Movie Genres 101

It’s a Saturday night (ok, actually it’s Wednesday, but that’s not the point) … you want to go to watch a movie, but there are so many choices, and spending the whole evening looking at the posters, deliberating in your mind is not an option. So I’ve decided to give a brief “introduction” to movie genres … maybe this will point you in the right direction, or maybe it will just remind you that I don’t know what I’m talking about.  This is a very brief introduction to movie genres, so don’t expect any in-depth analysis or discussion.

In case you are wondering what movie genres are … a movie genre is merely a means of categorizing the story and portrayal of the movie. As the years have passed, movie companies have realized that a lot of movies do not fall into a single genre, but instead more than one … the result is many movies now-a-days can be classified with double-barrel or even triple-barrel genres.  Anyway … here goes my rudimentary explanation of movie genres.

Romantic Comedy – Do not be confused by the “Comedy” part of this genre.  While there are several Romantic Comedy movies which actually are funny … most of the time, if you’re looking for Comedy, you’re going to be disappointed.  Romantic Comedy should rather be called something like “light-hearted romance”, because that’s basically what it is most of the time. Boy meets girl … boy falls in love with girl … boy loses girl … boy gets girl back again … they live happily ever after.  Sometimes it’s the other way around … girl meets boy … girl falls in love with boy … girl loses boy … girl gets boy back again … and they live happily ever after. The settings are different most of the time, as are the circumstances which bring them together, drive them apart, and bring them back together again … but in essence the recipe stays mostly the same.

Romantic Drama – Also the same subject matter as Romantic Comedy, but the general sentiment feels more sombre.  The circumstances tend to be a bit more ominous … the characters have a lot more issues to deal with.  Here also, boy meets girl … boy falls in love with girl … but then the differences begin … boy discovers he’s got cancer … boy doesn’t want girl to get hurt so he leaves … girl convinces boy that she would rather be with him … boy ends up in hospital and dies … girl tries to move on.  At least 95% of the time, Romantic Drama doesn’t end happy … I’d almost venture to say Romantic Drama never ends happy, except for the few movies where this isn’t the case. So if you’re looking for that happy Hollywood ending, don’t look at Romantic Drama … because you will reach the end of the movie feeling completely frustrated, questioning the very essence of life.

Musical – A Musical is a movie which might or might not be about music.  It might be about an average Joe pizza delivery boy … or about the king of Siam. In a nutshell, if a movie is a Musical, this means that at any given point in a time, one or more of the characters in the movie will break out in song. Usually, the song replaces spoken dialog … for example, boy wants to leave girl, girl starts singing a desperate plea … “baby, please don’t go … don’t go … don’t go … baby, please don’t go” … and don’t be too surprised if the girl’s parents pop out of the closet to join in the chorus “please don’t go … don’t go … don’t go” … because it’s music, and everyone knows that more the voices in the chorus, the better it sounds.  If you watch an old musical … the songs are often accompanied with dancing, in particular … tap dancing, but other forms of dancing may also be involved. Some of the new Musical movies have re-introduced dance, while dropping the songs … although these movies tend to have dancing as being their subject matter.

Drama – If you are feeling down, depressed or sad, then rather avoid drama … because chances are that you will be left feeling worse than before you started watching.  Drama should not be taken lightly, else it might leave you embarrassed in front of your friends when they start hearing whimpering coming from your seat, and see tears rolling down your cheeks.  If you unknowingly, inadvertently or against your will get taken to watch a Drama movie, then start thinking of an excuse … “aargh, the pollen this time of the year is so bad”, maybe ensure you have Allergex at hand as “proof” of you explanation. True, not all Drama movies are sad per se, but they are in no way light-hearted at all.  Drama movies tend to be about poor souls who are continually beset by hardship, struggles, heart-ache … and just when you start to think “ok, it’s going to start getting happier now” … forget it … no matter how bad the circumstances are, they will get worse. When you reach the end of movie, you will be questioning life and wondering about the meaning of life. I am quite certain that many people have become philosophers after they watched a Drama movie.

Comedy – Comedy is a genre which is manifested in a very wide range of subclasses. Generally, Comedy means that the movie is going to be light-hearted and funny in some way or other.  When you’re feeling depressed and down, and have decided to give a skip on Drama … then Comedy might be your safest bet.  Be careful though … just because a movie is labelled Comedy doesn’t necessarily mean it is going to be funny. Sometimes, the Comedy lies in what the characters say, the words, the phrases … sometimes you are going to have to really listen and pay attention … otherwise you’ll be left wondering, why is everyone else laughing.  If you don’t want the movie to challenge you intellectual prowess, then rather watch a Slapstick Comedy … because two guys getting their tongues stuck on the ice on a ski lift chair will always be funny when you’ve switched your brain to “Hibernate”. If you’re in the mood for something more cynical, then Satire might do the trick … but you will need to switch you brain into the “On” position, otherwise you’ll be left thinking “I just don’t get this movie”.

Horror – A Horror movie will do it’s best to scare you, so rather avoid at all costs if you have a sensitive disposition or any form of incontinence, otherwise your whole movie watching experience might turn out rather unpleasant.  Don’t go to watch a Horror movie with your friends, otherwise your social status might be scarred when you start screaming like a little girl.  Don’t take your girlfriend to watch a Horror movie; otherwise your masculinity might be drawn into question when you start screaming and clinging to her.  Actually, I’m not sure if it is safe to watch a horror movie with anyone else, not without it having social repercussions … so if you’re going to watch a horror movie, watch it alone … then you can scream to your heart’s content.  Just make sure you’ve got a blanket or a pillow, or anything else that you can use to cover your eyes … and don’t forget about your ears, because often the mere sound will be enough to scare you. Horror movies have the ability to make the most innocent thing seem scary … so pack away you toy clown before you watch a Horror movie, because you wouldn’t want to get into you room after watching … and start to feeling that your clown is staring at you.

Thriller – In some ways, a Thriller is similar to Horror.  The tension can also be so thick that you could cut it with a knife.  You heart will race and times … but the key difference here is that a Thriller does not attempt so much to scare you … rather test your level-headedness and anxiety levels. A Thriller can be very taxing … you will feel completely drained when you’re finished watching. As the movie progresses, you will drift all further and further forward in your seat, and if you’re not careful, you might fall off the front of you seat.  It is nail-biting stuff … so rather avoid if you’re trying to kick a nail-biting habit, or if you’ve got a set of acrylic nails which might hurt your teeth.  Thrillers can be very educational … you will learn that a car can drive down stairs … never mind down, a car can drive up stairs.  Don’t at any time think you’ve got a Thriller figured out … there is always a twist.  The schizophrenic psychopath serial killer is never the creepy looking guy down the hall … it’s always the last person you expect.  If you notice the most passive and subdued person in the movie … the little granny packing in the back of the shop … the helpful cop down the road … the friendly shop attendant … that’s who you’ve got to keep your eye on.  It might make you a bit paranoid, but otherwise the ending will catch you off guard.

Science Fiction – If you are a science major, or one of those intellectual buffs, then rather avoid Science Fiction, unless you are willing to accept that it is Science Fiction, not Science Fact.  While there are many Science Fiction movies that have attempted to be scientific, the majority do get the ‘science’ part wrong. Yes … space is a vacuum, and therefore has no sound in space … but if you’re going to be pedantic about it, then you’re going to put off by the first spaceship that flies past.  Everyone, like George Lucas, knows that there’s nothing as dull as silence, and nothing as thrilling as the roar of spaceship engines.  You can stumble across a couple of gems under Science Fiction … so don’t brush of Science Fiction as being intended for geeks, because Science Fiction movies can have all the thrills, spills, action and drama you could bargain for.

Action – As the word implies, Action movies are about action … and not just the “lights, camera … action” variety. If you want a boost of testosterone, watch an Action movie.  Ladies, there’s testosterone for you too. The Action has all the ingredients of a good movie … maybe just mixed together in the wrong way.  There is the protagonist, the hero … or sometimes it’s the team of heroes. Then on the other side of the spectrum there is the villain, with his bunch of henchmen.  The hero will use any means necessary to outsmart the villain … the hero will face insurmountable odds … the hero will single-handedly take on wave after wave of bad guys armed to the teeth. Action movies do often include Comedy … hero throws a knife at a baddie, says “Stick around” … I mean really funny stuff. Action movies also often include Drama … there’s nothing more dramatic than seeing the hero shot in the shoulder, and then painfully hop away.  If you’re looking for a good all-round movie to watch with your friends, watch an Action … you won’t embarrass yourself like you would with Horror or Drama … and you will get a good dose of male-bonding.

Adventure – Adventure has several aspects of Action … actually, quite often an Adventure is referred to as an “Action Adventure”.  So here too, expect daring feats not to be tried at home.  The story in Adventure, is usually set in some weird and wonderful location, like the Steppes of Mongolia or dusty Morocco … actually, quite often, it is set in multiple weird and wonderful locations, and has the protagonist traveling for location to location is search of some elusive something.  Adventure brings out the child in you … it reminds you why you joined the Boy Scouts … it makes you want to put on a Fedora and grab a bullwhip.  Sadly, Adventure is a movie genre that seems to have declined a bit, with Adventure movies being fewer and further between.

I’m running out of things to say now. Maybe I’ll leave it at those genres for now.  There are many more, and I will revisit this introduction to movie genres at a later point, but for now … that’s what I’ve got.