Ali Sharp 13 TH Mrs. Richarson
The concept of film genre.
Using Dyers and Schatz’s theories, analyse four films that you know to demonstrate how they represent the four categories.
Dyers theory of Social tension and inadequacy against the utopian feeling or fantasy and its coding in entertainment films are used to help explain complicated narrative structure of films, I am therefore going to relate two films from each category and explain the importance and reasoning behind them.
Both of the social tension and inadequacy films that I have chosen are films that are English, they have both had a huge impact of the film world and relates everyday life to the audience. Billy Elliot is the first film I am going to evaluate.
The scarcity in this film is unreal; the whole film is based in poverty and in a hard economic time. Billy and his family live in a small terraced house in the north, very little to do and there is a lot of filming done in back streets and alleyways. The distribution of wealth is also visible, with Billy interacting with wealthier characters such as the ballet dancers daughter. There is a lot of exhaustion within in the film, as the work is hard and as they are miners on strike there seems to be endless battles within society. There is a political statement being made by showing the hard ways in which people live, the characters in the film consist of a father, brother, grandmother and Billy. The father and brother spend time at work or striking, the grandmother stays at home and it portrayed as senile and not really wanted or needed. The film is enabling the audience to feel that life is very predictable and that life is meaningless. The manipulation in Billy Elliot is seen from the start, it concentrates on political spin and how the miners are striking and how hard it is for the workers. Billy starts a routine of his Ballet by going to ballet lessons after school and practicing in the bathroom where no one would see him. The fragmentation is a major part in this film, as it concentrates on the breakdown within society and the insecurity placed within family structures and community structures. It is evident that there is a lack of mother/female guidance and security within the family as each of the characters rarely turn to each other for comfort, help or support. But there is a strong element of triumph through adversity. The realism in this film is what sold it and what made it so popular, as it concentrates on lower socio econimc groups and it relates to what many people have to do, this is a realisum film.
