMBIE-HORROR

• Zombie film is a sub-genre of Horror film that portrays mindless human beings who are raised from the dead. These films often include a Zombie invasion, and center around Zombies feasting on human flesh. The plot of a Zombie film then revolves around the struggle between the living, and the living-dead. Zombie film not only falls into the Horror genre, but Sci-Fi, Thriller, and Comedy as well.• Examples: Night of the Living Dead, Shaun of the

Dead, 28 Days Later.