Assignment Sheet Task 1&2
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Task 1
Task one involved researching and exploring the usefulness in 'Genre' as a critical tool to understand how meaning is created in a cinematic medium. This involves first defining Genre, exploring it's norms, it's relevancy regarding time spans and how it evolves over time.
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The Usefulness of Genre (Essay)
Genre is a difficult thing to define. It essentially is the breakdown of themes assigned to certain stories that are played out in theatre, literature and film. For example the Western is thought of as a genre because it revolves around a certain field of themes and plots; revenge, redemption, individualism. It also has a contingent location i.e. the Western film takes place in the American Rural Society; the Frontier. Where life is often depicted as bleak, gritty and lawless- almost untameable savagery. There’s a lot to discuss on the theory of Genre, Robert Allen refers to the study of genre as; “ it has taken as its principal task the division of the world of literature into types and the naming of those types - much as the botanist divides the realm of flora into varieties of plants”[1] (Allen, 1989, 44) So Genre and the discussion of Genre helps categorize certain stories into simpler norms that can be understood by the majority of consumers. Someone who likes action, realism and heroism would probably like the Western because it follows those main tropes. However someone who likes romance, coming of age stories and is squeamish when it comes to violence would probably not enjoy the films depicted as Westerns. The consumer market has been divided by taste and perception, allowing for Genres to emerge to fulfil those specific tastes and desired perceptions.
However it’s worth noting that like Literature, film Genres get old. They lose their self of importance, how relatable it is, it’s characteristics to the consumer seem less realistic and often times can be seen as trivial and overtly exaggerated. Genres have life spans, they may change over time or they may even die out. As Leo Braudy refers to it; “Genre films essentially ask the audience ‘Do you still believe this?’ Popularity is the audience answering ‘Yes.’ Change in the genre occurs when the audience says ‘That’s too infantile of a form of what we believe. Show us something more complicated’”[2] (Braudy, 1976) Because of this change of taste, the Western film has nearly died out completely. Or at least has been replaced by a genre that is younger, less worn down and has yet to be exhausted by the consumer. Tastes change over time; therefore new tropes emerge to fulfil that desire for change. Creating new genres that please the consumers’ interests.
Though there is speculation on the usefulness of Genre and its conventions. Because individual films aren’t all identical, they may share similar plot lines or similar characters but often times that’s where the similarities end. Some films are far too complicated to boil down to a few themes, a few characteristics. Take the Romantic Comedy for example; the typical tropes you’ll see is obviously the romantic entanglement of the characters, with comedic elements, with generally likeable characters (the clumsy protagonist, the stern love interest with a heart of gold, the obnoxious villain etc.) and a general linear plot that shapes these films almost identically i.e. two people meet, they initially dislike each other, however they then grow to like each other and then gain some romantic attachment, they have a falling out yet manage to get together at the end for a happy ending.
The characteristics of the Romantic Comedy are easy to spot, yet some films are more complex than this simple layout. Take “Love, Actually” for example, it has an ensemble cast and focuses on almost a dozen different characters, thus it’s already illuminated the typical trope of following two main characters. Of course there are comedic elements in the film, but there are also tragic elements. Some characters don’t fall in love, some remain alone, some decide not to venture down on an adventurous path due to other commitments, and others have to compromise and thus don’t receive a happy ending. A film like this has elements that are far too complicated to be dumbed down and sorted into one category. There are influences of Romance and Comedy for sure. But there are also influences of Drama, Grief, Fame, A fish out of water scenario, social issues- the list goes on.
These various characteristics aren’t exclusive to individual films, each film has something special or unique about it that is lacking in other films. A location, a theme, a motif etc. Like the Western, Rom Coms get old. Though they may be financially secure successes they suffer from a relevance factor. What’s funny today may not be funny tomorrow, meaning maybe the romantic comedy that was successful in May will be completely forgotten by next year. These generic films are often refereed to as “passable movies” meaning that the consumer really isn’t missing much from not watching it. However if the film is good enough it can surpass the genres typical sense of being totally generic, or worse a passable movie to becoming a “timeless classic” meaning that is relatable and entertaining regardless of the era. It becomes not just a good film, but an icon to what these kinds of films can be. Of what they can show, both its virtues and its vices are entangling and thus make it endure.
The Genre of the Romantic Comedy shows us that a commercial success does not guarantee it to be successful over time. Like the western most films are forgotten and only a few stick out in the mind, the best of the genre. The best of the genre usually comes from its inception; however it can often emerge from its progression. As time passes and tastes change certain tropes are dropped or are interrogated, showing how inadequate they are. The best way to observe the change in genre is through John C. Cawelti who breaks down the generic conventions seen in genres; “I have separated the four modes of generic conventions- humorous burlesque, evocation of nostalgia, demythologization of generic myth, and the affirmation of myth as a myth- into separate categories in order to define them more clearly, it should be clear that most films that employ one of these models are likely to use another at some point.” [3] (Cawelti, 1992, 498).
What this means is that in order to maintain its relevance, a genre has to undergo certain changes. Divided into the four categories that are described above. The humorous burlesque can be typically seen in Spoof Movies, a parody film that is in itself a sub genre of comedy films that parody films belonging to other genres. For the Romantic Comedy this can be seen in the film “Date Movie” a vulgar piece of work that makes mockery of the classic movies while also exploiting its typical story layout. The evocation of nostalgia can be seen as reboots or more specifically, films that evoke a romanticised vision of the past. Exploiting the themes and tropes as inadequate yet following them through regardless. Demythologization is far more complex as it presents the tropes as both inadequate and unrealistic, often times unachievable. Cawletti cites “Chinatown” as an example to present how inadequate and potentially harmful these myths are, for the Romantic Comedy however you couldn’t get a better example than “500 Days of Summer”, a film with comedic elements yet it’s ultimately a drama that exposes the inadequacies of love and the myth of “the one” to be harmful, the realism adds to it by ending the film with the pair not getting back together however they are in a better place from where they started out. The reaffirmation of the myth is seen after exposing the myth as inadequate but affirming it none the less as something that is needed to be believed. The best example of this can be seen in the complicated relationship displayed in “When Harry met Sally” where the film exposes the inadequacies of love, the difficulties with communication between the two sexes, how relationships evolve and how classical myths such as “You have to get married and have kids by 40” are ultimately harmful to both men and women. Yet the film chooses to end the film by reaffirming the myth by having the pair reunites with the classic Rom-Com ending with the pair reuniting and having a happy ending.
So certain films have difficulty being described as a single genre, in fact most film have a culmination of different genres. Certain genres have subgenres to them; the genres can even be divided up by the categories discussed above. However it is difficult to divide individual films into specific categories because some films overlap with different genres, some films even use the different categories of progression i.e. a film like “When Harry met Sally” uses burlesque to expose the inadequacies of certain norms seen in typical romantic comedies and thus demythologizes the genre.
Genre study is a dense topic with lots of material to discuss, however the usefulness of genre is undoubtedly important. It’s important to the consumer so that they can find out what films they like, what they don’t like and thus have a better understanding of themselves and their interests. Genre is important for commercial success, certain genres are more popular than others and therefore would make more money that then makes the studios wealthier and can therefore make more films. But genre is important in both understanding how stories evolve and how we evolve with them. As society changes over time certain things have to change. Some things aren’t funny any more or have exhausted their entertainment value and therefore a change is demanded. Genres don’t change by themselves, the people have to force that change. That’s why Genre is useful, not only to convey a narrative, but as a medium to convey ourselves.
Bibliography:
[1] Allen, Robert, 1989, excerpted from “An introduction to Genre Theory” by David Chandler. http://visual-memory.co.uk/daniel/Documents/intgenre/chandler_genre_theory.pdf
[2] Braudy, Leo, 1977, The world in a Frame https://acnoir13.files.wordpress.com/2015/10/braudy-genre-excerpt.pdf
[3] Cawletti, John C. 1992, Chinatown and Generic Transformation in Recent American Films. http://www.virginiabonner.com/courses/cms2100/readings/Chinatown%20and%20Generic%20Transformation.pdf
However it’s worth noting that like Literature, film Genres get old. They lose their self of importance, how relatable it is, it’s characteristics to the consumer seem less realistic and often times can be seen as trivial and overtly exaggerated. Genres have life spans, they may change over time or they may even die out. As Leo Braudy refers to it; “Genre films essentially ask the audience ‘Do you still believe this?’ Popularity is the audience answering ‘Yes.’ Change in the genre occurs when the audience says ‘That’s too infantile of a form of what we believe. Show us something more complicated’”[2] (Braudy, 1976) Because of this change of taste, the Western film has nearly died out completely. Or at least has been replaced by a genre that is younger, less worn down and has yet to be exhausted by the consumer. Tastes change over time; therefore new tropes emerge to fulfil that desire for change. Creating new genres that please the consumers’ interests.
Though there is speculation on the usefulness of Genre and its conventions. Because individual films aren’t all identical, they may share similar plot lines or similar characters but often times that’s where the similarities end. Some films are far too complicated to boil down to a few themes, a few characteristics. Take the Romantic Comedy for example; the typical tropes you’ll see is obviously the romantic entanglement of the characters, with comedic elements, with generally likeable characters (the clumsy protagonist, the stern love interest with a heart of gold, the obnoxious villain etc.) and a general linear plot that shapes these films almost identically i.e. two people meet, they initially dislike each other, however they then grow to like each other and then gain some romantic attachment, they have a falling out yet manage to get together at the end for a happy ending.
The characteristics of the Romantic Comedy are easy to spot, yet some films are more complex than this simple layout. Take “Love, Actually” for example, it has an ensemble cast and focuses on almost a dozen different characters, thus it’s already illuminated the typical trope of following two main characters. Of course there are comedic elements in the film, but there are also tragic elements. Some characters don’t fall in love, some remain alone, some decide not to venture down on an adventurous path due to other commitments, and others have to compromise and thus don’t receive a happy ending. A film like this has elements that are far too complicated to be dumbed down and sorted into one category. There are influences of Romance and Comedy for sure. But there are also influences of Drama, Grief, Fame, A fish out of water scenario, social issues- the list goes on.
These various characteristics aren’t exclusive to individual films, each film has something special or unique about it that is lacking in other films. A location, a theme, a motif etc. Like the Western, Rom Coms get old. Though they may be financially secure successes they suffer from a relevance factor. What’s funny today may not be funny tomorrow, meaning maybe the romantic comedy that was successful in May will be completely forgotten by next year. These generic films are often refereed to as “passable movies” meaning that the consumer really isn’t missing much from not watching it. However if the film is good enough it can surpass the genres typical sense of being totally generic, or worse a passable movie to becoming a “timeless classic” meaning that is relatable and entertaining regardless of the era. It becomes not just a good film, but an icon to what these kinds of films can be. Of what they can show, both its virtues and its vices are entangling and thus make it endure.
The Genre of the Romantic Comedy shows us that a commercial success does not guarantee it to be successful over time. Like the western most films are forgotten and only a few stick out in the mind, the best of the genre. The best of the genre usually comes from its inception; however it can often emerge from its progression. As time passes and tastes change certain tropes are dropped or are interrogated, showing how inadequate they are. The best way to observe the change in genre is through John C. Cawelti who breaks down the generic conventions seen in genres; “I have separated the four modes of generic conventions- humorous burlesque, evocation of nostalgia, demythologization of generic myth, and the affirmation of myth as a myth- into separate categories in order to define them more clearly, it should be clear that most films that employ one of these models are likely to use another at some point.” [3] (Cawelti, 1992, 498).
What this means is that in order to maintain its relevance, a genre has to undergo certain changes. Divided into the four categories that are described above. The humorous burlesque can be typically seen in Spoof Movies, a parody film that is in itself a sub genre of comedy films that parody films belonging to other genres. For the Romantic Comedy this can be seen in the film “Date Movie” a vulgar piece of work that makes mockery of the classic movies while also exploiting its typical story layout. The evocation of nostalgia can be seen as reboots or more specifically, films that evoke a romanticised vision of the past. Exploiting the themes and tropes as inadequate yet following them through regardless. Demythologization is far more complex as it presents the tropes as both inadequate and unrealistic, often times unachievable. Cawletti cites “Chinatown” as an example to present how inadequate and potentially harmful these myths are, for the Romantic Comedy however you couldn’t get a better example than “500 Days of Summer”, a film with comedic elements yet it’s ultimately a drama that exposes the inadequacies of love and the myth of “the one” to be harmful, the realism adds to it by ending the film with the pair not getting back together however they are in a better place from where they started out. The reaffirmation of the myth is seen after exposing the myth as inadequate but affirming it none the less as something that is needed to be believed. The best example of this can be seen in the complicated relationship displayed in “When Harry met Sally” where the film exposes the inadequacies of love, the difficulties with communication between the two sexes, how relationships evolve and how classical myths such as “You have to get married and have kids by 40” are ultimately harmful to both men and women. Yet the film chooses to end the film by reaffirming the myth by having the pair reunites with the classic Rom-Com ending with the pair reuniting and having a happy ending.
So certain films have difficulty being described as a single genre, in fact most film have a culmination of different genres. Certain genres have subgenres to them; the genres can even be divided up by the categories discussed above. However it is difficult to divide individual films into specific categories because some films overlap with different genres, some films even use the different categories of progression i.e. a film like “When Harry met Sally” uses burlesque to expose the inadequacies of certain norms seen in typical romantic comedies and thus demythologizes the genre.
Genre study is a dense topic with lots of material to discuss, however the usefulness of genre is undoubtedly important. It’s important to the consumer so that they can find out what films they like, what they don’t like and thus have a better understanding of themselves and their interests. Genre is important for commercial success, certain genres are more popular than others and therefore would make more money that then makes the studios wealthier and can therefore make more films. But genre is important in both understanding how stories evolve and how we evolve with them. As society changes over time certain things have to change. Some things aren’t funny any more or have exhausted their entertainment value and therefore a change is demanded. Genres don’t change by themselves, the people have to force that change. That’s why Genre is useful, not only to convey a narrative, but as a medium to convey ourselves.
Bibliography:
[1] Allen, Robert, 1989, excerpted from “An introduction to Genre Theory” by David Chandler. http://visual-memory.co.uk/daniel/Documents/intgenre/chandler_genre_theory.pdf
[2] Braudy, Leo, 1977, The world in a Frame https://acnoir13.files.wordpress.com/2015/10/braudy-genre-excerpt.pdf
[3] Cawletti, John C. 1992, Chinatown and Generic Transformation in Recent American Films. http://www.virginiabonner.com/courses/cms2100/readings/Chinatown%20and%20Generic%20Transformation.pdf
Task 2
Task two involves discussing the themes and typical tropes of a genre of your choice. For this I have chosen the 'Super hero' genre and have explored it's evolution throughout the years. This task involves extensive research and a complete understanding of the source material and the genre conventions that are displayed.
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Progression of the Superhero Genre (Essay)
The Super hero genre is a difficult topic to cover; for one it’s difficult to even classify it as a genre. There are a range of already established genres present in these films. In movies such as the Avengers it follows the classic action movie tropes, in films like The Dark Knight it’s more of a crime drama, the influence of the political thriller can be seen in Captain America: The Winter Soldier and in the case of Logan it follows similar tropes to that of the classic western and even Noir. A good superhero movie can be seen as a story in which if you removed the super powers and the classic hero elements it would still be a well made film. In the case of the Dark Knight if you removed Batman and the Joker and replaced them with a police officer and a serial killer you would still have a compelling crime thriller.
So is there such a thing as a superhero genre or is it just different genres with similar protagonists? Is there even such a thing as Superheroes? What makes a superhero? Is a superhero a protagonist with enhanced abilities or super powers? Then by that definition Batman isn’t a superhero. Is a superhero a protagonist that wears a costume? Then characters such as Luke Cage, who have super powers, are not superheroes. When talking about the superhero genre we have to talk about what exactly a superhero is. In this case we will establish that a superhero may or may not possess super powers but they dedicate their lives in the pursuit for justice, their birth has a significant effect on their destiny which is common in Josephs Campbell’s definition of a Heroes Journey or a divine birth e.g. Superman, born on an alien planet and sent to earth where he gains superpowers. The superhero narrative is one that also encompasses tragedy i.e. Batman, who’s parents were murdered before his eyes at a young age. That tragedy defines their character, instead of pursuing a life of ill will and grief they decide to do something with their tragedy and turn it into a motivating factor. Because Batman’s parents were killed by a petty criminal his life pursuit is to fight crime and ensure no one suffers the same fate as himself.
A superhero is as defined by their tragedy as they are by their villains. In the case of Batman his arch nemesis is the Joker. While batman remains adamant about his refusal to kill and his pursuit of law and order, the Joker lives to create chaos and mayhem by killing as many people as possible. Even in their origins they contrast each other, while Batman’s origin is consistent and well know, the Joker’s is vague and has always been a mystery.
So as we discuss the progression of the Superhero genre the most notable character to focus on is undoubtedly one of the most popular on screen; Batman. The character made his onscreen debut in Movie Serials between 1943-1949. These films were simplistic and cheap with the target audience being children but it was also remarkably xenophobic against the Japanese because at the time the United States was at war with the Empire of Japan in world war two. So unfortunately Batman’s film history will forever be tainted with xenophobic propaganda that dehumanised the Japanese and allowed for American-Japanese citizens to be held in internment camps.
His next film debut came in 1966, with the success of the Batman TV show with the late Adam West. The film was undoubtedly silly as at this stage it was still marketed solely for the entertainment for children but the hero did have a positive effect on many people’s lives. Adam West recalls in an interview he did when the Dark Knight Rises was being produced that he often got fan letters from children who wrote that they never had a father and when they watched the show they imagined Batman being their father and it was instrumental in their childhood.
In 1989 the Tim Burton Batman movie was released and it changed the way people perceived Batman forever. With the influences of German Expressionism and the classic iconography of Film Noir Tim Burton’s Batman changed audiences’ perception of the character from a light hearted, goofy character to a dark, violent and vengeful vigilante. This Batman was grittier and violent, even breaking Batman’s no killing rule several times on screen. Changing people’s perception of the character changed the way people saw Super hero movies. They were no longer just silly pop corn flicks you could take your kids to; they were as violent and dark as any of the typically adult action movies of the time. Unfortunately after Tim Burton was replaced with Joel Schumacher, regressing the hero from Burton’s dark and gritty beginnings to the poorly written campiness that was seen in Adam West’s batman.
This regression is an interesting example on genre life spans as a whole. A film or a series of films establishes a genre, if those films are popular than the audience is pleased and accepts this presentation of reality. But over time the films may lose the interest of the audience, meaning that they’ve grown tired of this infantile presentation of reality. If a genre is important enough then it will adapt to please the audiences’ desires for change and upset the status quo. In the case of Batman and Robin, the last Batman film by Joel Schumacher that killed the franchise it was poorly written and over acted. It was a film in the wrong era, if it had been released in the sixties it would have been revered by fans. But after the release of Tim Burton’s interpretation the audience rejected it because it had evolved to an acquired taste. In the current heroes life span they were in their edgy teenage years and the movie was childish and not even nostalgic, hence why audiences rejected it.
Despite Schumacher’s disgrace to Batman the character returned to screens almost ten years later in Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins. The first film established the Origin of the hero but in a gritty, realistic world similar to our own. This was inspired by Richard Donner’s superman who despite having a character who could perform unbelievable feats was in a real world. There were real buildings, there were real locations, and there were real people- it felt like it could fit in perfectly with the 70’s. Nolan replicated this realism in his Dark Knight trilogy, the genre had reached its adult phase where it was tired of the unrealistic conventions it saw in the earlier movies. This character felt like a real person, like he could actually exist in this world. The narrative was more complex too; the hero didn’t always get his way. There were compromises to made to save the day; he had to depend on others and not just himself, the Villains weren’t all just hysterical mad men they represented a world view or a cardinal flaw in the human condition. The hero felt real because he could be, and audiences in their adult acceptance of the genre accepted this reality as their own.
It’s difficult to predict where the superhero genre will be in fifty years. Will audiences eventually grow board of similar premises playing out again and again? Will this genre fade away in time like the spaghetti western? Or will it adapt quickly enough to appease audience’s expectations? In his current onscreen presence Batman has been seen in Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, a divisive film among fans and critics and confusing to the general audiences. If Adam West’s Batman was the child’s stage of the genre and Tim Burton’s film debuted it’s Edgy teenage phase and Nolan’s film presented it’s gritty adult phase then I believe this next phase of Batman in the Superhero genre is the Middle Age. It’s fitting because critics claim that there’s an identity crisis in the films, does it want to be dark and gritty or does it want to be fun and light hearted like Marvel? But can it be both? Can there be humour and darkness? Ben Affleck’s batman is a merge of the previous types of Batman in the super hero genre. There’s the ludicrousness of the fictional world as can be seen by Batman having a fist fight with Superman, an influence of Adam West’s Batman. There’s the gritty dark character and obscene violence we saw in Tim Burton’s Batman and there’s the Realism, the real locations, the real modern people that existed in Nolan’s Batman. This merge requires a delicate balance for it to work, it can have surreal moments conventional to action or sci-fi but it can also have ground breaking release common in Crime Thrillers and Drama’s. Finding that balance will determine whether or not this genre will survive or whether it will be left in the past, to be almost forgotten.
So is there such a thing as a superhero genre or is it just different genres with similar protagonists? Is there even such a thing as Superheroes? What makes a superhero? Is a superhero a protagonist with enhanced abilities or super powers? Then by that definition Batman isn’t a superhero. Is a superhero a protagonist that wears a costume? Then characters such as Luke Cage, who have super powers, are not superheroes. When talking about the superhero genre we have to talk about what exactly a superhero is. In this case we will establish that a superhero may or may not possess super powers but they dedicate their lives in the pursuit for justice, their birth has a significant effect on their destiny which is common in Josephs Campbell’s definition of a Heroes Journey or a divine birth e.g. Superman, born on an alien planet and sent to earth where he gains superpowers. The superhero narrative is one that also encompasses tragedy i.e. Batman, who’s parents were murdered before his eyes at a young age. That tragedy defines their character, instead of pursuing a life of ill will and grief they decide to do something with their tragedy and turn it into a motivating factor. Because Batman’s parents were killed by a petty criminal his life pursuit is to fight crime and ensure no one suffers the same fate as himself.
A superhero is as defined by their tragedy as they are by their villains. In the case of Batman his arch nemesis is the Joker. While batman remains adamant about his refusal to kill and his pursuit of law and order, the Joker lives to create chaos and mayhem by killing as many people as possible. Even in their origins they contrast each other, while Batman’s origin is consistent and well know, the Joker’s is vague and has always been a mystery.
So as we discuss the progression of the Superhero genre the most notable character to focus on is undoubtedly one of the most popular on screen; Batman. The character made his onscreen debut in Movie Serials between 1943-1949. These films were simplistic and cheap with the target audience being children but it was also remarkably xenophobic against the Japanese because at the time the United States was at war with the Empire of Japan in world war two. So unfortunately Batman’s film history will forever be tainted with xenophobic propaganda that dehumanised the Japanese and allowed for American-Japanese citizens to be held in internment camps.
His next film debut came in 1966, with the success of the Batman TV show with the late Adam West. The film was undoubtedly silly as at this stage it was still marketed solely for the entertainment for children but the hero did have a positive effect on many people’s lives. Adam West recalls in an interview he did when the Dark Knight Rises was being produced that he often got fan letters from children who wrote that they never had a father and when they watched the show they imagined Batman being their father and it was instrumental in their childhood.
In 1989 the Tim Burton Batman movie was released and it changed the way people perceived Batman forever. With the influences of German Expressionism and the classic iconography of Film Noir Tim Burton’s Batman changed audiences’ perception of the character from a light hearted, goofy character to a dark, violent and vengeful vigilante. This Batman was grittier and violent, even breaking Batman’s no killing rule several times on screen. Changing people’s perception of the character changed the way people saw Super hero movies. They were no longer just silly pop corn flicks you could take your kids to; they were as violent and dark as any of the typically adult action movies of the time. Unfortunately after Tim Burton was replaced with Joel Schumacher, regressing the hero from Burton’s dark and gritty beginnings to the poorly written campiness that was seen in Adam West’s batman.
This regression is an interesting example on genre life spans as a whole. A film or a series of films establishes a genre, if those films are popular than the audience is pleased and accepts this presentation of reality. But over time the films may lose the interest of the audience, meaning that they’ve grown tired of this infantile presentation of reality. If a genre is important enough then it will adapt to please the audiences’ desires for change and upset the status quo. In the case of Batman and Robin, the last Batman film by Joel Schumacher that killed the franchise it was poorly written and over acted. It was a film in the wrong era, if it had been released in the sixties it would have been revered by fans. But after the release of Tim Burton’s interpretation the audience rejected it because it had evolved to an acquired taste. In the current heroes life span they were in their edgy teenage years and the movie was childish and not even nostalgic, hence why audiences rejected it.
Despite Schumacher’s disgrace to Batman the character returned to screens almost ten years later in Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins. The first film established the Origin of the hero but in a gritty, realistic world similar to our own. This was inspired by Richard Donner’s superman who despite having a character who could perform unbelievable feats was in a real world. There were real buildings, there were real locations, and there were real people- it felt like it could fit in perfectly with the 70’s. Nolan replicated this realism in his Dark Knight trilogy, the genre had reached its adult phase where it was tired of the unrealistic conventions it saw in the earlier movies. This character felt like a real person, like he could actually exist in this world. The narrative was more complex too; the hero didn’t always get his way. There were compromises to made to save the day; he had to depend on others and not just himself, the Villains weren’t all just hysterical mad men they represented a world view or a cardinal flaw in the human condition. The hero felt real because he could be, and audiences in their adult acceptance of the genre accepted this reality as their own.
It’s difficult to predict where the superhero genre will be in fifty years. Will audiences eventually grow board of similar premises playing out again and again? Will this genre fade away in time like the spaghetti western? Or will it adapt quickly enough to appease audience’s expectations? In his current onscreen presence Batman has been seen in Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, a divisive film among fans and critics and confusing to the general audiences. If Adam West’s Batman was the child’s stage of the genre and Tim Burton’s film debuted it’s Edgy teenage phase and Nolan’s film presented it’s gritty adult phase then I believe this next phase of Batman in the Superhero genre is the Middle Age. It’s fitting because critics claim that there’s an identity crisis in the films, does it want to be dark and gritty or does it want to be fun and light hearted like Marvel? But can it be both? Can there be humour and darkness? Ben Affleck’s batman is a merge of the previous types of Batman in the super hero genre. There’s the ludicrousness of the fictional world as can be seen by Batman having a fist fight with Superman, an influence of Adam West’s Batman. There’s the gritty dark character and obscene violence we saw in Tim Burton’s Batman and there’s the Realism, the real locations, the real modern people that existed in Nolan’s Batman. This merge requires a delicate balance for it to work, it can have surreal moments conventional to action or sci-fi but it can also have ground breaking release common in Crime Thrillers and Drama’s. Finding that balance will determine whether or not this genre will survive or whether it will be left in the past, to be almost forgotten.
Here's a video I created detailing the history of Batman on the film screen.
David Lynch: Auteur
Power Point Presentation
In my critical analysis of Auteur theory I decided to analyse the Director, Artist and Musician David Lynch. Below you can see the power point presentation I created, in which I define what exactly Auteur theory is and how David Lynch qualifies as an Auteur.
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Montage
Below you can watch the montage I created depicting most of David Lynch's work.
Conclusion
Below you can see my written conclusion on all the subjects and assignments I studied and completed over the course of the first semester.
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