what genre is a movie review

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How to Write a Movie Review

Last Updated: August 11, 2024 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Marissa Levis . Marissa Levis is an English Teacher in the Morris County Vocational School District. She previously worked as an English director at a tutoring center that caters to students in elementary and middle school. She is an expert in creating a curriculum that helps students advance their skills in secondary-level English, focusing on MLA formatting, reading comprehension, writing skills, editing and proofreading, literary analysis, standardized test preparation, and journalism topics. Marissa received her Master of Arts in Teaching from Fairleigh Dickinson University. There are 14 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 5,653,768 times.

Whether a movie is a rotten tomato or a brilliant work of art, if people are watching it, it's worth critiquing. A decent movie review should entertain, persuade and inform, providing an original opinion without giving away too much of the plot. A great movie review can be a work of art in its own right. Read on to learn how to analyze a movie like a professional film critic, come up with an interesting thesis, and write a review as entertaining as your source material.

Sample Movie Reviews

Writing an Intro for a Movie Review

• Comparison to Relevant Event or Movie: "Every day, our leaders, politicians, and pundits call for "revenge"– against terrorist groups, against international rivals, against other political parties. But few of them understand the cold, destructive, and ultimately hollow thrill of revenge as well as the characters of Blue Ruin. "
• Review in a nutshell: "Despite a compelling lead performance by Tom Hanks and a great soundtrack, Forrest Gump never gets out of the shadow of its weak plot and questionable premise."
• Context or Background Information: " Boyhood might be the first movie made where knowing how it was produced–slowly, over 12 years, with the same actors–is just as crucial as the movie itself."

• Using stars, a score out of 10 or 100, or the simple thumbs-up and thumbs-down is a quick way to give your thoughts. You then write about why you chose that rating.
• Great Movie: ABC is the rare movie that succeeds on almost every level, where each character, scene, costume, and joke firing on all cylinders to make a film worth repeated viewings."
• Bad Movie: "It doesn't matter how much you enjoy kung-fu and karate films: with 47 Ronin, you're better off saving your money, your popcorn, and time."
• Okay Movie: "I loved the wildly uneven Interstellar far more than I should have, but that doesn't mean it is perfect. Ultimately, the utter awe and spectacle of space swept me through the admittedly heavy-handed plotting and dialogue."

• Great: "Michael B. Jordan and Octavia Spencer's chemistry would carry Fruitvale Station even if the script wasn't as good. The mid-movie prison scene in particular, where the camera never leaves their faces, shows how much they can convey with nothing but their eyelids, the flashing tension of neck muscles, and a barely cracking voice."
• Bad: " Jurassic World's biggest flaw, a complete lack of relatable female characters, is only further underscored by a laughably unrealistic shot of our heroine running away from a dinosaur – in heels."
• Okay: "At the end of the day, Snowpiercer can't decide what kind of movie it wants to be. The attention to detail in fight scenes, where every weapon, lightbulb, and slick patch of ground is accounted for, doesn't translate to an ending that seems powerful but ultimately says little of substance."

• Does the film reflect on a current event or contemporary issue? It could be the director's way of engaging in a bigger conversation. Look for ways to relate the content of the film to the "real" world.
• Does the film seem to have a message, or does it attempt to elicit a specific response or emotion from the audience? You could discuss whether or not it achieves its own goals.
• Does the film connect with you on a personal level? You could write a review stemming from your own feelings and weave in some personal stories to make it interesting for your readers.

Composing Your Review

• When you name characters in your plot summary, list the actors' names directly afterward in parenthesis.
• Find a place to mention the director's name and the full movie title.
• If you feel you must discuss information that might "spoil" things for readers, warn them first.

• Cinematography: " Her is a world drenched in color, using bright, soft reds and oranges alongside calming whites and grays that both build, and slowly strip away, the feelings of love between the protagonists. Every frame feels like a painting worth sitting in."
• Tone: "Despite the insane loneliness and high stakes of being stuck alone on Mars, The Martian's witty script keeps humor and excitement alive in every scene. Space may be dangerous and scary, but the joy of scientific discovery is intoxicating."
• Music and Sound: " No Country For Old Men's bold decision to skip music entirely pays off in spades. The eerie silence of the desert, punctuated by the brief spells of violent, up-close-and-personal sound effects of hunter and hunted, keeps you constantly on the edge of your seat."
• Acting: "While he's fantastic whenever he's on the move, using his cool stoicism to counteract the rampaging bus, Keanu Reeves can't quite match his costar in the quiet moments of Speed, which falter under his expressionless gaze."

• Keep your writing clear and easy to understand. Don't use too much technical filmmaking jargon, and make your language crisp and accessible.
• Present both the facts and your opinion. For example, you might state something such as, "The Baroque background music was a jarring contrast to the 20th century setting." This is a lot more informative then simply saying, "The music was a strange choice for the movie."

• Great: "In the end, even the characters of Blue Ruin know how pointless their feud is. But revenge, much like every taut minute of this thriller, is far too addictive to give up until the bitter end.""
• Bad: "Much like the oft-mentioned "box of chocolates", Forest Gump has a couple of good little morsels. But most of the scenes, too sweet by half, should have been in the trash long before this movie was put out."
• Okay: "Without the novel, even revolutionary concept, Boyhood may not be a great movie. It might not even be "good.” But the power the film finds in the beauty of passing time and little, inconsequential moments – moments that could only be captured over 12 years of shooting – make Linklater's latest an essential film for anyone interested in the art of film."

Polishing Your Piece

• Ask yourself whether your review stayed true to your thesis. Did your conclusion tie back in with the initial ideas you proposed?
• Decide whether your review contains enough details about the movie. You may need to go back and add more description here and there to give readers a better sense of what the movie's about.
• Decide whether your review is interesting enough as a stand-alone piece of writing. Did you contribute something original to this discussion? What will readers gain from reading your review that they couldn't from simply watching the movie?

Studying Your Source Material

• The title of the film, and the year it came out.
• The director's name.
• The names of the lead actors.

• Make a note every time something sticks out to you, whether it's good or bad. This could be costuming, makeup, set design, music, etc. Think about how this detail relates to the rest of the movie and what it means in the context of your review.
• Take note of patterns you begin to notice as the movie unfolds.
• Use the pause button frequently so you make sure not to miss anything, and rewind as necessary.

• Direction: Consider the director and how he or she choose to portray/explain the events in the story. If the movie was slow, or didn't include things you thought were necessary, you can attribute this to the director. If you've seen other movies directed by the same person, compare them and determine which you like the most.
• Cinematography: What techniques were used to film the movie? What setting and background elements helped to create a certain tone?
• Writing: Evaluate the script, including dialogue and characterization. Did you feel like the plot was inventive and unpredictable or boring and weak? Did the characters' words seem credible to you?
• Editing: Was the movie choppy or did it flow smoothly from scene to scene? Did they incorporate a montage to help build the story? And was this obstructive to the narrative or did it help it? Did they use long cuts to help accentuate an actor's acting ability or many reaction shots to show a group's reaction to an event or dialogue? If visual effects were used were the plates well-chosen and were the composited effects part of a seamless experience? (Whether the effects looked realistic or not is not the jurisdiction of an editor, however, they do choose the footage to be sent off to the compositors, so this could still affect the film.)
• Costume design: Did the clothing choices fit the style of the movie? Did they contribute to the overall tone, rather than digressing from it?
• Set design: Consider how the setting of the film influenced its other elements. Did it add or subtract from the experience for you? If the movie was filmed in a real place, was this location well-chosen?
• Score or soundtrack: Did it work with the scenes? Was it over/under-used? Was it suspenseful? Amusing? Irritating? A soundtrack can make or break a movie, especially if the songs have a particular message or meaning to them.

Expert Q&A

• If you don't like the movie, don't be abusive and mean. If possible, avoid watching the movies that you would surely hate. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
• Understand that just because the movie isn't to your taste, that doesn't mean you should give it a bad review. A good reviewer helps people find movie's they will like. Since you don't have the same taste in movies as everyone else, you need to be able to tell people if they will enjoy the movie, even if you didn't. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
• Structure is very important; try categorizing the different parts of the film and commenting on each of those individually. Deciding how good each thing is will help you come to a more accurate conclusion. For example, things like acting, special effects, cinematography, think about how good each of those are. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

You Might Also Like

Expert Interview

Thanks for reading our article! If you’d like to learn more about writing, check out our in-depth interview with Marissa Levis .

• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/subject_specific_writing/writing_in_literature/writing_about_film/terminology_and_starting_prompts.html
• ↑ https://www.spiritofbaraka.com/how-write-a-movie-review
• ↑ https://www.nyfa.edu/student-resources/9-tips-for-writing-a-film-review/
• ↑ https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/writing-help/top-tips-for-writing-a-review
• ↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/summary-using-it-wisely/
• ↑ https://twp.duke.edu/sites/twp.duke.edu/files/file-attachments/film-review-1.original.pdf
• ↑ https://www.dailywritingtips.com/7-tips-for-writing-a-film-review/
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/subject_specific_writing/writing_in_literature/writing_about_film/film_writing_sample_analysis.html
• ↑ https://learning.hccs.edu/faculty/onnyx.bei/dual-credit/movie-review-writing-guide
• ↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/conclusions/
• ↑ https://www.grammarly.com/blog/how-to-write-a-movie-review/
• ↑ https://gustavus.edu/writingcenter/handoutdocs/editing_proofreading.php
• ↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/editing-and-proofreading/
• ↑ https://edusson.com/blog/how-to-write-movie-review

About This Article

To write a movie review, start with a compelling fact or opinion to hook your readers, like "Despite a great performance by Tom Hanks, Forrest Gump never overcomes its weak plot." Then, elaborate on your opinion of the movie right off the bat so readers know where you stand. Once your opinion is clear, provide examples from the movie that prove your point, like specific scenes, dialogue, songs, or camera shots. To learn how to study a film closely before you write a review, scroll down! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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7.3 Glance at Genre: Criteria, Evidence, Evaluation

Learning outcomes.

By the end of this section, you will be able to:

• Identify and define common characteristics, mediums, key terms, and features of the review genre.
• Identify criteria and evidence to support reviews of different primary sources.

Reviews vary in style and content according to the subject, the writer, and the medium. The following are characteristics most frequently found in reviews:

• Focused subject : The subject of the review is specific and focuses on one item or idea. For example, a review of all Marvel Cinematic Universe movies could not be contained in the scope of a single essay or published review not only because of length but also because of the differences among them. Choosing one specific item to review—a single film or single topic across films, for instance—will allow you to provide a thorough evaluation of the subject.
• Judgment or evaluation: Reviewers need to deliver a clear judgment or evaluation to share with readers their thoughts on the subject and why they would or would not recommend it. An evaluation can be direct and explicit, or it can be indirect and subtle.
• Specific evidence : All reviews need specific evidence to support the evaluation. Typically, this evidence comes in the form of quotations and vivid descriptions from the primary source, or subject of the review. Reviewers often use secondary sources —works about the primary source — to support their claims or provide context.
• Context : Reviewers provide context, such as relevant historical or cultural background, current events, or short biographical sketches, that help readers understand both the primary source and the review.
• Tone : Writers of effective reviews tend to maintain a professional, unbiased tone—attitude toward the subject. Although many reviewers try to avoid sarcasm and dismissiveness, you will find these elements present in professional reviews, especially those in which critics pan the primary source.

These are some key terms to know and use when writing a review:

• Analysis : detailed examination of the parts of a whole or of the whole itself.
• Connotation: implied feelings or thoughts associated with a word. Connotations can be positive or negative. Reviewers often use words with strong positive or negative connotations that support their praise or criticism. For example, a writer may refer to a small space positively as “cozy” instead of negatively as “cramped.”
• Criteria : standards by which something is judged. Reviewers generally make their evaluation criteria clear by listing and explaining what they are basing their review on. Each type of primary source has its set of standards, some or all of which reviewers address.
• Critics : professional reviewer who typically publishes reviews in well-known publications.
• Denotation : the literal or dictionary definition of a word.
• Evaluation : judgment based on analysis.
• Fandom : community of admirers who follow their favorite works and discuss them online as a group.
• Genre : broad category of artistic compositions that share similar characteristics such as form, subject matter, or style. For example, horror, suspense, and drama are common film and literary genres. Hip hop and reggae are common music genres.
• Medium : way in which a work is created or delivered (DVD, streaming, book, vinyl, etc.). Works can appear in more than one medium.
• Mode : sensory method through which a person interacts with a work. Modes include linguistic, visual, audio, spatial, and gestural.
• Primary Sources : in the context of reviewing, the original work or item being reviewed, whether a film, book, performance, business, or product. In the context of research, primary sources are items of firsthand, or original, evidence, such as interviews, court records, diaries, letters, surveys, or photographs.
• Recap : summary of an individual episode of a television series.
• Review : genre that evaluates performances, exhibitions, works of art (books, movies, visual arts), services, and products
• Secondary source: source that contains the analysis or synthesis of someone else, such as opinion pieces, newspaper and magazine articles, and academic journal articles.
• Subgenre : category within a genre. For example, subgenres of drama include various types of drama: courtroom drama, historical/costume drama, and family drama.

Establishing Criteria

All reviewers and readers alike rely on evidence to support an evaluation. When you review a primary source, the evidence you use depends on the subject of your evaluation, your audience, and how your audience will use your evaluation. You will need to determine the criteria on which to base your evaluation. In some cases, you will also need to consider the genre and subgenre of your subject to determine evaluation criteria. In your review, you will need to clarify your evaluation criteria and the way in which specific evidence related to those criteria have led you to your judgment. Table 7.1 illustrates evaluation criteria in four different primary source types.

Even within the same subject, however, evaluation criteria may differ according to the genre and subgenre of the film. Audiences have different expectations for a horror movie than they do for a romantic comedy, for example. For your subject, select the evaluation criteria on the basis of your knowledge of audience expectations. Table 7.2 shows how the evaluation criteria might be different in film reviews of different genres.

Providing Objective Evidence

You will use your established evaluation criteria to gather specific evidence to support your judgment. Remember, too, that criteria are fluid; no reviewer will always use the same criteria for all works, even those in the same genre or subgenre.

Whether or not the criteria are unique to the particular task, a reviewer must look closely at the subject and note specific details from the primary source or sources. If you are evaluating a product, look at the product specifications and evaluate product performance according to them, noting details as evidence. When evaluating a film, select either quotations from the dialogue or detailed, vivid descriptions of scenes. If you are evaluating an employee’s performance, observe the employee performing their job and take notes. These are examples of primary source evidence: raw information you have gathered and will analyze to make a judgment.

Gathering evidence is a process that requires you to look closely at your subject. If you are reviewing a film, you certainly will have to view the film several times, focusing on only one or two elements of the evaluation criteria at a time. If you are evaluating an employee, you might have to observe that employee on several occasions and in a variety of situations to gather enough evidence to complete your evaluation. If you are evaluating a written argument, you might have to reread the text several times and annotate or highlight key evidence. It is better to gather more evidence than you think you need and choose the best examples rather than try to base your evaluation on insufficient or irrelevant evidence.

Modes of Reviews

Not all reviews have to be written; sometimes a video or an audio review can be more engaging than a written review. YouTube has become a popular destination for project reviews, creating minor celebrities out of popular reviewers. However, a written review of a movie might work well because the reviewer can provide just enough information to avoid spoiling the movie, whereas some reviews require more visual interaction to understand.

Take reviewer Doug DeMuro ’s popular YouTube channel. DeMuro reviews cars—everything from sports cars to sedans to vintage cars. Car buyers need to interact with a car to want to buy it, and YouTube provides the next best thing by giving viewers an up-close look.

Technology is another popular type of review on YouTube. YouTube creators like Marques Brownlee discuss rumors about the next Apple iPhone or Samsung Galaxy and provide unboxing videos to record their reactions to the latest phones and laptops. Like DeMuro’s viewers, Brownlee’s audience can get up close to the product. Seeing a phone in Brownlee’s hands helps audience members imagine it in their hands.

On the other hand, reviews don’t always need to be about products you can touch, as Paul Lucas demonstrates on his YouTube channel “Wingin’ It!” Lucas reviews travel experiences (mainly airlines and sometimes trains), evaluating the service of airlines around the world and in various ticket classes.

What do these reviews have in common? First, they are all in the video medium. YouTube ’s medium is video; a podcast’s medium is audio. They also share a mode. YouTube ’s mode is viewing or watching; a podcast’s mode is listening.

These examples all use the genre conventions of reviews discussed in this chapter. The reviewers present a clear evaluation: should you buy this car, phone, or airline ticket? They base their evaluation on evidence that fits a set of evaluation criteria. Doug DeMuro might evaluate a family sedan on the basis of seating, trunk storage, and ride comfort. Marques Brownlee might judge a phone on the basis of battery life, design, and camera quality. Paul Lucas might grade an airline on service, schedules, and seat comfort. While the product or service being reviewed might be different, all three reviewers use similar frameworks.

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Everything You Need to Know on How to Write a Movie Review

You love watching movies. You show up early and breathe in the trailers, mentally noting each coming attraction you’d like to see—which is most of them. You invite your friends to linger afterward so you can discuss and digest the film’s best, worst, and most intriguing aspects.

If this sounds like you, you might already be a film critic at heart. But it takes some effort to structure your thoughts, so it’s good to have a place to start. Here’s everything you need to know about writing movie reviews:

Some details are essential.

Film criticism is a wide-open art form—there is no cookie-cutter template to follow. But there are a few facts that anyone reading your review should take away:

• Who directed the movie?
• Who starred in it?
• Is it a sequel, adaptation, or remake?

Some publications, like Variety , simply list the director and key actors near the top of each review. But others, like The New Yorker —where the erudite Anthony Lane reigns supreme—instead weave in such information throughout the piece.

If you opt for the latter approach, throw in some helpful context as you go. Not every reader of your review of The Shape of Water will recognize Guillermo del Toro’s name, but mentioning his earlier works, like Pan’s Labyrinth , might jog a few memories.

Here’s a tip:  Grammarly runs on powerful algorithms developed by the world’s leading linguists, and it can save you from misspellings, hundreds of types of grammatical and punctuation mistakes, and words that are spelled right but used in the wrong context. Learn More  

Other bits are fine to leave out.

While it’s good to provide context, don’t overdo it. One or two telling details will often suffice—no need to recapitulate anyone’s entire filmography. Likewise, if your review includes a comprehensive summary of the movie’s plot, you’re doing it wrong.

To be sure, you need to make clear whether the movie is a soft-spoken arthouse film or the latest installment in the ever-growing pantheon of big-budget superhero flicks, and whether it’s set in 9th century China or on Mars. Beyond that, it’s almost never a service to the reader to spoil the twist that sets up the third act. Leave some suspense intact.

How do I decide what makes the cut?

As a test, when you’re not sure a particular detail merits inclusion, ask yourself: If I omit this, and a reader later learns it elsewhere, will they feel like I blew it?

You don’t want someone to finish your review of Lady Bird , go see it, and only later feel astonished to discover that, like her film’s protagonist, director Greta Gerwig attended Catholic school in Sacramento, and drew from that experience in writing Saoirse Ronan’s character.

Such information should not be news to your audience; they read your review, after all.

Ratings systems might just be overrated.

Film reviews are subjective. You’re under no obligation to rate movies on a hard scale—A+, 9/10, a solid four coffin emojis out of six feet under, etc.

In fact, many a movie buff scoffs at the notion of dispensing just a single award, Oscar or otherwise, for Best Picture. Trying to pit such dissimilar films as Get Out or The Post against Dunkirk , the argument goes, is absurd.

Rather than grasp for an arbitrary value, state plainly what a movie called to mind, or how it didn’t quite land with you, and explain why.

Study the greats.

There’s no shortage of opinions on movies in the world, but try focusing on one or two critics whose work resonates with you. Make a habit of examining their latest each week. Look for patterns. Try to notice what they’re noticing.

The most telling reviews sometimes occur when a critic singles out something bizarre for praise. Would you have bet on the aforementioned Lane to laud a documentary about a dumb Canadian metal band from the 1980s?

Both Lane and New York Times longtimer A.O. Scott were influenced by the legendary Pauline Kael, who Roger Ebert eulogized in 2001 for having “a more positive influence on the climate for film in America than any other single person over the last three decades.”

I…I…liked RED SPARROW. https://t.co/p1dWhDXIKg — Amy Nicholson (@TheAmyNicholson) February 28, 2018

Your job’s not done if you haven’t considered…

To instill trust in your readers, you have to think and write about movies holistically. You might have strong opinions on martial arts and Victorian fashion, but your audience will doubt you if you judge a film solely on its action sequences or costuming.

True, many viewers of, say, Blade Runner 2049 are watching for robots, uppercuts, and noir, but a good critic is alive not just to the quality of the special effects but also the visual storytelling—the malevolent buildup surrounding the movie’s villains, say, or the occasional comedic beat between Ryan Gosling and Harrison Ford.

In this spirit, you’d be remiss to ignore:

• The quality of the acting
• Whether the camerawork held your interest and felt deliberate
• Whether the world felt inhabited or thrown together

If that all seems like a lot to hold in your mind until the movie ends and you can start writing, we have one more tip:

Take notes.

In a dark theater, you generally can’t pull out your smartphone or tablet to dash off ideas on a glowing screen without getting hissed at and asked to leave. Fortunately, film critics whose careers predate such devices have devised this alternative—take a notebook and pen.

You may need some time (and practice) to decipher what you’ve scrawled in the dark. But as the house lights come up, try looking back through your scribbles and add clarifications or more details while your memory is fresh.

You don’t want your final draft to read like you wrote it while watching movies in the dark. Grammarly’s free app can help tidy up those reviews before they go out. Find out more here .

• Writing Style
• How to write …
• Analysis of Speech
• Storytelling
• Career Development

How to Write a Film Review: Preparation, Steps, Examples

• by Anastasiya Yakubovska
• 06.10.2022 10.05.2024
• How to write ...

How to write a film review (true, professional, and comprehensive) and not be limited to the phrase “What a great movie!”? In this article, you will find answers to the next questions:

• How long is a movie review? 
• How many paragraphs does a movie review have? 
• Features of the Film Review 
• Functions of the Movie Review 
• How to Write a Film Review: Preparation for Writing 
• 10 Questions You Need to Answer Before You Start Writing a Movie Review 
• How to Write and Structure a Film Review: Step by Step 

What Is a Film Review?

A film review is a critical judgment or discussion that informs about the release of a new film and contains its analysis, assessment, summary, as well as personal impressions and experiences after watching.

How long is a movie review?

On average, the length of a film review is about 1000 words.

How many paragraphs does a movie review have?

It is recommended that the film review should consist of 5-7 paragraphs.

Read also article “How to Write a Book Review: Step by Step and Examples”.

Features of the Film Review

A film review is a persuasive piece of writing, it has some features as:

• A less formal style of writing. 
• You need to write objectively about the film. 
• But, on the other hand, movie reviews contain personal thoughts and feelings. 
• The film review’s audience is wider and more diverse. 

Movie reviews can be written by two groups of reviewers: professional critics and ordinary consumers. Therefore, the text of the review will differ. In the first case, when the reviewer is a professional critic, he will describe the movie instead of evaluating it. While consumer critics mostly write from a personal perspective. 

What is the main purpose of a film review?

The main purpose of a film review is to inform readers about the film (what can expect from it) and to help them determine if they want to watch the movie. 

Functions of the Movie Review

The film review performs several functions at once: it informs, analyzes, persuades, and entertains. If you can include all of these points in your review, then you will have an excellent result in the end. 

How to Write a Film Review: Preparation for Writing

Writing a review is, of course, a creative process, but you should not forget about the analytical approach to creating a convincing and high-quality text. You must take the work responsibly, which we will do now.

To write a professional film review, you first need to complete the following preparation steps:

• Of course, the first step is to find a film, if it has not been previously chosen by the manager/client/boss. There will be more chances to write a good review if the film was liked by both – film critics and you personally.
• Watch the movie at least 2-3 times. After the first viewing, you will get a general impression of the picture, and try to fully immerse yourself in the atmosphere of the film. Pay attention to the details the next time you watch it: the sound, the actor’s play, the editing, the plot. 
• If you have difficulty understanding the events covered in the film (for example, historical), be sure to find additional information and research the topic.
• If after two viewings you still do not have a final assessment of the film in the form of a brief thesis, watch the film again. You can look at other works of the director who worked on this film, this will help you determine his characteristic style. Also, as an option, you can look at the game of actors in other films (for comparison).
• When watching a movie, take notes: key scenes, interesting plot twists, inconsistencies, details, and quotes. Then, based on them, you can build a review text, and a good quote can become an excellent epigraph.
• Find information about the filming: location, duration, season, details about the filming process, difficulties the production team faced, casting, etc. Such information will make the review more attractive to readers.
• If the film is nominated for awards and prizes, please include this information in your film review. For a potential viewer, such an assessment of the film will be a weighty argument in the direction of -> compulsory viewing.

10 Questions You Need to Answer Before You Start Writing a Movie Review

• Does the film split into multiple parts? A sequel, prequel, or one of the movie series? 
• What is the film genre (action, comedy, historical, drama, fantasy, Western, political, thriller, gangster, horror, tragicomedy, romance, sports, mystery, science fiction)? Is the movie based on real or fictional events?
• Did the screenplay writer create an exciting plot?
• Is the rhythm of the film slow and quiet, heavy and static, or chaotic and frantic?
• What is the film’s rating according to the MPAA? ( G – General Audiences. All ages admitted. PG – Parental Guidance Suggested. PG-13 – Parents Strongly Cautioned. R – Restricted. Under 17 requires an accompanying parent or adult guardian. NC-17 – Adults Only.) 
• Are there any films with a similar/same theme? Sometimes it is worth mentioning some of them in a review, as a comparison.
• How can you characterize the work of a cinematographer? How accurately are the most expressive compositional, lighting solutions, as well as camera angles, selected and embodied?
• Is the film entertaining or covers a serious themes?
• Was the casting successful? Did all the actors cope with their roles?
• Is the atmosphere of the film tense, mysterious, sinister, relaxed, or romantic?

The answers to all of the above questions will help you understand how to write a film review, and above all, create a draft version of your future review. But, of course, this is not enough for the final result.

How to Write and Structure a Film Review: Step by Step

Writing a film review is a long and complicated process. Therefore, it is better to break it down into stages and move step by step. This will help you not to get lost and not get confused in the details.

• The catchy introduction.

The introductory part of the review should contain important information about the film: title, director, release date, and genre. 

You can mention nominations and awards, as well as indicate the box office (if the numbers are impressive) and the cast. 

In addition to “technical” aspects and a simple presentation of the plot, it is necessary to express your impression of the film in the form of a thesis, for example, to tell:

• about the connection of the film’s central idea with current events and social problems;
• about the similarity of the film’s plot with a personal life situation, personal experience, and feelings;
• about the connection of technical elements (lighting, sound, editing) with the theme of the film.

2. Pass the verdict.

Do not torment the reader and express your opinion about the film in the first paragraphs of the review.

You should not leave all the most interesting “for later”. If you decide to give a final assessment of the film at the end of the review, what are the chances that the reader will read to this end?

3. Write a summary of the plot.

Choose 4-5 main events.

Avoid the film’s ending and spoilers. Keep the intrigue. If you want to spoil and share an unusual story development, warn the reader about this.

4. Bring the feelings.

In addition to presenting the plot of the film, you should add emotions to the text of the review and show what you felt while watching it.

5. Define the main purpose of the movie. 

Perhaps the film’s purpose is hidden in its plot. Or maybe the film does not pretend to solve global problems at all. Perhaps the film is entertaining, and this is its advantage – it is relaxed and simple.

Sometimes the main idea of a serious and deep film can be found in an interview with a film crew, a screenwriter, or a director.

6. Add some details of the filmmaking process. 

It is important to know the measure and not to overdo it with the terminology. Here’s what you can write about:

• Cinematography: visual mood, lighting elements, shot sizes and widths, camera angles, etc. 
• Sound. The main goal is to create the necessary atmosphere in the film. Sound in movies includes music, dialogue, sound effects, ambient noise, background noise, and soundtracks. 
• Editing is the creation of a finished motion picture from many shot scenes. A film editor must creatively work with the layers of images, story, dialogue, music, pacing, as well as the actors’ performances to effectively “re-imagine” and even rewrite the film to craft a cohesive whole.
• Mise-en-scène (from French – placement on the stage) is the mutual arrangement of the actors and their environment on the set, natural or pavilion. Mise-en-scene includes landscapes, visual effects, the psychological state of the characters, etc.

7. The deep meaning.

You may be able to spot specific symbolic items, repetitive moments, or key phrases that give depth to the film.

8. Give examples.

It is not enough to say “ an excellent game of actors ”. Explain what exactly caught your attention (appearance, facial expressions, costumes, or movements of the actor). 

9. A convincing conclusion.

Write about the moments in the film that made the biggest impression on you. Share a recommendation. To whom and why do you advise to watch this movie?

10. Reread the review text several times .

Edit, and correct mistakes that can spoil the impression even from a professionally written film review.

Examples of Film Reviews

To consolidate the received information, let’s move from theory to practice. Below are two examples of film reviews.

Apocalypse Now

Review by Roger Ebert

Francis Ford Coppola’s film “Apocalypse Now” was inspired by Heart of Darkness, a novel by Joseph Conrad about a European named Kurtz who penetrated to the farthest reaches of the Congo and established himself like a god. A boat sets out to find him, and on the journey the narrator gradually loses confidence in orderly civilization; he is oppressed by the great weight of the jungle all around him, a pitiless Darwinian testing ground in which each living thing tries every day not to be eaten.

What is found at the end of the journey is not Kurtz so much as what Kurtz found: that all of our days and ways are a fragile structure perched uneasily atop the hungry jaws of nature that will thoughtlessly devour us. A happy life is a daily reprieve from this knowledge.

A week ago I was in Calcutta, where I saw mile upon square mile of squatter camps in which hundreds of thousands live generation after generation in leaky huts of plastic, cardboard and scrap metal, in poverty so absolute it is impossible to see any hope of escape. I do not mean to equate the misery of those hopeless people with a movie; that would be indecent. But I was deeply shaken by what I saw, and realized how precious and precarious is a happy life. And in such a mood I watched “Apocalypse Now” and came to the scene where Col. Kurtz (Marlon Brando) tells Capt. Willard (Martin Sheen) about “the horror.”

Kurtz is a decorated hero, one of the best soldiers in the Army, who has created a jungle sanctuary upriver inside enemy territory, and rules Montagnard tribesmen as his private army. He tells Willard about a day when his Special Forces men inoculated the children of a village against polio: “This old man came running after us and he was crying, he couldn’t see. We went back there, and they had come and hacked off every inoculated arm. There they were in a pile, a pile of little arms. . . .”

What Kurtz learned is that the Viet Cong were willing to go to greater lengths to win: “Then I realized they were stronger than we. They have the strength, the strength to do that. If I had 10 divisions of those men, then our troubles here would be over very quickly. You have to have men who are moral and at the same time who are able to utilize their primordial instincts to kill without feeling, without passion, without judgment.” This is the “horror” that Kurtz has found, and it threatens to envelop Willard, too.

The whole movie is a journey toward Willard’s understanding of how Kurtz, one of the Army’s best soldiers, penetrated the reality of war to such a depth that he could not look any longer without madness and despair.

The film has one of the most haunting endings in cinema, a poetic evocation of what Kurtz has discovered, and what we hope not to discover for ourselves. The river journey creates enormous anticipation about Kurtz, and Brando fulfills it. When the film was released in 1979, his casting was criticized and his enormous paycheck of $1 million was much discussed, but it’s clear he was the correct choice, not only because of his stature as an icon, but because of his voice, which enters the film from darkness or half-light, repeating the words of T.S. Eliot’s despairing “The Hollow Men.” That voice sets the final tone of the film.

Film review: example

Diana biopic Spencer wobbles between the bold and the bad

By Nicholas Barber

You may feel that you’ve had enough of Princess Diana’s story on the big and small screens, what with Naomi Watts taking the role in Oliver Hirschbiegel’s awful Diana in 2013, and then Emma Corrin playing her in the most recent season of The Crown, with the mantel set to be passed in Elizabeth Debicki in the next run. But, to give it its due, Pablo Larraín’s Spencer marks the only time the People’s Princess has been shown delivering a lecture on Anne Boleyn to an old coat that she has just stolen off a scarecrow, and then having a chat with the ghost of Boleyn herself shortly afterwards. The Chilean director doesn’t go in for conventional biopics, as anyone who has seen Jackie (starring Natalie Portman) or Neruda will know. And here again he has gone for a surreal portrait of his iconic subject. The snag is that his experimental art house spirit keeps bumping up against the naffness and the familiarity of British films set in stately homes, so his psychodrama ends up being both ground-breaking and rib-tickling.

It’s set over three days in 1991, from Christmas Eve to Boxing Day, at Sandringham House in Norfolk. The rest of the Royal Family has arrived for their holiday in a fleet of chauffeur-driven cars, but Diana (Kristen Stewart) rocks up on her own in a Porsche convertible, having taken a detour to visit the aforementioned scarecrow: her dilapidated childhood home, from the days when she was Lady Diana Spencer, is a field or two away from Sandringham. Her late arrival concerns the sympathetic head chef (Sean Harris) and bothers the Scottish army veteran (Timothy Spall) who has the job of ensuring that everything goes the way the Queen wants it to. Her Majesty’s insufferable Christmas traditions include weighing all the guests when they arrive and when they leave to ensure that they’ve been sufficiently gluttonous. But Diana is in no mood for festive japes. Her Christmas present from Charles (Jack Farthing) – a necklace with pearls the size of golf balls – is identical to the one he has given his mistress. And the whisper in the servants’ quarters is that the Princess is “cracking up”. The filmmakers apparently agree.

Steering away from the same territory as The Crown, Larraín and Knight don’t fill the film with awkward meals and heated arguments (although there are one of each of those). Prince Charles does some grumbling, but the Queen has hardly any lines and Prince Philip has none: they are closer to menacing waxworks than people. For most of the time, Diana is either talking to her young sons, her trusted personal dresser (Sally Hawkins) or to herself. It’s interesting, this lack of dramatic conflict and discernible plot, but it can leave the film seeming as listless and purposeless as Larraín’s Diana herself. Her favourite occupation is to wander around the estate until she finds something that has an ominous symbolic connection to her, and then make an unconvincing speech about it. Ah, pheasants! So beautiful, yet bred to be killed!

Stewart is such inspired casting that she makes all this eccentric nonsense watchable. She’s been practising Diana’s signature moves for years – dipped head, hunched shoulders – and she certainly knows what it’s like to put up with intrusive tabloid photographers. She also looks suitably fabulous in the many outfits that Diana is required to wear over the long weekend. And unlike Watts’s performance in 2013, hers doesn’t seem distractingly like an impersonation. Mind you, she delivers all her lines in little bursts of hissing whispers, so if you don’t see it with English subtitles, as its first audiences did at the Venice Film Festival, you might not understand more than half of what she says.

The effect is a bit odd, but there are lots of odd things in the film, not least the tone and the pacing, which lurch around like someone who’s had too much after-dinner port. Between Jonny Greenwood’s squalling jazz soundtrack, the hallucinations, and the blush-making sexual confessions, Spencer is a folly that wobbles between the bold and the bad, the disturbingly gothic and the just plain silly. In some scenes, it’s heart-rending in its depiction of Diana’s self-harm and bulimia. In others, it’s almost as risible as the Diana biopic from 2013, and that’s saying something. I didn’t know any more about Diana afterwards than I did beforehand, but I can’t say I didn’t enjoy it. This is a film that echoes The Shining at the start and 2001: A Space Odyssey at the end. The Crown Christmas Special it ain’t.

Sources of information: 

• “The Film Analysis Handbook” by Thomas Caldwell. 
• https://payforwriting.com/writing/creating-review/how-to-write-movie-review
• www.mtsu.edu
• www.sciencedirect.com/science
• Image:   freepik.com
• Poster from the film Apocalypse Now

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Genres in Cinema: How Movie Categories Influence Reviews

In the intricate realm of cinematic storytelling, the discerning eye of a movie reviewer serves as both a compass and a critique. Movie reviewers, with their keen insights and seasoned perspectives, play a pivotal role in guiding audiences towards films that resonate with their preferences. But how do these expert reviewers approach the multifaceted world of movie genres, and how do these genres, in turn, shape the tenor of their reviews? This article delves into the intricate interplay between film genres and movie reviewers, unraveling the profound impact they have on cinematic narratives and their reception.

Decoding Film Genres

Film genres serve as an indispensable framework for categorizing the diverse range of movies that grace our screens. From the high-octane thrills of action-packed blockbusters to the poignant depths of heart-wrenching dramas, genres provide a lens through which we perceive and understand movies.

These categories, often recognized by their defining themes, character arcs, and stylistic choices, not only facilitate filmmakers in creating compelling narratives but also guide moviegoers towards the cinematic experiences they crave. However, the influence of these genres extends far beyond mere labels — they are the bedrock upon which movie reviewers tread to evaluate and critique films.

Setting Expectations

Genres lay the foundation for audience expectations. When a viewer sees a film categorized under a specific genre, they enter the theater with a preconceived notion of what awaits them. For instance, a horror film promises spine-chilling suspense, while a romantic comedy guarantees hearty laughter and amorous escapades.

Yet, this reliance on genre can be a double-edged sword. While it helps viewers find films tailored to their tastes, it can also lead to a certain level of predictability. For movie reviewers, this predictability can sometimes be a factor when evaluating a film, as they gauge how well it adheres to genre conventions or, perhaps, how ingeniously it subverts them.

The Critics’ Dilemma

Movie reviewers, or critics, often find themselves walking a fine line when it comes to genres. Here’s how the dynamic unfolds:

1. Genre Expectations: Critics frequently evaluate a film within the context of its genre. They measure it against the benchmark set by other films within that category, determining whether it lives up to established norms. For instance, when critiquing a science fiction epic, they consider it alongside other iconic entries in the genre.

2. Subverting Conventions: Films that challenge or transcend genre conventions can spark spirited debates among critics. While some may commend such movies for their audacity and innovation, others might decry them for not delivering the expected genre experience. This dichotomy often leads to a diverse range of reviews.

3. Genre Expertise: Certain critics specialize in specific genres, armed with an intricate knowledge of their intricacies and nuances. These genre aficionados provide invaluable insights, offering a deeper understanding of how a film fits within the broader context of its genre.

The Emergence of Genre Hybridization

In the ever-evolving landscape of cinema, filmmakers have embraced genre hybridization as a means to push the boundaries of storytelling. By blending elements from different genres, they create cinematic concoctions that defy easy categorization.

When reviewing such films, movie critics must cast aside preconceived notions about genre and approach them with an open mind. The litmus test becomes how effectively the hybridization enriches the narrative and whether it offers a fresh and engaging cinematic experience.

Genres in cinema are not just labels; they are signposts on a cinematic journey. They influence how movies are perceived and evaluated by both audiences and the discerning eyes of movie reviewers. Understanding the interplay between genres and reviews is essential to appreciating the art of filmmaking fully. As cinema continues to evolve and genres continue to blend, the relationship between movie categories and reviews will remain a captivating and ever-evolving aspect of the cinematic experience. The next time you sit down to watch a film, consider how its genre might influence your own review and the expert analyses of the movie reviewers who shape our cinematic preferences.

Written by Shannel

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Part I: Construction

2. What Is Genre and How Is It Determined?

Webster’s Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language defines genre as “a category of artistic, musical, or literary composition characterized by a particular style, form, or content.” 5

In other words, genre categorizes movies. Categorizing movies makes it easier for the viewer to discover what he or she likes and will want to see. Putting a movie into a particular genre or category does not diminish the quality of the movie by assuming that if it can be put into a genre, the movie is ordinary and lacks originality and creativity.

Genre consists of four elements or parts: character, story, plot and setting. An equation for remembering the genre is: S tory ( A ction) + P lot + C haracter + Se tting = G enre. This becomes an easy way to remember the elements of a genre.

The above elements of story, plot, setting, and character equal a specific category of movie. These elements are discussed regarding how their variations create a different category of movie.

Some genres may be as general as comedy but do not have sub-genres like comedy. The sub-genres of comedy differ from one another based on the fluctuations of the characters and the story.

Other genres are crime, war, Westerns, spy, adventure, science fiction, horror, fantasy, biography, and mystery. This is why this chapter is longer than the others because of the discussion of these variations.

Drama can be considered a genre, even though some critics do not consider it a genre because it is too general. If the movie elements are serious and cannot fit into a more limited genre, then it can be considered a drama.

Categorizing a movie indirectly assists in shaping the characters and the story of the movie. The shaping determines the plot and best setting to use.

Movies often have genres that overlap, such as adventure in a spy movie, or crime in a science fiction movie. But one genre is predominant.

Other movie labels cannot be considered genres. Film noir, thrillers, and action movies are not actually genres but a director’s style, which will be discussed in a later chapter. They are considered director’s style because their characteristics include cinematography and editing, which are not among the four elements that make up a genre. These labels reflect or accentuate the movie genre rather than defining the genre.

Likewise, musicals and animation are not considered genres but rather “treatments” as to how a particular movie genre is told, even though people, over generations, refer to these types of movies as genres.

You have to be very specific in the discussion of movie terminology, sticking within the particular definition of the terms. Some people will say that genres are labels that are given to stock movies, stating that these movies are routine. Being labeled in a genre is not a negative action.

Movies have their own personalities. Each movie is different. Having a movie labeled in a genre assists people to find a particular movie that they may be interested in watching. Many people like a specific genre or two and will only watch movies in those genres.

What People Like the Most about a Movie

People will state that a particular movie had a good plot or an intriguing story. What people are actually referring to is that they enjoyed the characters, the problems/conflict the characters got into, and how the characters got out of the problems and conflict.

People love a movie because they like to watch characters/people. How many people do you know who like to go to the mall, plaza, or beach and state that they like to people watch? How many people are nosey neighbors because they like to watch what is going on with the people around them?

People may like to watch crime movies or Westerns. They like characters within this particular type of story because of the amount of action or the time period setting. People may like Westerns because they wish they lived in the 19th century because it was considered a simpler time.

Let the Genres Begin

We will begin to discuss the different genres, and even the sub-genres, for certain genre types. I will give a hypothetical example of each so you will begin to see how different genres are formed.

Keep in mind with movie genre, it is the characters that make the movie, and this term is obvious enough that no explanation is needed.

The story is the situation that the characters are in and try to get out of, accomplish, conquer, or overcome. The story has a beginning, middle, and end. More discussion about those will be given in Chapter Three.

The plot is the outline or how the story is told. Remember when people state that they did not like the plot? What they are referring to is that they did not like the story. I will be referring to this concept over and over again throughout the book.

There are only a limited number of plots as the plot is a general outline for a story, like revenge. A particular plot describes how a story will begin, develop, and end. This type of story will have a different format than a plot such as man against nature or man versus the government.

In addition, as we progress through genres, we want to examine how the genre elements change.

You will be able to see that the background and actions of the characters change as the type of stories are different. The setting is dependent upon the story, but the plot remains the same.

I want to stress that we are going through the different genres so character and story development can be seen for each of the genres rather than just giving a general overview of the term genre. I want you to see how only certain elements are contained in a genre, and other elements outside of character, story, plot, and setting are not part of determining a genre.

Comedy Genre

We begin by discussing one of the most popular, general, and complicated genres—comedy.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines comedy simply as “a play, movie, television program, novel, etc., that is meant to make people laugh.” 6 We will discuss comedy in a little more detail than that.

Everybody likes a comedy because everybody likes to laugh and feel good. People like to watch a comedy after a bad day, because once the movie has ended, you can deal with the negativity of the day easier. This is why even horrendous comedy movies can end up making a profit.

The characters and story for a comedy hinge on three areas: the unexpected, the unusual, and repetition. These three areas will generally make people laugh. Generally, a comedy will have a happy ending. Even though some people will deny it, everybody likes a happy ending because it makes them feel good. This is why comedies are so popular.

The complicated part of the comedy genre is that there are different types or sub-genres of comedy; depending upon how outrageous and impossible the characters and story are in the movie. Keep in mind that the plot is general, and the setting can be set in any time or any place.

We will discuss the comedy genre in terms of the different sub-genres of comedies and how the characters and story vary per sub-genre.

Comedies run a gamut, ranging from very physical to nonsensical to subtle to dark. We will discuss the sub-genres in that order, using the same hypothetical example but varying it to show how the different comedy sub-genres will change the characters’ personalities and actions and the story.

The sub-genres of comedy are slapstick, farce, satire, and dark. Any other genres are a variation of these four types. Comedy is actually a variation of physical action and ridicule. The only exception is screwball comedy.

Screwball comedy has many different traits that are outside of a genre. Screwball comedy, because it existed during the Great Depression, contains class conflict between the middle and lower classes and the upper class, along with other peculiarities that only existed during that time period.

Finally, “chick flicks” are generally comedy movies that star women. The Urban Dictionary defines chick flicks as “A film that indulges in the hopes and dreams of women and/or girls and has a happy, fuzzy, ridiculously unrealistic ending.” No doubt the concept of chick flicks goes back to what was previously mentioned; people like a particular type of movie because of the characters in the movie.

Slapstick Comedy

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines slapstick as comedy that involves physical action (such as falling down or hitting people). 7 Slapstick comedy, because of the physical action, which becomes extreme at times, has unrealistic characters in an unbelievable story or possibly a story linked together by episodes of the main character’s/protagonist’s life.

The plot is an inner conflict that builds and ends with these various comedic episodes. The setting can be any time or place that best exemplifies the comic antics that the characters go through.

Let’s take a look at an example that demonstrates these elements.

Jack is down on his luck. He helps a girl, Suzie, whose car broke down near where Jack works. He helps her, and then she leaves, but he cannot get her out of his mind.

Then he sees her in one of his classes. He is afraid to talk to her though. Every time he tries to go up to her, he either stumbles and falls or gets involved with helping someone with disastrous consequences. The last time someone asked him to hold onto one of the ropes of the theatre rigging system where the backdrops were attached, too many stage weights attached to the rigging resulted in Jack flying into the air because he did not let go of the rope.

As luck always has it in a slapstick comedy, Suzie is still driving the old broken down car. She breaks down again in almost the same locations as last time. Jack swallowed what little pride he had left, and went to help her. He got her car started, but she did not drive away immediately after getting it fixed but stayed to talk to Jack. They talk, kiss, and accidentally turn the outside sprinkler system on, getting soaking wet in the romantic conclusion.

From this example, you can see that slapstick comedy is all about the characters and the episodic situations that they get into, resulting in physical comedy. The plot is inner conflict where Jack, the protagonist, wants to turn his life around. This then becomes the story. The story has a climax between Jack and Suzie. The setting is a college campus.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines farce as “a funny play or movie about ridiculous situations and events.” 8

Plot has more prominence in farce than in slapstick because there is a satirical story. In other words, the story concerns a topic that is ridiculed in an extreme way. We can adjust the last example quite easily to demonstrate this.

Jack and Suzie are college students, and Alec is a well-known actor coming to the campus to play a role in the theatrical production at the college. This event has been arranged so the college theatre department can make money. Jack takes a dislike to Alec, but Suzie finds him fascinating. Alec finds himself fascinating. Slapstick is shown by the over-the-top acting that Alec does.

Jack has a difficult time wondering why Alec is famous. Suzie soon finds disenchantment with Alec because he is only concerned about himself. Jack and Suzie and the other theatre majors decide to take the actions of the play to the extreme to humiliate and humble Alec.

In a water scene, where Alec is supposed to pantomime having water thrown on him, real water is used. This drives Alec into a hysterical rage, and he chases Jack and Suzie on stage, off the stage, around the theatre, and out the theatre doors. Alec winds up accidently knocking himself unconscious. Jack states that the most natural acting that Alec has done is being knocked out.

Next, Jack develops a hair-brained scheme so the theatre department can make money. Jack and Suzie make a list of the wealthiest men and women in the area. They invite as many of these wealthy people in the area to participate in an auction. There will be five male winners and five female winners. The prize is that they win Jack and Suzie for a day to act as their slaves.

You can see that a farce has more of a story than slapstick comedy. The plot has an inner conflict of the protagonists, Jack and Suzie, needing money. This creates a story where college theatre students try outrageous ways to make money to save the theatre department. The story ridicules colleges, actors, and theatres in general. The actions of the characters are very slapstick with physical comedy throughout the movie.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines satire as “a way of using humor to show that someone or something is foolish, weak, bad, etc.: humor that shows the weaknesses or bad qualities of a person, government, society, etc.” 9

Satire is subtler than farce or slapstick in the actions of the characters. The plot develops an inner conflict, but the story is more realistic and may, at times, not even appear to be a comedy.

In this example, the setting can remain as a college campus.

Jack and Suzie, once again, are college students. Alec, though, is the instructor, who has a drinking problem, and he is directing a class that Jack and Suzie have to take as a requirement of their theatre major. Alec tries to convince the students that there is no right or wrong way to direct, act, or design. In his mind, theatre is all done with emotion. If it feels right, then do it. In order to help them understand and develop their talents as directors, Alec gives the same answer to any question Jack and Suzie ask: “If it feels right, then do it.”

Jack struggles to try and comprehend what Alec’s statement means. He does not understand why he has to go through four years of college if he just has to recognize what feels right. Jack asks Alec for more of a discussion on what feels right. Alec then tells him, “You’ll know.” This frustrates Jack even more because it does not take four years in college to put to use nine words that do not mean anything specific in regard to studying theatre. He questions the college administration as to why they are paying so much for Alec. The college administration retorts that Alec is one of the best in his field. Jack states that Alec teaches absolutely nothing of any value. The administration states, “That shows how good he is; you do not even realize the education you are receiving.”

Defeated, Jack goes to see Suzie, his last hope. Suzie tells him not to be too quick to judge. Suzie states that she believes she understands what Alec is driving at with his ideas. Suzie tries to demonstrate the statements that Alec has mentioned. After a few hours Suzie becomes frustrated and states the both of them must go to see Alec.

After two hours with Alec, Jack and Suzie are delirious. Being delirious, they finally fathom what Alec means. They both run out of Alec’s house and down the street shouting, “We have identified what it is!”

From this discussion of the characters and story, physical actions do not enter as a predominant element that they do in straight slapstick or farce. The satire is an obvious ridicule of theatre as a major and the type of people in theatre.

A more subtle satire would be Jack and Suzie acting as a clique and by being prima donnas. They mock a new theatre major, Alec, who wants to do a good job. Alec starts to develop his talent under strenuous and often humorous situations with consequences to the amazement of Jack and Suzie. But then he realizes what he has to give up for it. He quits for his own self-respect.

The above are two demonstrations of satire.

The first example, depending on the treatment, could become either a farce, if Jack’s, Suzie’s, or Alec’s actions become too outrageous, exaggerated, and over-the-top, or it could become a satire. The line of demarcation between farce and satire are, as with anything that is analytical, left up to an individual’s judgment. When does extreme satire become farce? A good way to judge farce or satire is how much unrealistic physical comedy is in the movie.

Dark Comedy or Black Comedy

Dictionary.com defines dark humor or black comedy as “in literature and drama, combining the morbid and grotesque with humor and farce to give a disturbing effect and convey the absurdity and cruelty of life.” 10 11

Dark humor and black comedy are terms that make fun of or ridicule taboo topics like death. The characters are involved in a story that goes to the point of being grotesque and not being funny.

With this example of a college theatre as the setting, and the plot being the inner conflict of the main character, how can the characters and story become absurd, morbid, and grotesque when discussing the taboo topic of death? Quite easily actually!

Insecure about his acting ability and visibly showing this in public auditions, Jack does not obtain the role on stage that he desires, Henry V or “Hank 5,” which is Jack’s nickname for him. In order to relieve himself of his frustrations, Jack tortures and kills everyone who receives this part in the most brutally visual ways imaginable. He does this in hopes of eventually receiving this specific coveted role. Jack, though, is the only one who believes this role is so desirable and sought after.

Jack kills the first person who is given the role, Alec, by drawing and quartering him before he hangs him.

The second person to be given the role is Suzie, which really angers and infuriates Jack that a woman would get the role before him. This action adds absurdity to the story.

This is a dark humor movie rather than a serious movie because of the reasons, background, and extreme actions in the story. The characters act realistically based on their personalities, which are all unusual. The physical action is real so this scenario cannot be considered slapstick.

Screwball Comedy

This comedy sub-genre is named after a baseball pitch, the screwball, which was perfected by baseball pitcher Carl Hubbell in the 1930s. Screwball comedy only lasted from 1934, when the Great Depression was in full swing, to 1941, when World War II began.

Screwball comedy was based on reverse class snobbery where it is more noble to be poor than rich. The rich were portrayed as eccentric and wasteful fools. Romance is one of the key elements of screwball comedy. With the two classes of upper and lower or middle class working together, screwball comedies can be considered as recommending socialism. The story is a little different, but overall, it can be considered within the realm of satire because the current society was being ridiculed.

Screwball comedy also had the following attributes:

• The poor and middle class would go to the movies to see the rich get their comeuppance. This is why movies were one of the few industries of the period that made a profit. People felt a passion of hate toward the upper class because of the mess lower classes assumed the upper class made of the economy.
• Many of the most famous movie stars of the period appeared in screwball comedies.
• People went to the movies to see the elegant clothes, cars, and furniture, so they could wish they had those items.

Any referral to a movie as a screwball comedy after 1941 is inaccurate, even if it is a re-make of a movie released during the 1934-1941 period. A re-make does not have the same relevancy, power, or passion as the original movie.

A contemporary screwball-type comedy generally is fast paced with an eccentric character, but it does not have the class snobbery. Any class snobbery in the movie does not have the contemptable hatred toward the upper class as it did these movies during the Great Depression. The emotional rage cannot be duplicated.

Romantic Comedy

Dictionary.com defines romantic comedy as “a light and humorous movie, play, etc., whose central plot is a happy love story.” 12

Romantic comedy is contained in most comedies as a sub-story, such as The Front Page , which has an underlying romantic story of Hildy wanting to marry his fiancée and leave newspaper reporting. However, the overriding story of the movie concerns reporters and editors doing anything in order to get the story.

Comic romance is a big element in screwball comedy also, but other story lines are more dominant. Can you think of a movie that has the primary story line as being a romantic relationship? If you can, how did you like the movie?

Comedy Conclusion

Comedy is varied and complex. You can see how the stories, along with the personalities and actions of the characters, change, developing different sub-genres of the comedy being expressed. All comedy stems from either slapstick or satire.

Let’s move on to a new genre.

Crime Genre

Staying with the letter “C,” let’s move on to the crime genre.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines crime as “an act or the commission of an act that is forbidden or the omission of a duty that is commanded by a public law and that makes the offender liable to punishment by that law” or more simply “a grave offense especially against morality.” 13 The definition gives us a lot to work with, so we will do our best to bring it into focus.

The first point is that every aspect of the crime genre is dramatic, so the elements are quite different than a comedy. The setting for crime genre can be any location in the world and any year, because crime is something that has always existed in society. We will try to narrow this down for our example.

The plot is an inner conflict for the criminal to succeed or for the “good guy” to succeed. The story is a series of developing incidents where the criminal or the “good guy” is the protagonist and a conflict has to be overcome. The characters develop from the story and plot.

Let’s demonstrate two examples with Jack being the protagonist in both situations. In the first situation, Jack is a criminal and the second one Jack is the “good guy.”

First situation: Jack is a nice, helpful individual at the beginning of the movie. He soon finds that he has to help a friend, Suzie, get out of a jam because she owes a lot of money to a gambling boss, Alec. Jack goes and begins to negotiate honestly in regard to paying Suzie’s debt. Alec laughs at him and is going to throw him out. Jack, even though he is a nice guy, has a very bad temper. This often is the situation in the crime genre. Jack becomes extremely angry with Alec laughing at him, and he kills Alec.

Alec’s men come in and Jack tells them he is their new boss. The men don’t like it, but they reserve any action for a later time. Suzie likes the new Jack and wants to be his girl. Suzie is aroused by the violence in Jack and cannot keep her hands off him.

Jack soon becomes more successful than Alec ever was, but he begins to become too egotistical. With his ego getting in the way, Jack makes a mistake when trying to take over a gambling casino. Jack is killed and the men kill Suzie. The most jealous, vindictive, right-hand man in the gang takes over the gambling empire.

Stories in the crime genre are often about people seeking power. Usually, the criminals want control over the city where the story takes place. Generally, they want to be in charge of the drug trade, gambling, liquor (depending upon the year), or they want to rise up in the family or gang. There are always periods of violent action with the protagonist trying to reach his/her goal.

Second situation: Jack is a police detective in a large city like New York City or Los Angeles. Jack is a hardworking, honest detective. He is dedicated to his job and his partner, Alec. Jack spends most of his free time with Alec and Alec’s family. Alec is murdered. Even though he wasn’t put on the case, because they were partners and friends, Jack spends his free time investigating who murdered Alec. During his investigation he meets Suzie. Suzie knew Alec and considered him a friend. Suzie asks if she can help with looking into the murder. Jack, after some convincing, agrees.

Suzie and Jack start to become close during the investigation, and Jack falls in love with her. This is often a foreshadowing as to how the story is going to end. After a few dead ends and blocked paths in the investigation, Jack picks up some information that leads him down an unsuspected path. Jack finds that Suzie was a little more than a friend to Alec, so Suzie has an ulterior motive for assisting Jack. Jack discovers that Suzie murdered Alec and was going to kill Jack, too. Jack arrests Suzie for Alec’s murder.

These are the elements and formats of the crime genre. The crime can be different than murder. Crimes encompass a wide variety of different actions. The main characters do not have to be crime bosses or police detectives, but they generally have a similar background. Very seldom do they lead a life like a factory worker or office employee. This is one reason why the crime genre is so popular. People want to watch characters that lead exciting lives different from theirs.

The stories in the crime genre are similar to the aforementioned two examples where the crime is more than a speeding ticket and provides an interesting and exciting story. The plot can be an inner conflict, once again, of the protagonist, and the setting is usually in the United States or Europe in modern times.

Western Genre

Because of the similarities between the Western and crime genres, I have included back-to-back discussions of the two genres.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines Western simply as “of or relating to the American West.” 14 Keeping this in mind, we will begin by discussing the setting.

The setting provides the major difference between the crime genre and the Western genre. Instead of the characters and story occurring in the 1930s or the 1990s, the time for a Western is in the early to late 19th century or anytime through the 1820s to 1890s. Once the 20th century arrives, except for the beginning years, the feeling of the Old West is gone, which brings up the other aspect of the setting that defines the Western genre. The Western genre takes place in the West. Depending upon the year, the West could be Ohio in the 1820s, Missouri in the 1850s, or Nevada in the 1880s.

The main character or protagonist is an individualist, who rides into town for a specific reason, or he may run into trouble while in town, or he may be hired to do something like blaze a trail West. The characters and the stories are straightforward. The interest is the developing story and the action-filled problems that the protagonist faces as he tries to accomplish what he set out to do.

The plot can still be one of inner conflict as the protagonist tries to accomplish the specific goal, quell the trouble in town, or overcome the obstacles of nature as the main character blazes the trail West.

An example of the Western genre has Jack being the individualist, loner riding into town. He has come to town to avenge the death of his partner. Outside of the setting, the same type of character and story could be used in the crime genre. While Jack begins to ask questions about what happened to his partner, he falls into the middle of a range war; a typical Western story, between two ranches over the grazing rights of land. Alec owns the one ranch, and Suzie (a woman) owns the other, which is a rarity in the West.

Jack gets to know Suzie as his inquiries continue. He begins a relationship with her. During the relationship, Jack gives Suzie a helping hand in the range war. Alec is totally evil, underhanded, and despicable in his actions. Westerns, even more contemporary ones, have an outright bad person like Alec. You can see this in crime genre movies also.

Jack defeats Alec in the range war, and in the process, finds that Alec also killed Jack’s partner. In the Old West, there can only be one climax to the story. Jack and Alec shoot it out; Alec is killed, and Jack and Suzie fall in love.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines war as “a state or period of fighting between countries or groups.” 15 With this definition being direct, we can discuss the genre in the same manner. The war genre is straightforward because the movie is very limited in its parameters.

The setting and the year is very specific regarding the year and the location. If the movie takes place from the United States’ perspective, World War I would be from 1917 to 1918; World War II would be from 1941 to 1945; and the Korean Conflict, Vietnam War, Desert Storm, and other Middle East conflicts follow the same procedure. The locations would be an area where the war occurred or in the United States to concentrate on how the home front was coping.

The plot is the inner conflict with dealing with war. The characters and story are based on a battle, trying to obtain overall victory at some point of the war, dealing with losing, dealing with death, dealing with fighting, being a prisoner, or coping at the home front or a location where the fighting is not taking place.

World War II encompasses the war genre. Jack is a soldier, who is a married teacher with two children. He is drafted by the United States shortly after World War II started late in 1941. Jack was told by his wife, Suzie, not to volunteer for any extra missions so he could come home alive to his family when the war is over. Of course, this is not going to be true because a war movie has to have a daring mission.

After being in Europe for about a year and losing many battles, Jack becomes frustrated because he knows the war is not going to end soon. Suzie dreads each day because of the emptiness in her life without Jack. To her, each day never appears to end. She is stressed because she has a continuous challenge to make ends meet.

Jack and seven other men are given a chance to go on a dangerous mission to blow up a German stronghold and capture a high-ranking German officer. These men are asked to go on this mission because of their intelligence and personalities. If they succeed in this mission, the war will likely be over quicker than expected, because of the information they will receive from this German officer. Jack remembers that his wife told him never to volunteer, but he knows he only has once choice. He volunteers. Suzie gets a feeling of foreboding and is suddenly afraid something bad is going to happen. She starts to become distant to her friends and even her children.

Jack goes on the mission. Everything is timed perfectly. The fortress is blown up and the German officer is captured. However, the trip back to the Allied lines did not go as planned. Half the men are killed, Jack is wounded, and the German officer is killed.

Suzie’s feeling of foreboding becomes so great that, at one point, she passes out with anxiety. The Christmas holidays are near, and Suzie is persuaded to take the children to church. As the service begins, Jack walks into the church and joins Suzie and the children. The story ends happily, but with a cost. In order to give the story a more realistic feel, the protagonist is not totally successful with what he had set out to do.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines spy as “to watch secretly usually for hostile purposes” or “to search or look for intensively.” 16 I want to give two short definitions to emphasize the spy genre because it is a combination of watching and searching, but I do not want it to get confused with the next genre of adventure.

The spy genre sounds like it could cross over to the previous genres already discussed. But only the setting and the plot can be standard. The setting could be the same as the war, Western, or crime genres, but it does not make it a war, Western, or crime genre. You have to remember that the story makes the genre because it controls everything else.

In the spy genre, the main character generally works under an assumed identity in order to find something or destroy something of harm controlled by a nemesis. As in past genres, the plot is the inner conflict of the protagonist. In this situation, he or she has a strong inner conflict to succeed at what he or she is assigned to act upon.

Thus, if the movie has any of the aforementioned characteristics but takes place during World War II, the movie is primarily a spy movie rather than a war movie. Remember, the setting does not determine the genre but the story does. The story is interconnected to the characters and the plot. The setting helps add the must-needed background and specificity to the movie, but it is not as interconnected as the other three genres.

In recent times, a male of the strong virile type plays the protagonist spy. So, we will demonstrate that this does not always have to be that way in a movie. We will take a woman, named Suzie, who is the spy protagonist. We will set the example during World War II. Unlike Jack in the war genre discussion, Suzie is chosen because of her background in languages and her photographic memory, giving her the ability to memorize lists of facts immediately. She is requested to go behind enemy lines as a civilian and obtain data that will debilitate the enemy thus giving the Allies the advantage and shortening the war by possibly years.

In order to be able to do this, and to prepare her mentally for the task, she is set to train for three weeks with an Army officer named Jack. Jack is very skeptical that Suzie will be able to pull the task off. Jack states that it is not because she is a woman, but the movie viewers know that her being a woman is exactly the reason.

Jack begins a rigorous training program just to say that he told her so. However, Suzie really masters everything Jack throws at her. After about a week, Jack sees this and starts to admire her strength and fortitude. Jack makes the training less rigorous because he only trains her to get behind enemy lines, get back to the Allied lines, and how to mentally survive torture. By the end of the three weeks, they begin to fall in love with each other, and Jack feels he should accompany her, but his command says that is impossible.

The time has arrived for Suzie to go. The French underground has managed to get her a clerical job where she can do some travelling including going to Normandy. Rather abruptly, Suzie plans a trip to Normandy. She studies the land and is able to secretly catch a glimpse of German maps showing where their military strength is in and around Normandy. Suzie rushes and gets the information off to the Allies before she is captured by the Germans. The Allies receive Suzie’s information, but they cannot help Suzie. The Germans find her guilty of being a spy and she is executed.

Can you see the difference between this example and the war genre example? Both have the same setting of World War II, but the spy genre example has a non-soldier searching for secret information, while the war genre had a group of soldiers going on a mission that was not secret. The war mission was behind enemy lines and in the war zone where the fighting was occurring. The spy genre does not occur in the war zone where there was fighting.

Do you see the differences in the stories?

The spy story has a lot less emotion and love between the main characters. The spy story has more suspense as Suzie is hunting for information. She is becoming involved in several tight situations where she barely misses getting caught by the Nazis. The war genre story has the one climatic battle that the whole conflict was moving toward.

Most of the time these two genres do not become this similar but these two examples make it easier to see the differences in the two genres.

Adventure Genre

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines adventure as “an undertaking usually involving danger and unknown risks” that is “an exciting or remarkable experience.” 17 From this definition, you can see that adventure is an action movie that overlaps with the spy genre with danger, risks, and excitement.

Both the adventure and spy genres can have exotic settings. The stories are normally about a person or group of people searching for something. During the journey of searching, dangerous situations are overcome by the main characters. The protagonist may end up getting involved in fighting to overcome social or moral injustices in the exotic location where he or she has journeyed.

The difference between this genre and the spy genre is, once again, the story. The spy genre has a story where something is searched for secretively, and the information itself contains secret information. This story has suspense based on timing and near misses.

The adventure genre’s suspense is found in the action and the chance that the protagonist may get killed without the espionage. The protagonist is an adventurer rather than a government employee.

Being bigger than life, the adventure genre contains a lot of explosive action throughout the movie. Remember that the story treatment, character background, and character development are big differentiations and distinctions that separate genres. The plot and the setting are also different between genres, and are reflective of the story and the types of characters.

Science Fiction Genre

Science fiction is linked to the previous genres of crime, Westerns, war, spy, and adventure by the basic theme. However, the genre elements are totally different.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines science fiction as “fiction dealing principally with the impact of actual or imagined science on society or individuals or having a scientific factor as an essential orienting component.” 18 An example of science fiction is time travel, which has and is a popular topic.

Quite often, science fiction has a setting that takes place in the future. In this way, if the producer wants to comment on a particular problem in current society, the producer can set the problem in the future. The producer appears critical about the problem but not about the current society. The outcome of that problem, if it continues, shows how the future will look.

For science fiction, we can still stay with the plot of inner conflict, which can always be the plot, because a conflict is needed. The characters and the story can be the same as any other genre with variations, as we will demonstrate in the example.

In our example, Jack and Suzie, along with several hundred other people, are fed up with the crime and violence that exists where they live. No specific location is mentioned, so it can be anywhere in the world or universe.

In this movie, many of Jack and Suzies’ group are engineers who work endlessly to build several space ships that to travel to a new galaxy, away from the crime and chaos.  Researchers in this group toil endlessly to find a new galaxy that is livable for humans. Together they all dream of pioneering and developing this new world so there is no violence and everyone can live in harmony.

By seeing the people’s action of building space ships, the audience learns that the time is the future.

The space ships are finally finished and they are sent off. They find and arrive in the new world that is named New Earth. The people set up a colony and draft laws so there is no anarchy. Everything is great for two generations. The people live in harmony and enjoy each day to the utmost.

However, one day, someone is found dead and robbed. Everyone is left shocked. Because so much time has passed without violence, the police are unprepared. But they review the crime scene, and conclude that it was murder.

Since they have never investigated a murder, they  are unsure what should they do to find the murderer and how should they to go about doing it. They arrive at a procedure and find the murderer. The murder was an accident. The murderer was surprised as everyone else. The people realize a murder or accidental death can always happen, so the society has to be prepared and set up to handle it. Even though the story is fantastical in many ways, it can still make comments and raise questions about society and morality.

Science fiction genre, like any genre, can cross over at some point or points to another genre. This example crossed over to the crime genre. However, to determine the main genre, review the story, characters, plot, and setting together. In this situation, these elements are most geared toward the science fiction genre.

Fantasy Genre

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines fantasy as “something that is produced by the imagination: an idea about doing something that is far removed from normal reality.” 19

In other words, a fantasy movie has no limits. The setting could be anywhere at any time with characters who appear and act in any way the script writer wants. The story could be about anything. So let’s stick with one constant, the plot. The plot will be inner conflict.

According to Wikipedia, fantasy stays away from scientific and macabre story aspects, so it does not become a piece of science fiction or horror. You can see how all three genres: science fiction, fantasy, and horror are similar but different.

What would a fantasy example be like?

A group of misfits are given a task by a wizard to find the perfect person. They must do this in order to save their friend, who is terminally ill and will die shortly. The wizard tells them that their friend is not terminally ill but under an evil spell that he can break. The perfect person is the wizard’s fee for breaking the spell. The characters are Jack, Suzie, and Alec, who are misfits because they are the outcasts from their home village, which is in a fictional country. The wizard gives them a clue to look where no one has looked or would think of looking.

Jack, Suzie, and Alec think that the perfect place to find the perfect person is in a graveyard because nobody would think of looking there. But how would the perfect person appear in a graveyard? After searching through several cemeteries, they become frustrated because they find nothing unusual and do not know what the wizard was talking about. They finally find a cemetery where they can enter a new world that is built upon their imaginations. Using their imaginations mean, as they discuss a trait or physical appearance, they can build the person using their minds. What they imagine can become reality.

Using their imaginations, they begin to discuss what the perfect person would look like and act. What would the person’s personality be like? They cannot decide because the traits that they imagined as a perfect person are foreign to them. Finally, they start talking about themselves, and what they like and do not like.

After a lengthy conversation that continues for days, Suzie stands up and yells that she has the answer. She states they should make three lists of their best physical and mental traits. That will be the perfect person. The perfect person is within them as it is within all people. They compile the perfect person using their imaginations and take it to the wizard.

Suzie explains to the wizard with the assistance of Jack and Alec that the perfect person was within them as it is within all people. The wizard states that they found the answer to the clue. As such, they are also able to break the spell over their friend. The spell is broken, and the four leave and live happily ever after.

You are only limited by your imagination. A wonderful theme can come from any genre.

Horror Genre

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines horror as “the quality of something that causes feelings of fear, dread, and shock: the horrible or shocking quality or character of something.” A horror show is “something that is difficult to deal with or watch because it is so bad, unpleasant, etc.” 20

The setting regarding where the movie takes place can be instrumental in a horror movie. Many times, horror movies take place in a historical area with big, old houses that hold many secrets. Secrets provide the basis of a story as the house is supposedly haunted because something gruesome happened there many years ago. However, the setting may not be unusual, but it can be a typical small town or city just like the one where you live.

The plot, once again, is inner conflict. The main character, Suzie, inherits the house, and she is determined—to the point of becoming obsessed—to prove that there is no such thing as a haunted house. However, she takes her boyfriend, Jack, with her to the house. After they become frightened by unearthly occurrences in the house, Jack asks his friend, Alec, to join them at the house to find a solution to what is going on.

Alec states that in order to make it a clean, healthy house again, they have to discover the problem and solve it. In order to do this, Alec recommends doing a séance. The three of them enter a room late in the evening and try to contact a spirit to identify the problem. They find, at one point, that the house was owned by a slave trader or human trafficker. Down in the basement, many bodies were buried.

Suzie cannot stand thinking that a relative was a human trafficker and nothing can really be done to solve this problem. The house was owned by an evil man who is suffering in the spirit world because of his past actions. Jack thinks that the only cure to these past heinous actions is to burn the house down, which would cremate the bodies that were buried in the basement and possibly put them at peace.

Suzie does not agree with that action, but Alec agrees with Jack in order to find a cure for the haunting. Possibly, after the burning, Suzie can build a different house. Suzie starts to act in an irrational manner, like she is becoming her past relative, who was the slaver. Alec and Jack burn the house. Suzie becomes completely enraged and has to be restrained until the house is completely burned down.

Once the house has finished burning, Suzie no longer acts like she is possessed. The whole area becomes quiet. Suzie speculates that they just need drive away from it. The three of them drive away.

The horror genre brings fear, and fear generally brings thrills and suspense. With a suspenseful scene, people like to scare themselves. The theme can always be “search for the truth,” rather than “do not be afraid of the unknown.”

Drama Genre

If a movie does not fit in one of the aforementioned genre categories, then it is a drama.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines drama as “a play, movie, television show, or radio show that is about a serious subject and is not meant to make the audience laugh” and “a composition in verse or prose intended to portray life or character or to tell a story usually involving conflicts and emotions through action and dialogue.” 21

The four elements of the drama genre have to be serious, portray life, tell a story, and the characters have to have an inner conflict that brings out emotions at different times throughout the story. These are all points that we have been discussing with the other genres. The characters and the story are general, like everyday people and situations.

Somebody is dying, something has to be obtained, or something has to be accomplished are the three common stories for dramas. Jack is an accomplished musician, who is going to be playing at Carnegie Hall, and he finds out that he has a fatal illness after passing out during a rehearsal. Or, Jack lived in the slums and a teacher noticed something in him that could be cultivated. Jack becomes a renowned doctor, scientist, or mathematician. The movie covers Jack’s obstacles to achieve what is necessary for him to being on the road toward a renowned career.

Or, Suzie risks everything to find a cure for a disease that is killing many thousands of people on a Caribbean island. The viewer often knows what is going to happen but often the characters and their development is what makes a drama interesting.

The story is relatively simple, the plot is inner conflict, and the setting is inconsequential because the characters make the movie.

Did you find Cyrano de Bergerac to be a drama? Cyrano de Bergerac had a firm foundation in unrequited love, a very romantic element in the story. But Cyrano’s inner conflict of his feelings of inadequacies in his personal appearance, while being overconfident in other areas, present love in a dramatic genre.

Action, Thriller, Suspense Thriller, Biography, Film Noir, Neo Noir, and Mystery

Action, thriller, suspense-thriller, biography, film noir, neo noir, and mystery are terms that are often referred to as different genres. However, none of these are genres. They do not contain just the four basic elements of a genre—no matter how much people insist that they do. They contain the genre elements and other elements, like cinematography, that are not part of a genre.

Writers, educators, critics, historians, and others have stated that the above terms developed into being named a genre and that they can be accepted as a genre over time. How many of you heard or read the terms action genre, film noir genre, or suspense thriller genre? Just because they have been referred to by these terms, over the years, does not make them honorary genres. These terms, by themselves, still have the same meaning even if they have been named genres.

Most of these terms refer to specific cinematography when shooting the movie, or they refer to the way the movie was edited.

Action, thrillers, and suspense thrillers all have similar types of action in them. Adventure, spy, crime, war, and Westerns could all be action movies or thrillers or suspense thrillers. Action, thrillers, and suspense thrillers do not touch upon the four elements that make up a genre.

Film noir and neo noir are predominantly crime movies that have certain cinematography. They overlap both in the construction and production aspects of making a movie.

Film noir means “black film.” Film noir has many scenes occurring at night with many gritty, seedy city shots. The character types in film noir are loners and schemers, but they are reflective of the types of characters in crime movies.

Detour is a good example of film noir regarding the characters like Al and Vera. The voice-over narration of the protagonist describing the forward action, using black and white film, and many scenes occurring at night are examples of film noir. But voice-over narration, being in black and white, and a lot of the movie occurring at night does not determine the genre. The jaded characters, story, and plot of murder defines the movie as a member of the crime genre. The night scenes and voice-over narration are a directorial style. These decisions are characteristics that distinguish it as film noir.

Neo noir is the new noir for the later 20th and 21st centuries when most movies are made in color. The genres could be crime, science fiction, or drama but the cinematography is dark, gritty, and symbolic, similar in many respects to film noir.

Mystery refers to the way the story is shaped. Most mysteries are concerned with who stole something or who murdered someone. Most mysteries belong to the crime genre where the story and the editing keep the audience guessing until the final minutes of the movie.

Biography refers to a nonfiction movie that is about a historical or living person. The background, character, and setting of the movie may determine what other genre a biography might belong to. If the person is a war hero, the movie would be of the war genre; if the person was a criminal or detective, the movie would fit the crime genre, and so forth.

Documentary

Documentary, according to Dictionary.com , refers to movies and television features based on or re-creating an actual event, era, life story, etc., that purports to be factually accurate and contains no fictional elements. 22

Sheila Curran Bernard, 23 author of Documentary Storytelling , defines documentaries as:

Documentaries bring viewers into new worlds and experiences through the presentation of factual information about real people, places, and events, generally — but not always — portrayed through the use of actual images and artifacts. But factuality alone does not define documentary films; it’s what the filmmaker does with those factual elements, weaving them into an overall narrative that strives to be as compelling as it is truthful and is often greater than the sum of its parts.

From these two definitions, documentaries are a separate movie entity that is unto itself.

Final Thought

We covered a lot of area in discussing different genres. Even though genres are only considered labels for movies, the four elements of a genre are the basis of any movie. Besides categorizing, genres indirectly shape the movie’s characters and story.

Character, story, plot, and setting are how a movie is constructed. From this construction, the specific theme that is created by the screenwriter and the director can be realized and understood by the viewer.

The other chapters in the construction of a movie go into more detail and dissect these elements in order for a better understanding of the scope of these elements and how the theme of the movie is realized.

Further Viewing

With the completion of this chapter, the movies to watch that that are excellent examples of different genres are:

• It Happened One Night , 1934, directed by Frank Capra, starring Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert. This is an excellent example of screwball comedy. It is considered the first screwball comedy, and it won five Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay.
• They Were Expendable , 1945, directed by John Ford, starring Robert Montgomery and John Wayne. This is a good example of the war genre. It is set during the beginning of World War II and demonstrates how the United States lost the war with dignity.
• All About Eve , 1950, directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, starring Bette Davis, Anne Baxter, and George Sanders. This is an excellent example of the drama genre.
• Goldfinger , 1964, directed by Guy Hamilton, starring Sean Connery, Gert Fröbe, and Honor Blackman. This is an excellent example of the spy genre that became popular as well as the gadgets that came along with it.
• Raiders of the Lost Ark , 1981, directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones. This is a good example of the adventure genre.

Jack is a school teacher, which is a job he loves. He wants to be the best teacher possible and serve his students well. Because of his desire to serve his students, he has a disdain for the school administration when they want to cut back on the education process while serving themselves with excessive raises. In addition, Jack had a bad family life when growing up. He is rather cold to his mother because of his upbringing. His mother was domineering to him and his father died at an early age. Jack’s bad family life is a big reason why he became a teacher. He wanted to make sure his students were treated better in school than he was at home.

Based on the above introduction, what genre or genres could this movie idea be developed into?

5 Webster’s Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary, 591.

6 “Comedy,” Merriam-Webster Dictionary, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/comedy.

7 “Slapstick,” Merriam-Webster Dictionary, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/slapstick.

8 “Farce,” Merriam-Webster Dictionary, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/farce.

9 “Satire,” Merriam-Webster Dictionary, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/satire.

10 “Dark Humor,” Dictionary.com, http://www.dictionary.com/browse/dark-humor?s=t.

11 “Black Comedy, Dictionary.com, http://www.dictionary.com/browse/black-comedy?s=t.

12 “Romantic Comedy,” Dictionary.com, http://www.dictionary.com/browse/romantic-comedy?s=t.

13 “Crime,” Merriam-Webster Dictionary, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/crime.html.

14 “Western,” Merriam-Webster Dictionary, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/western.html.

15 “War,” Merriam-Webster Dictionary, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/war.html.

16 “Spy,” Merriam-Webster Dictionary, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spy.

17 “Adventure,” Merriam-Webster Dictionary, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/adventure.

18 “Science Fiction,” Merriam-Webster Dictionary, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/science %20fiction.

19 “Fantasy,” Merriam-Webster Dictionary, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fantasy.

20 “Horror,” Merriam-Webster Dictionary, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/horror.

21 “Drama,” Merriam-Webster Dictionary, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/drama.

22 “Movies,” Dictionary.com, http://www.dictionary.com/browse/movies?s=t.

23 Sheila Curran Bernard, “Documentary Storytelling: Creative Nonfiction on Screen,” 3rd ed., (Burlington: Taylor & Francis, 2011).

Exploring Movie Construction and Production Copyright © 2017 by John Reich is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

Breakout English

How to write a film review

Writing a review is an option in many different English language exams, and films are such an obvious choice for reviews, so knowing how to write a film review is pretty important. It’s a great topic for the classroom too. Everyone watches films and there is a lot of opportunity to teach vocabulary, either film-related vocabulary or film review adjectives. I like to start off a class about films with some chat, or my personal favourite, the Movie Music Quiz , which also now has an excellent Movie Picture Quiz version too.

The structure of a film review

Like any writing task, it’s essential to know the structure of a film review before you start writing. A basic film review template shows you how to write a film review using a simple structure. Film reviews for First (FCE) and Advanced (CAE) Cambridge exams, as well as Trinity ISE exams, should all use a 4 paragraph structure. Another thing to remember is that your review should always have a title, and that title should include the name of the film.

• Introduction – Essential details and mini-summary
• Summary – A description of the film and some important details
• Analysis – An evaluation of different elements
• Conclusion – Your opinion and a recommendation

Introduction

In the introduction of a film review, it is crucial to mention the film title and the names of the director and the main actors. A brief summary of the film’s plot and background information can also be included, but it should not give away too much detail. The introduction should engage the reader and entice them to continue reading the review. Additionally, it is important to mention the genre and target audience of the film, which will give the reader an idea of what to expect.

In the summary section, the film review should give a comprehensive but concise description of the film, focusing on the plot, characters, and any significant events. The summary should be written in a way that does not give away the ending or spoil the film for the reader. It is important to maintain objectivity and not include personal opinions in this section. This section should provide enough detail for the reader to have a clear understanding of the film without giving too much away.

The analysis section is where the reviewer can showcase their critical skills and provide an in-depth evaluation of the film. The review should examine various elements of the film such as the script, direction, cinematography, acting, and special effects. You could also make a comparison to similar films in the same genre. The analysis should be written in an objective style with the opinion only showing through the language used.

In the conclusion, the reviewer should give their personal opinion of the film, summarising their thoughts on its strengths and weaknesses. They should also consider the target audience and whether they believe the film will appeal to them. Finally, the reviewer should provide a clear recommendation. The conclusion should be concise, leaving the reader with a clear understanding of the reviewer’s overall opinion of the film.

Using adjectives in reviews

Reviews are a great way to show off your language with impressive adjectives. If you read a film review in a newspaper or magazine, you’ll notice that the reviewer rarely, if ever, gives an explicit direct opinion. However, their opinion of the film is always crystal clear. This is through the use of adjectives.

Many adjectives have a clear connotation. They are either perceived as positive or negative. Compare these two examples. Which one is a positive description and which is negative?

• It’s a first-rate experience with an imaginative plot and a star-studded cast.
• The second-rate writing combined with weak performances is typical of this director’s work.

When using adjectives in a film review, it is important to choose words that accurately convey the reviewer’s opinion. Adjectives with strong connotations, either positive or negative, can be very effective in expressing the reviewer’s thoughts about the film. However, it is also important to use a variety of adjectives to avoid repetition and keep the review interesting. The use of adjectives can also help to paint a picture of the film, allowing the reader to get a sense of its atmosphere and tone.

The materials

Many exams, such as the Cambridge First (FCE) and Advanced (CAE) exams, as well as Trinity ISE exams, require students to write a film review as part of their writing task. These materials will provide students with a solid understanding of the structure of a film review and help them to develop their writing skills. This will give them the confidence they need to write a review that meets the requirements of the exam and impresses the examiner.

The materials will help you learn how to write an introduction, summary, analysis, and conclusion of a film review. You will also see a range of useful adjectives that you can use to express your opinions in their reviews. Finally, you will get an opportunity to practise writing film reviews, which will help you to develop your skills. Then you can check your answers with the samples provided in the answer key. Whether you’re preparing for an exam or just looking to improve your writing skills, these materials will provide you with everything you need to write a great film review.

1 thought on “How to write a film review”

Interesting and useful material to be used in class. thanks!

Comments are closed.

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‘bohemian rhapsody’: film review.

Rami Malek stars as Queen lead singer Freddie Mercury in 'Bohemian Rhapsody,' a biopic tracing the British rock quartet's first 15 years.

By Sheri Linden

Sheri Linden

Senior Copy Editor/Film Critic

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Extra incisors — that’s how a young Freddie Mercury, played with magnetism and breathtaking physicality by Rami Malek , explains his four-octave vocal range to prospective bandmates. The moment arrives early in Bohemian Rhapsody , a film that doesn’t share Mercury’s surfeit of incisors; it has none. Which is not to say this conventional, PG-13 portrait of an unconventional band offers nothing to chew on. Or that it doesn’t acknowledge the tale’s darker facets. It does, ever so lightly, all the while fervently emphasizing what’s sweet and upbeat about it. Someday another feature about Queen might go deeper. That might or might not make for a better movie. Who says every rock ‘n’ roll biopic has to wallow in Behind the Music confessionals?

The involvement of bandmembers Brian May and Roger Taylor, as consultants and executive music producers, has more than a little to do with the gentle sheen that tamps down unruly narrative possibilities. But their involvement also amps the material’s musical authenticity. To the filmmakers’ credit, and even though they don’t entirely avoid the clunky factoid-itis that often plagues the genre, this is a biopic that favors sensory experience over exposition. It understands what pure, electrifying fun rock ‘n’ roll can be.

Release date: Nov 02, 2018

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The pop-opera-epic black swan of a 1975 single that gives the feature its name — the likes of which radio had never heard before and hasn’t since — is smartly peppered through the narrative: the first songwriterly instincts, beginning with the melody; the exuberant, wacky and seriously inventive recording session; the momentous performance at 1985’s Live Aid benefit concert for Ethiopia. That last bit arrives in the bravura sequence that caps the film (and which, remarkably, was the first to be shot). Bryan Singer , who was replaced  by Dexter Fletcher ( Eddie the Eagle ) well into the shooting schedule, is the movie’s credited director, and his affinity for large-scale spectacle is evident. Picking up the pieces, Fletcher — no stranger to the subject, having been involved in an earlier iteration of producer Graham King’s long-gestating biopic — builds upon the work of an ace production team and spirited cast. The finished product is energetic, if not always smooth, its affection for Mercury and Queen indisputable even when the drama is undernourished.

Anthony McCarten ‘s screenplay, from a story by him and Peter Morgan (known for writing about another queen), doesn’t so much flow as leap from one aha moment to the next. It begins in 1970 London, where art student Farrokh Bulsara has already changed his given name to Freddie, to the pained disapproval of his traditional Parsi father (Ace Bhatti). (One of the clunkier instances of information posing as dialogue relates the Bulsaras’ emigration from Zanzibar when Freddie was a teen.) The further switch to a stage-friendly surname is just a few aha moments away.

Stepping into the void left by a local quartet’s departing singer, Freddie is the spark igniting a whole new level of ambition for guitarist May (Gwilym Lee), drummer Taylor (Ben Hardy) and bass player John Deacon (Joseph Mazzello) — all of whom, unlike Freddie, have a Plan B if the music thing doesn’t work out. As to the indefinable, transcendent something known as band chemistry, the movie doesn’t quite penetrate the mystery. The lads call themselves misfits playing for misfits, which hardly captures what makes them unique among rock acts. But when  Bohemian Rhapsody  zeros in on their musical give-and-take, it’s clear that four creative spirits have joined forces.

When it clicks, the humor, both scripted and improvised, effortlessly underscores the characters’ bond. The actors are convincing in the musical sequences, which rely on Queen recordings (and sometimes use Malek’s voice in the mix). At crucial points in the offstage story, though, the performances of Lee, Hardy and Mazzello are reduced to reaction shots. Given the easy camaraderie and charged artistic mission that these performers conjure, there are too many wasted dramatic opportunities. As a result, the group’s tensions and rifts don’t register with the intended force, and Mercury’s growing imperiousness never truly feels like a threat to the band’s cohesion.

That’s no fault of Malek’s. Taking on a daunting task, he more than delivers. Though he’s only an inch shorter than Mercury was, he generally comes across as smaller and more delicate, and with his distinctive, enormous eyes, he’ll never be a ringer for the frontman. But, outfitted with the famous overbite and an exquisite array of costumes by Julian Day, and moving with a ferocious, muscular elegance, Malek is transformed.

Alluded to but left offscreen is Mercury’s tabloid-fodder walk on the wild side, which Sacha Baron Cohen, earlier cast in the project, has said he’d hoped to explore. Malek’s devouring gaze suggests Mercury’s sexual appetites but also an aching innocence. Barely out of his 20s when Great Britain decriminalized homosexuality, the singer isn’t eager to attach a label to his way of life. He’s not interested in being a symbol or a spokesman.

And McCarten’s screenplay is more concerned with Mercury’s profound love of performing, and the identify he forges onstage. It’s all there in the way the newbie rocker wrestles with the mic stand, awkwardly at first and then taming it like a beast. From there, his confidence soars along with the band’s fame, his look morphing from haute hippie to harlequin catsuit to the stylized machismo of the gay leather scene. In the group’s ever-changing tonsorial parade, the even-tempered May’s Baroque-composer curls are the only constant.

The outstanding contributions of makeup and hair designer Jan Sewell are as essential as Day’s fashions and Aaron Haye’s rich production design. And fashion is a vital component of Mercury’s biography: He and fiancee Mary Austin (Lucy Boynton, of Sing Street ) fall for each other in Biba, the trendsetting boutique where she works, and where she tenderly encourages his inner diva.

Their love story is the most complicated and best developed relationship in the film, leaving no doubt as to why, well after truck-stop trysts have awakened Freddie’s attraction to men, Mary remains his dearest and most steadfast friend. They remain neighbors, too — his lamplight signals to her a desperately hopeful riff on Gatsby’s green light.

But many scenes of the sad rich boy, alone on the satin sheets in his Kensington mansion, can’t shake off the whiff of cliché. That goes too for the over-the-top bacchanalia that Mercury throws, with the movie trying way too hard, much like its host-with-the-most protagonist, to be shocking — without tipping into R-rated territory. After the treacheries of Mercury’s personal assistant ( Allen Leech ) have unfolded in an overly obvious way, an unexpected lesson in self-worth from a kind acquaintance (Aaron McCusker) is a welcome page in this rock-star saga.

The music-biz elements of that saga strike a lighter note, as you might expect when Mike Myers is tapped to play an EMI exec, a quarter-century after Wayne’s World put this movie’s title song back on the charts. A nearly unrecognizable Myers is the hit-hungry money guy who once championed the group and now just doesn’t get the genre-bending, six-minute “Bo Rhap,” as a take-no-prisoners Freddie, bouncing about the office like a frog, calls their new song. The scene is a strained bit of burlesque-meets-manifesto, somewhat redeemed by its ultimate punchline, many scenes later.

Bo Rhap the movie is on its surest footing in the music sequences. The experiments in the studio are joyous, the concerts properly loud, and John Ottman’s editing connects them fluidly, as when a bass-line doodle segues without a moment’s breath from the studio to Madison Square Garden.

Call it pandering or love, but Queen built at least one song, “We Will Rock You,” around the idea of audience participation, and the movie is, most memorably, a celebration of what’s shared, whether the band is warbling about Beelzebub and the inscrutable “Galileo figaro magnifico,” or thousands of ticket holders are chanting an anthem’s chorus of one-syllable words. The celebration reaches a thrilling crescendo in the final sequence, a powerful rendition of the band’s galvanizing — and money-raising — Live Aid set, which has been called the greatest live rock performance of all time. Swooping from a rapturous overhead shot of Wembley Stadium (Haye re-created the defunct venue’s stage, to scale, at an airfield) to the intimate onstage interplay of the musicians, out to the rapt crowd and back again, Newton Thomas Sigel’s dynamic camerawork is a high-voltage language of communion.

The rough edges of Freddie Mercury’s story might be smoothed over in this telling, the indulgences and debauchery sugarcoated. Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? It’s a little bit of both. But, caught in a landslide of dispiriting headlines, at a moment when connection, curiosity and openheartedness feel like endangered species, the lingering exhilaration of that concert scene is pretty darn magnifico.

Production companies: New Regency, GK Films Distributor: 20th Century Fox Cast: Rami Malek, Lucy Boynton, Gwilym Lee, Ben Hardy, Joseph Mazzello, Aidan Gillen, Allen Leech, Tom Hollander , Mike Myers Director: Bryan Singer Story by: Anthony McCarten, Peter Morgan Screenwriter: Anthony McCarten Producers: Graham King, Jim Beach Executive producers: Arnon Milchan, Dennis O’Sullivan, Justin Haythe, Dexter Fletcher, Jane Rosenthal Director of photography: Newton Thomas Sigel Production designer: Aaron Haye Costume designer: Julian Day Editor: John Ottman Composer: John Ottman Casting director: Susie Figgis Rated PG-13, 134 minutes

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• Scriptwriting

Ultimate Guide to Movie Genres — 90+ Genre Examples for Film & TV

Y ou’re looking for a movie genre list, maybe for inspiration, but every list you find has too broad or hyper-specific categories that it becomes overwhelming. We’ve created the perfect movie and TV genre list that will explain the various categories of film and television with their specific subgenres, and we’ll also include helpful examples for each along the way.

Watch: Movie Genres and Subgenres Explained

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Action Genre

Animation genre, comedy genre, crime genre, drama genre, experimental genre, fantasy genre, historical genre, horror genre, romance genre, science fiction genre, thriller genre, western genre, musical genre, movie & tv genres preface, why should you learn about genre.

There are storytellers and filmmakers who live inside particular genres, and you may even hear some of them say, “I make genre movies.” This seems simple enough on the surface, but being a ‘genre storyteller’ requires you to fully understand what your specific genre means. 

Let’s do a quick refresher on the overall meaning of genre:

Movie Genre Definition

What is a movie genre.

M ovie genres  are stylistic categories where a particular movie can be placed based on the setting, characters, plot, mood, tone, and theme. A film's main genre category will be based on where the majority of the content lands. A sub-genre  is a smaller category that fits inside a particular genre. Often this is a mixture of two separate genres. Genres and sub-genres change over time and are informed by one another. 

How do you determine a movie genre?

• Has the ability to generate sub-genres
• Describes the style of a work of entertainment
• Can be combined with other genres if needed

Genres and sub-genres can be mixed and combined until you go blue in the face (or fingers), so if you don’t see a sub-genre on this list you can combine the meanings of each respective genre to make your own. 

Now that you have a better understanding of genre's definition, let’s go over each category along with their sub-genres. We’ll have popular and accurate examples that will help clear up any confusion.

Action Movie Genre List

Movies in the action genre are defined by risk and stakes. While many movies may feature an action sequence, to be appropriately categorized inside the action genre, the bulk of the content must be action-oriented, including fight scenes , stunts,  car chases , and general danger.

Action Movie Supercut

Heroic bloodshed.

This action sub-genre is defined by values like duty, brotherhood, honor, redemption, and the protection of the vulnerable. It was initially created in Hong Kong cinema but has since made its way around the world. Ex. The Killer (1989), Hard Boiled (1992).

Military Action

While some movies may incorporate various military characters, settings , themes , and events, this particular sub-genre focuses on their exploits and suggests these events are entertaining rather than tragic. Some of the best Michael Bay movies come to mind. Ex. Commando (1985), G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2009).

Espionage action movies are similar to military action movies in that they’re intended for excitement and entertainment rather than focusing on the political and psychological aspects of espionage. James Bond movies might be the most recognizable but there are plenty of others. Ex. Casino Royale (2006) , Mission: Impossible III (2006).

Wuxia Action

This highly specific sub-genre focuses on martial arts as both a form of excitement, but also as a chivalrous act of protection and honor. Ex. Hero (2002), Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000).

Disaster movies are defined by a large amount of destruction, specifically from naturally occurring events, where characters try to survive. If an alien force is the force of destruction, the film will be categorized as science fiction rather than a straight disaster movie. Ex. The Day After Tomorrow  (2004) ,  Dante’s Peak  (1997).

Movies in the adventure genre are defined by a journey, often including some form of pursuit, and can take place in any setting. Some of  Steven Spielberg's best movies  capture the essence of what makes this genre so exciting. Ex.  Raiders of the Lost Ark  (1981) ,  Lawrence of Arabia  (1962).

The  superhero  movie is defined by characters not only with supernatural abilities but using those abilities for altruistic purposes. If the film has superpowers that are used for questionable purposes, it would be more of a supernatural thriller versus a “superhero” movie.  Marvel movies  have been dominating of late but they only occupy a small percentage of the  best superhero movies  ever made. Ex.  Iron Man  (2008),  X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014).

Types of Animation Movies

The animation genre is defined by inanimate objects being manipulated to appear as though they are living. This can be done in many different ways and can incorporate any other genre and sub-genre on this list. For more info on animation, you can dive deeper on the types of animation , the principles of animation or see our list of the best animated movies of all time.

Animation Genre and History  •   Subscribe on YouTube

Traditional.

Traditional animation is defined by hand-drawn and painted images that are assembled to animate a cartoon that tells a story. Ex. Robin Hood (1973), The Flight of Dragons (1982).

Stop Motion

Stop motion animation is defined by taking real objects and adjusting them frame by frame to simulate motion and emotion. Stop motion refers to the style of photography, while stop motion such as claymation and sometimes puppet animation can fall into multiple sub-genres. Ex. The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993), The Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009) and some of the best stop motion movies of all time.

Claymation is a form of stop motion animation, except the subjects used are built specifically out of clay. Ex. Chicken Run (2000), Early Man (2018) and many of the best Rankin Bass Christmas movies .

This is where shapes are cut out and placed on top of one another to make figures and settings, all used to tell a story. Ex.  South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut  (1999).

Computer Generated Imagery

CGI is the most common form of modern animation, where modeling programs and software are used to animate cartoons. Ex. Shrek (2001), Rango (2011) and Pixar's incredible short films .

Puppetry animation is where puppets, including hand, stick, shadow, ventriloquist, and marionettes are used to tell a story.  Ex.  Team America: World Police  (2004).

Live-Action

Live-action animation is where animation, of any kind, is mixed with real-life subjects to create a single world.  Ex.  Who Framed Roger Rabbit  (1988),  Space Jam (1996).

List of Comedy Film Genres

The comedy genre is defined by events that are intended to make someone laugh, no matter if the story is macabre, droll, or zany. Comedy can be found in most movies, but if the majority of the film is intended to be a comedy you may safely place it in this genre. The best comedy movies range throughout this entire spectrum of humor.

Comedy Genre Scene Supercut

Action-comedy.

The action-comedy sub-genre incorporates humorous actions within the action, using the exciting events in the story for laughs. Ex. Hot Fuzz (2007),   Charlie’s Angels (2000).

Dark Comedy (Black Comedy)

Dark comedy (or Black Comedy) is defined by using attitudes and events that would normally be objectionable to set up humorous situations. Ex. Very Bad Things (1998),   Fargo (1996) and more of the best dark comedy movies ever made.

Romantic Comedy

Romantic comedies (aka Rom-Coms) are defined by comedy derived from relationship frustrations that are intimate in nature. This includes any combination of gender or situation across the sexual spectrum with films that include some of the best romantic quotes ever written. Some of Woody Allen's best movies redefined the genre. Ex. Sleepless in Seattle (1993), How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003).

Buddy Comedy

A buddy comedy is defined by at least two individuals who we follow through a series of humorous events. Often their (platonic) relationship is the main source of comedy in the story. Ex. Rush Hour (1998), Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle (2003).

Road Comedy

Road comedies are defined by humorous situations derived from a journey along a set path, and often feature a set of stops and characters along the way that forces the protagonist (s) further down the road. Ex. Planes, Trains, and Automobiles (1987),   Dumb and Dumber (1994).

Road Comedy Meets Slapstick

Slapstick comedy.

Slapstick comedy is defined by humor derived from physical movement, harm, or frustration that requires little to no dialogue. Ex. The Party (1968), Mouse Hunt (1997).

I’ve decided to put parody, spoof, and satire next to one another because they’re often thought to be synonyms, but truthfully they are not. A parody mocks and specifically targets a single piece of art or connected body of work. A parody is more precise, and more limited. Ex. MacGruber (2010),   Spaceballs (1987).

A spoof is broader than a parody because it mocks an entire genre or collection of similar, but separate works. Where parody targets a specific piece of art or entertainment, spoofs target the entire genre. Ex. The Naked Gun ( 1988), Not Another Teen Movie (2001).

Satire movies are the broadest of the three in that it mocks overall ideas, vices, human nature, institutions, or any number of concepts that don’t necessarily have a specific connection to another piece of art.

3 Types of Satire Explained  •   Subscribe on YouTube

Ex. In The Loop (2009),   Idiocracy (2006) or even Dr. Strangelove , just one of Stanley Kubrick's best movies .

A sitcom (situational comedy) is defined by a set group of people who must navigate through humorous situations and misunderstandings. Sitcoms in the past were very often captured using multiple cameras on a soundstage, but it is by no means required. For an inside look at how sitcoms are written, download your own copy of this Seinfeld script or the The Office pilot episode . Ex. Seinfeld (1989), It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (2005).

Sketch Comedy

Sketch comedy is defined by a collection of separate situations, with no inherent connection to each other, and can include the use of parody, satire, spoof, and many other comedy sub-genres. Ex. Chappelle’s Show (2003), The Whitest Kids U’ Know (2006).

"Do you wanna go to war, Blake?"

Mockumentary.

Mockumentaries use the documentary format for parody, satire, or spoof. They don’t mock the format, but rather use the format to mock. Ex. This is Spinal Tap   (1984), The Office (2004).

The prank genre is defined by a mixture of real-life participants who are lead through a planned event without their knowledge. The orchestrators often have a premeditated intention to coerce foolishness or error from the participant for the sake of humor or surprise. Ex. Borat (2006), Nathan For You (2013).

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• How to Write a Screenplay →
• The Best Dark Comedy Movies →
• Best Comedy Movies of All Time →

Crime Film Genre List

The crime genre deals with both sides of the criminal justice system but does not focus on legislative matters or civil suits and legal actions. The best crime movies often occupy moral gray areas where heroes and villains are much harder to define. Many of Martin Scorsese's best movies or Quentin Tarantino's movies fall within the crime genre.

How to Shoot a Shoutout  •  Heat vs. The Matrix

The caper sub-genre is defined by a group of criminals, often non-violent, who set out on a heist or job. A caper is often humorous and less serious in nature when compared to the other crime sub-genres. Ex.  Ocean’s Eleven (2001), A Fish Called Wanda (1988). 

The heist sub-genre is defined by a criminal, or group of criminals, who set out to steal something valuable, and have a more serious tone when compared to a caper story. The subjects must navigate a set of obstacles and avoid law enforcement, and often the “getaway” is incorporated. Ex. Heat  (1995), The Score (2001). 

A gangster story follows and explores the world of organized crime. A film may include organized crime, but if the majority of the story doesn't explore organized crime, it wouldn’t fall into this sub-genre. Ex. Goodfellas  (1990), Boyz in the Hood (1991) are just some of the best gangster movies (not to be confused with the best Mafia movies ). 

Cop (Police)

The cop sub-genre follows a street cop (not a detective) who deals with criminals, crime, and the overall lifestyle as an officer of the law. You might find that some lists will have cop movies and detective movies intertwined, but for our list, we’ll focus on the beat-cops. Ex. End of Watch (2012), Beverly Hills Cop (1984).   

A detective story follows an investigator or set of investigators, either private or as a representative of a government, and follows the clues and revelations of a particular case, or set of cases. 

The Whydunit  •  Not your typical detective film

The Whydunit, explained above, is a twist on the typical detective sub-genre, one that is more concerned with they "why" than the "who" like in murder mysteries.  Ex. L.A. Confidential  (1997),   Se7en  (1995).

The courtroom sub-genre requires the majority of the story to take place inside, or support the events that are connected to a court case. Ex.   A Time To Kill (1996). 

A procedural is defined by following the established day-to-day events of investigating, solving, and prosecuting crime. Procedurals often end in situations where law enforcement has learned a valuable lesson, but their lives may not be irrevocably changed from each particular case. Ex.  Law & Order (1990), Miami Vice (1984).

Types of Drama Movie Genres

The drama genre is defined by conflict and often looks to reality rather than sensationalism. Emotions and intense situations are the focus, but where other genres might use unique or exciting moments to create a feeling, movies in the drama genre focus on common occurrences. Drama is a very broad category and untethered to any era — from movies based on Shakespeare to contemporary narratives.

SPOILER ALERT  •  Drama Genre Scene Supercut

A modern melodrama is defined by the prioritization of dramatic rhetoric and plot over character. The events are intended to elicit an intense emotional response. A melodrama strives for situations used to illustrate a larger moral thesis that acts as an agent of empathy. Ex. Beaches  (1988), The Fault in our Stars (2012). 

The teen drama sub-genre is both simple and redundant. It focuses on the lives of teenagers, group dynamics, and general woes of adolescence. Ex.  The Virgin Suicides (1999), Kids (1995). 

Philosophical Drama

The philosophical sub-genre is defined by an exploration of the human condition, and the drama is derived from the questions that are presented by mere existence and life itself. Ex. The Razor’s Edge (1984), I Heart Huckabees (2004).

"What happens in a meadow at dusk?"

Medical drama.

The medical sub-genre focuses on the inherent drama of health conditions, the inner workings of hospitals, the relationship between doctors and medical staff, and the medical industry. There are medical procedurals that follow the day-to-day life of health care professionals. Ex.  House (2004), Bringing Out The Dead (1999).

Legal Drama

The legal-drama sub-genre is defined by lawyers, judges, and legal complications that may be peripheral but not enveloped by the criminal justice system or matters relating to crime and punishment. While a legal drama may dip into criminal justice matters, the real focus is on characters at a law firm or judges chambers rather than a crime. Ex. The Practice (1997), The Firm (1993).

Political Drama

The political-drama sub-genre focuses on the complications and inherent drama that takes place inside the world of politics. This can range anywhere from local government to national political climates. Ex.  Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), House of Cards (2013).

Anthropological Drama

The anthropological sub-genre focuses on the drama derived from human behavior and society at large, and while the story may feature a central protagonist, the story might focus on a specific culture or a broad representation of society. Ex. City of God (2002), some of Spike Lee's best movies .

"Get that chicken!"

Religious drama.

The religious sub-genre is similar to the previous categories in that it focuses on the questions and inherent drama derived from religious situations and has the ability to incorporate supernatural events. Ex. The Passion of the Christ (2004), Silence (2013).

A docudrama takes real-life accounts and recreates them in a way that attempts to accurately represent events while also realizing the dramatic potential of those events. Docudramas are held to a higher standard of accuracy (not quality) than historical accounts or memoirs . Ex. Captain Phillips (2013), 127 Hours (2010).

EXPERIMENTAL MOVIE GENRE LIST

The experimental genre is often defined by the idea that the work of art and entertainment does not fit into a particular genre or sub-genre, and is intended as such. Experimental art can completely forego a cohesive narrative in exchange for an emotional response or nothing at all. 

Un Chien Andalou — Experimental Cinema Genre

Surrealism cannot be stylistically defined, and this is the point of the sub-genre itself. The intention of surrealist art is to act as an activity to broaden horizons, either of oneself or of others. Surrealist art often uses irrational imagery to activate the subconscious mind. Ex. Eraserhead (1977), 8 ½ (1963).

The absurdist sub-genre focuses on characters who experience situations that suggest there is no central purpose to life. Another way to frame it is a set of experiences that catalyze a descent into nihilism. Ex.  The Exterminating Angel (1962), Brazil (1985).

LIST OF FANTASY MOVIE GENRES

The fantasy genre is defined by both circumstance and setting inside a fictional universe with an unrealistic set of natural laws. The possibilities of fantasy are nearly endless, but the movies will often be inspired by human myths.

The genre often adheres to general human psychology and societal behavior while incorporating non-scientific concepts like magic, mythical creatures, and supernatural elements. 

Fantasy Genre Supercut

Contemporary fantasy.

A contemporary fantasy story introduces elements of fantasy into or around a world that closely resembles the time period when it was conceived. Urban fantasy can serve as contemporary fantasy but must take place in an urban setting whereas contemporary fantasy can be set anywhere that resembles the corresponding time period. Ex. Harry Potter  series (2001-2011), The Chronicles of Narnia (2005).

Urban Fantasy

An urban fantasy is a story introduces elements of fantasy and is set entirely in an urban environment. The urban environment can be real, fictional, modern, or inspired by history, but the story must take place and deal with concepts and themes related to an urban environment. Ex.  Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV) (1997), Supernatural (TV) (2005).

Dark Fantasy

A dark fantasy is a story where elements of fantasy are introduced into a hostile and frightening world. If a significant portion of the story takes place in a world that has a range of circumstances, mood , and tone it would most likely be categorized as a high fantasy or general fantasy. Ex. Pan’s Labyrinth (2006), Solomon Kane (2009). 

High Fantasy

High fantasy can also be referred to as epic fantasy, and introduces elements of fantasy in a fictional setting, and will include romance, battles, and mythical creatures. High fantasy is the fantasy genre equivalent of a historical epic or a science fiction space opera. Ex. The Lord of the Rings (2001), Game of Thrones (2011). 

The Lord of the Rings  •  The Battle of Minas Tirith

A myth is defined by a story that often plays a fundamental role in the development of a society, which may include the origin story for humanity and existence. Often this will include characters that are gods, demigods, and supernatural humans. As noted by Joseph Campbell theory on The Hero's Journey , myths have similar characteristics despite an apparent lack of influence, which gives a myth the ability to be universally accepted. Ex. Jason and the Argonauts (1963), The Monkey King (2014).

Historical Movie Genre List

The historical genre can be split into two sections. One deals with accurate representations of historical accounts which can include biographies, autobiographies, and memoirs. The other section is made up of fictional movies that are placed inside an accurate depiction of a historical setting. 

The accuracy of a historical story is measured against historical accounts, not fact, as there can never be a perfectly factual account of any event without first-hand experience. 

Historical Event

The historical event genre focuses on a story that creates a dramatized depiction of an event that exists in popular accounts of history. This is different from a biography in that it focuses on an event. Ex. Apollo 13 (1995) , Lincoln (2012) 

A biography (or biopic ) is a story that details the life and is told by someone other than the subject.

What makes a good biopic movie?

A biography will often span a large portion of the subject's life, but in some rare cases, it may focus on the time period where that person’s life had the greatest effect on history and society. Ex. A Beautiful Mind (2001), Catch Me If You Can (2002) 

Historical Epic

A historical epic is the dramatized account of a large scale event that has an attached historical account. They often feature battles, romance, and journeys, and will commonly revise history or provide assumptions that fill in gaps in the account of the historical event. Ex. Ben-Hur (1959) , Troy (2004) 

Historical Fiction

Historical fiction takes place during a historical time period, and will often take a more liberal approach to representing history for the sake of drama and entertainment. Historical fiction may use real-life events and people to build context, but they’re meant to be accepted as a supposition rather than serve as an accurate historical account. Ex. Spartacus  (1960) ,  Titanic  (1997) 

Period Piece

The difference between a period piece and historical fiction is slight, but the main difference is a general omission or a lack of necessity for real-life characters or events to provide context. Period pieces are merely defined by taking place in, and accurately depicting the time period as opposed to specific lives, events, or accounts. Ex.  The Age of Innocence   (1993) ,  Barry Lyndon  (1975)

Alternate History

Alternate history is defined by the rewriting of historical events for the sake of speculative outcomes. These movies commonly focus on important, highly influential moments that often lead to alternate futures. Some of these movies may even include supernatural elements. Ex.  The Man in the High Castle   (2015),   Inglourious Basterds   (2009)

Horror sub-genres

The horror genre is centered upon depicting terrifying or macabre events for the sake of entertainment. A thriller might tease the possibility of a terrible event, whereas a horror film will deliver all throughout the film. The best horror movies are designed to get the heart pumping and to show us a glimpse of the unknown. 

A ghost movie uses the spirit or soul of a deceased creature to introduce elements of horror. These movies can take place in any time period and are only required to evoke terror through the use of ghosts. Ex. The Frighteners (1996) , The Others (2001)

A monster movie uses a deformed or supernatural creature or set of creatures, to introduce elements of horror. These movies can also take place in any time period or setting, and their only real requirement is that the antagonist is can be categorized as a monster. Ex. The Babadook   (2014),   Pumpkinhead (1988)

A werewolf movie introduces elements of horror through the use of a human or set of humans that transform into a wolf-like creatures. Sometimes these werewolves have the ability to shape-shift at will, but in other cases, their transformation is dictated by a full moon. The only requirement is the use of the werewolf as the antagonist . Ex. An American Werewolf in London (1981), The Wolfman (1941) are just some of the best werewolf movies ever made.

A vampire movie introduces elements of horror through the use of undead, immortal creatures that drink blood. They can be set in any time and place and must only use vampires as the antagonist. Some vampire movies feature vampires as the protagonist, but this is often used to build sympathy rather than as a device for terror. Ex. Near Dark (1987) is one of the best '80s vampire movies while Nosferatu (1922) is one of the best vampire movies of all time.

Different Movie Genres  •  Near Dark

Occult movies are defined by an extension of pure reason and use paranormal themes to introduce elements of horror. Occult literally translates into “hidden from view” and involves the study of a deeper spiritual reality that extends scientific observation. Ex. Hereditary (2018),   Rosemary’s Baby (1968)

A slasher story introduces elements of horror through an antagonist or set of antagonists who stalk and murder a group of people, most commonly through the use of a blade or a sharp weapon. The slasher movie is so engrained in our movie culture, even non-slasher movies use some of the same techniques and tropes. Ex. Halloween (1978) , The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

A splatter story introduces elements of horror by focusing on the vulnerability of the human body, and an emphasis on gore. Splatter movies often involve torture and attempt to present gore as an art form. Ex. Day of the Dead (1985) , Jigoku (1960)

Found Footage

Found footage can be used for any genre, but it is most commonly used in horror and features footage that appears to be an existing and informal recording of events with the purpose of simulating real-life horrific events. Ex. The Blair Witch Project (1999) , V/H/S (2012)

The zombie movie has roots all the way back to the '30s but it didn't really kick into high gear until the late 1960s. The general plot of the best zombie movies involves a group of characters trying to survive in a world overrun by zombies. The specific cause for the event ranges from infectious disease to experimental drugs gone wrong. Ex. Night of the Living Dead (1968),  28 Days Later (2002)

Types of Romance Movies

The romance genre is defined by intimate relationships. Sometimes these movies can have a darker twist, but the idea is to lean on the natural conflict derived from the pursuit of intimacy and love.  

Romance Drama

The romance-drama sub-genre is defined by the conflict generated from a  romantic relationship. What makes a romance-drama different from a romantic-thriller is both the source of the drama but also the intentions and motivations that drive each character’s perspective. Ex.  Revolutionary Road (2008) , Blue Valentine (2010) 

Romance Thriller

The romance-thriller sub-genre is defined by a suspenseful story that includes and is most likely based around a romantic relationship. Some romantic thrillers can divert into psychological thrillers where the relationship is used to manipulate, but most focus on the characters attempting to make it out of events so that they may be together. Ex. The Saint (1997) , Unfaithful (2002) 

The Saint Trailer

Period romance.

A period-romance story is defined by the setting and can include and incorporate other romance sub-genres. The setting must be a historical time period, and often will adhere to the societal norms of the specific time period, though some movies have taken a more revisionist approach. Ex. Pride & Prejudice (2005) , Jane Eyre (2011)

List of Sci-Fi Genres

Science fiction movies are defined by a mixture of speculation and science. While fantasy will explain through or make use of magic and mysticism, science fiction will use the changes and trajectory of technology and science. Science fiction will often incorporate space, biology, energy, time, and any other observable science. Most of James Cameron's best movies lean heavily on science fiction.

Post-Apocalyptic

Post-apocalyptic movies are based around the occurrence, effects, and struggle generated by an apocalyptic event. While a dystopian story may incorporate a large war or apocalyptic event in its narrative history, it will include a centralized government that was formed after the event. Apocalyptic movies will not have a centralized government but may feature smaller societies and tribes as part of the story. Ex. 12 Monkeys (1995) , 28 Days Later (2002) 

The utopian genre is defined by the creator’s view of an idyllic world since each person has a unique view of what they deem to be the absence of struggle and incident, but generally, themes included in the movies are peace, harmony, and a world without hunger or homelessness. In the past, utopian movies have been tied to satire because the nature of a story is often conflict, and a utopian society is viewed as an unrealistic concept. Ex. Gattaca (1997),   Tomorrowland (2015)

A dystopian story is one that features a world or society that serves as a contradiction to an idyllic world. Often there is a centralized and oppressive government or religion that dictates the value of citizens on a dehumanizing level, and may or may not incorporate a destructive event that drove the creation of that centralized institution. Ex.  Children of Men  (2006) , Equilibrium (2002) 

The cyberpunk sub-genre is defined by a mixture of a desperate society oversaturated with the crime that takes place in a high tech world that includes cybernetic organisms, virtual reality, and artificial intelligence. Ex. Blade Runner (1982),   Elysium (2013) are just two of the best cyberpunk movies . 

The steampunk sub-genre is inspired by technology created during the 19th century and the industrial revolution and may be set in a speculative future, alternate universe, or revision of the 1800s. Ex. Howl’s Moving Castle (2004) , Mortal Engines (2018)  

Tech noir is similar to dystopian but defined by technology as the main source behind humanity's struggle and partial downfall. There is no requirement for a centralized government, and the only true aspect that places a story in this category is that technology threatens our reality. Ex. The Terminator (1984)

Space Opera

A space opera is defined by a mixture of space warfare, adventure, and romance. The genre got its name from similarities to “soap operas” and “horse operas” due to their collective connection to melodrama. The term “space opera” has no connection to the music of any kind. Ex. Star Wars: A New Hope (1977) , The Fifth Element (1997) 

Contemporary

A contemporary science fiction story is set in the actual time period of its conception and introduces some form of a theoretical technology or scientific concept to serve as the story’s main source of conflict. This is different from tech-noir both due to scale and a strict time period. Ex. Ex Machina (2014) , Arrival (2016)

A military science fiction story is defined by a strict focus on the military conflict in a speculative or future setting. While other movies may include space warfare, a military science fiction story will be limited to themes and events directly tied to military service and battle. Ex. Starship Troopers (1997),   Aliens (1986)

Thriller Movie Categories

A thriller story is mostly about the emotional purpose, which is to elicit strong emotions, mostly dealing with generating suspense and anxiety. No matter what the specific plot, the best thrillers get your heart racing.

Psychological

A psychological thriller focuses and emphasizes the unstable psychological state of the characters inside the story. Often there is a mysterious set of circumstances, and a paranoia, warranted or otherwise, that catalyzes extreme actions from the characters. Many of Darren Aronofsky's best movies explore the dark depths inside the broken psyche of his protagonists. Ex.  Gone Girl (2014),  Memento  (2000)

A mystery story can often be connected to the crime genre, but may not involve or use law enforcement or the justice system as the main characters or backdrop for the story. A mystery story is defined by the plot, and both the character’s and the viewer’s relationship with the motivations and reality behind the events that occur.

If you've seen any of M. Night Shyamalan's movies , you know how mystery plays a part. Ex.  Prisoners  (2013),  The Gift  (2015)

M. Night Shyamalan's Directing Style

The techno-thriller sub-genre is defined by a conflict that takes place for or through Various forms of technology. What makes a techno-thriller different from various action sub-genres is the level of detail paid toward the underlying technical aspects of the technology and its effects. 

Some consider the definition of film noir to more of a style than a genre, because there is no requirement to be connected to a crime. There is, however, a natural overlap between style and genre in the best Film Noir movies . The central theme behind the noir sub-genre is a psychic imbalance that leads to self-hatred, aggression, or sociopathy. Recently, Neo-Noir movies have modified these themes to the modern day. 

Western Movie sub-genres

Westerns are defined by their setting and time period. The story needs to take place in the American West, which begins as far east as Missouri and extends to the Pacific ocean. They’re set during the 19th century, and will often feature horse riding, military expansion, violent and non-violent interaction with Native American tribes, the creation of railways, gunfights, and technology created during the industrial revolution. 

Neo-Westerns Explained  •   Subscribe on YouTube

Epic western.

The idea of an epic western is to emphasize and incorporate many if not all of the western genre elements, but on a grand scale, and also use the backdrop of large scale real-life events to frame your story. 

Empire Western

These movies follow a protagonist or a group of protagonists as they forge a large scale business based on natural resources and land. It can also follow the creation of the railroad, or large scale settlement. 

Marshal Western

A marshal western is where we follow a lawman as they attempt to track down, apprehend, and punish a criminal or group of gangsters.

Tombstone Trailer

Outlaw western.

An outlaw western is where we follow a criminal or group of criminals as they attempt crimes and evade the law. Often, these movies will portray the outlaws in a somewhat favorable manner.

Revenge Western

This genre is defined by a singular goal and will incorporate the elements of the western genre while the protagonist seeks revenge. 

Revisionist Western

A revisionist western challenges and often aims to disprove the notions propped up by traditional westerns. Early westerns often had their own agenda, and revisionist westerns attempt to dissolve and cast aside a commonly one-sided genre.

Spaghetti Western

The Spaghetti Western genre was named such because the films were initially made in Italy or produced by Italian filmmakers. Because these films are defined by their ‘heritage’ they can also fall into many of the other western genres as long as they are Italian built. Here are our picks for the best Spaghetti Westerns of all time .

Movie Genre List

Musicals originated as stage plays, but they soon became a favorite for many film directors and have even made their way into television. Musicals can incorporate any other genre, but they incorporate characters who sing songs and perform dance numbers.

La La Land  •  Another Day of Sun

War movie genre.

The war genre has a few debatable definitions, but we’re going to try to be as straightforward and impartial as humanly possible. Movies in the war genre center around large scale conflicts between opposing forces inside a universe that shares the same natural laws as our own.

War movies can be historical accounts, fictionalized events, or future speculations that incorporate civilian interaction, political interaction, and espionage that takes place alongside a large scale, violent conflict. Some of the best WWII movies include all of those elements.

Saving Private Ryan Trailer

They are not intended to act strictly as a form of entertainment, but rather to create a deep sense of empathy toward the reality of war. Movies in the war genre may romanticize aspects of military action and camaraderie, but the purpose is to convey the reality that war brings. 

They can be set in any time period or setting, but the central theme and bulk of the content must incorporate war to remain in this genre.

Learn how to write a screenplay

Now that you have a better idea of movie categories and the various film and television genres, why not start writing your own story. Read up on How to Write a Screenplay.  We take you through the steps necessary to create a professionally structured and formatted screenplay. 

Up Next: How to Write a Screenplay →

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Movie Genres List: A Complete Guide

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Almost every movie fits into some category. That category can help to define a film and determine specific attributes. Characters, setting, plot structure and tone can all change or be changed by a movie's category or genre. A movie's genre is a pretty notable characteristic, and sometimes, two features can be in opposite genres and be compared or smushed together in perfect contrast, as seen with this summer's blockbuster event, Barbenheimer .

While relatively subjective, a film's genre is usually determined through factors like tone, plot structure, Mise-en-scène (on-camera set arrangements) and the film styles. Compiling a cohesive list of every possible genre is nearly impossible because there are many different types of movies. Luckily, some basic categories of fiction-based movies cover most subgenres.

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Fast-paced, energetic scenes mainly define the action genre. It's relatively self-explanatory, as an action movie is action-packed. That usually includes fight scenes or intense stunts to execute the plot. There's little emphasis on the story beyond the exciting parts.

The action genre is one of the broadest categories to assign to a movie, as tons of subgenres are associated with action movies. Some of action's subgenres include epics, disaster movies, martial arts movies, superhero movies and video game adaptation movies like Gran Turismo . Some other well-known action movies are Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight , Baby Driver , Twister and John Wick.

Just about every movie can be funny, with random jokes or outrageous subjects free for different genres to approach differently. However, the specific genre designated to humorous films is comedy. Simply enough, a comedy movie, by definition, intends to humor the audience.

Comedy is a beloved genre with loyal fanbases attached to each subgenre. The branches of comedy include slapstick comedies, rom-coms, action comedies, dark comedies, buddy movies, parodies and separate TV comedy branches like sitcoms. Most Jim Carrey comedy movies are slapstick comedies, while Dumb and Dumber is a buddy movie. The Scary Movie franchise parodies horror movies , and films like Heathers stand tall in the dark comedy subgenre. Barbie is one of the most recent examples of a comedy hit.

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Drama focuses on humanity, spotlighting human emotions, high-tension situations and compelling main characters. There is a clear emphasis on the plot and how the characters navigate their cases. That's also an extensive description, as the word drama can apply to many things.

There are a few apparent subgenres in drama, like tragedy, romantic drama, biopics, costume dramas, coming-of-age or teen dramas and crime or war dramas. Baz Luhrmann's Romeo + Juliet is an adaptation of one of the most famous Shakespearian tragedies, while 10 Things I Hate About You adapts Shakespeare into a coming-of-age drama. Other examples of dramas include the biopic Oppenheimer , Jane Austen's Emma as a costume drama, and The Godfather as a crime drama.

By definition, horror intends to scare, startle or repulse its audience. So, a horror movie often evokes a sense of dread or genuine fear by using scary images, themes or uncomfortable situations. Instead of story and characters being the sole focus in the horror genre, mood and atmosphere are just as vital.

Horror is one of the more subjective genres with a seemingly endless stream of subgenres split between TV, movies and literature. Out of the various subgenres, a few are better known or more explored than others. Those include gothic horror, paranormal horror, creature features, body horror, slashers, psychological horror and found footage, to name a few. Gothic horror includes titles like the book-accurate Mary Shelley's Frankenstein or even the Dracula adaptations like The Last Voyage of the Demeter , and the subgenre has deep roots in horror literature that shaped the genre as a whole. The Conjuring , It , The Blob , Jaws , Scream and Terrifier all fit comfortably in the horror genre.

Unfortunately, the adventure genre is hardly ever used as a standalone, mainly because adventure movies often border on being action movies. The two genres are so similar that most blend them as action/adventure films. Adventure movies have the same elements as action films, but the setting is a notable marker. Adventure films are usually either set in an unfamiliar and far away location or the main characters have to go to that strange place during the movie.

A few adventure subgenres include survival films, espionage, some military movies, and some disaster films that can fit there as well. The Indiana Jones franchise is likely the most widely-known adventure film, accompanying movies like Stand By Me , Cast Away and The Wizard of Oz , among many others in the adventure genre.

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Fantasy is a very imaginative genre with notable and loyal fanbases. It's often mixed in with elements of reality and some form of magic. The genre emphasizes things that aren't necessarily real, like imaginary creatures and worlds with fantastical laws or logic.

High fantasy, low fantasy, magical realism, sword and sorcery, dark fantasy, fables and superhero fantasy are all branches of the fantasy genre. When one thinks of the fantasy genre, one could think about The Lord of the Rings , Harry Potter , Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory , The Little Mermaid or even the various H.P. Lovecraft stories like The Call of Cthulhu . The dark fantasy subgenre can also border with horror, and movies like Coraline , Legend and Pan's Labyrinth can fit into both categories.

Science Fiction

While some pair science fiction and fantasy together, sci-fi is more reality and science-based. Science fiction, sometimes called speculative fiction, focuses on alternative living made possible because of technology, whether that change is positive or negative.

Science fiction is a broad genre, with subgenres like disaster movies, dystopian/utopian, space operas, time travel, cyberpunk and alien movies. Titles like Interstellar , Dune and Ad Astra make up the space opera subgenre, as they're more focused on action and drama. Sci-fi also includes The Hunger Games ' dystopian Panem and movies like Asteroid City , WALL-E , Gravity and even the Blumhouse icon, M3GAN .

While every book or movie can feature romance, they can't all be part of the romance genre. A romance follows the relationship of two or more protagonists and focuses on that relationship and the various factors weighing in. It might have a happy ending, but at every romance story's core, there's a central love story and an emotionally satisfying ending, even if it's tear-inducing.

Because romance is so open-ended, many subgenres exist throughout the romance world in books and movies alike. Costume dramas are expanded upon with historical or epic romance, feature different eras and are recognizable by their elaborate costumes and set design. Some of the best-known historical romances are Jane Austen's Emma adaptation , Gone with the Wind , Titanic and Little Women .

There are also subgenres like chick flick -- though the term has some rude origins -- romantic action, romantic drama, rom-com, erotica and fantasy romance. The most notable examples of these subgenres are Dirty Dancing , Mr. and Mrs. Smith , The Notebook , Pretty Woman , 50 Shades of Grey and The Princess Bride .

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Westerns are one of the simpler genres to identify as they have general characteristics. Many Western stories take place in the "Wild West," which describes the areas of Western America between the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. There are usually cowboys, Native Americans, outlaws, saloons, shootouts and other similar vibes. Older Westerns often feature harmful stereotypes and overall racism toward people of color.

Because the Western genre has been around for a while, there are many subgenres like revisionist Westerns, apocalyptic Westerns, epics, outlaw Westerns, neo-westerns, Spaghetti Westerns and acid Westerns. Likely the best-known subgenre, Spaghetti Westerns -- Western films directed by Italian directors and usually filmed in Europe -- include Sergio Leone/Clint Eastwood's film The Good, the Bad and the Ugly . Some other Westerns include the '90s version of Avatar , Dances with Wolves , The Hateful Eight , Wyatt Earp and Cowboys & Aliens .

The thriller genre sometimes overlaps with horror because some thrillers can be scary. But, the genre is complex as a standalone. Thrillers are notable for the moods they elicit as they give their audiences heightened feelings of suspense, anticipation, excitement and anxiety.

Mystery thriller is its own separate genre, but there are other notable subgenres. The best-known thrillers are likely psychological thrillers. But there are also action thrillers, supernatural thrillers, crime and legal thrillers, political thrillers and spy thrillers. Those include movies like The Silence of the Lambs , The Little Things , The Sixth Sense and the James Bond movies like Casino Royale .

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The musical genre is arguably one of the most fun genres ever, and the term musical can be applied regardless of the subject. There are only a couple of stipulations for a movie to be considered a musical, and they're pretty simple. Believe it or not, a musical film has to feature music, and the musical elements must be an integral part of the movie's plot. That often includes characters breaking out into song and dance.

Subgenres of the musical genre in the movie world include book musicals, jukebox musicals, concept musicals, autobiographical musicals, rock opera musicals and Disney musicals, among others. These include the book musical Les Misérables , the jukebox musical Rock of Ages , the concept musical Chicago , the autobiographical musical Rent , rock opera's cult classic, The Rocky Horror Picture Show , and the Disney musical The Lion King .

While there's much overlap in the mystery and thriller genres, they do have some notable differences. A mystery follows an event, like a crime, that remains an unsolvable issue for the whole movie. Most mystery stories focus on the investigation, so the main character is usually the person solving the mystery, and the culprit is almost always a part of the investigation.

Some classic mystery subgenres include whodunits, detective stories, police procedurals and caper cases. Some of the most iconic mystery movies include Sherlock Holmes , Knives Out and Ocean ' s Eleven . The highly anticipated Poirot tale, A Haunting in Venice, is a hybrid detective story that some may consider a cozy mystery, too.

• Action Movie

The Killer (2024)

John Woo ’s “ The Killer ” was a true gamechanger, at least for this critic. The one-two punch of Woo’s 1989 action masterpiece with his equally magnificent “Hard Boiled” changed the way I looked at the genre in my teens, and truly inspired hundreds of imitators. For anyone in my age range who can remember watching “The Killer” (likely on VHS) decades ago, the thought of remaking a flawless film feels cinematically heretical. And yet Hollywood has been circling such a project for decades with  Richard Gere  and  Nicolas Cage  once attached in the ‘90s. After years of false starts, a remake finally emerges, limping onto Peacock with almost no fanfare or promotion. Directed by Woo himself, the 2024 version of “The Killer” is obviously competently made–the Hong Kong director still knows how to stage an action sequence, well into his seventies—but the truth is that this version of the film does absolutely nothing better than the original. It’s a movie that’s generally watchable but almost instantly forgettable, which the best of Woo never is.

Nathalie Emmanuel  (Ramsey from the later “Fast and the Furious” movies) plays the mysterious Zee, a stealthy assassin for a powerful organization run by the vicious Finn ( Sam Worthington ). The “ Avatar ” actor nails a certain kind of slimy power figure, the one who will pretend to have your best interests in mind but only as far as it suits him personally. When Zee gets a job that requires an assassination via samurai sword in a Parisian nightclub, the assignment goes sideways with the blinding of a singer named Jenn ( Diana Silvers ). Despite the fact that she can’t exactly point the finger at the killer, Finn insists that Zee take out the witness, leading to moral crisis for the murderer for hire. While Zee tries to keep Jenn alive, a Paris cop named Sey ( Omar Sy  of “Lupin”) gets this incredible case and crosses paths with Zee, giving “The Killer” most of its narrative thrust in that it’s a story of a criminal and a cop who may not be as different as they first believe.

Clearly, a lot of the narrative beats of the original remain, although the gender swap naturally makes a pretty big difference both in the Zee/Jenn relationship and the dynamic between Zee & Sey. The sort of dance between a killer and a cop, which many over the years even read as homoerotic in the original, has been shifted by the change but hardly anything has been done with that shift. Changing race, gender, and location should give “The Killer” a different flavor, but the truth is that there’s just no seasoning. It’s as if the writers ( Brian Helgeland ,  Josh Campbell  & Martin Stuecken) figured the swaps alone would be interesting enough that they didn’t have to do anything more. It also just reeks of a script that has been in development for so long that all of the passion has been drained from it with rewrites, producer’s notes, and focus groups. The original hums with energy in not just its ace filmmaking but its narrative structure, and there’s just nothing to care about here in terms of plotting, while additions, like a few flashbacks to Zee’s origin story, feel half-hearted and cheap.

Part of the problem here is that Emmanuel just isn’t an interesting enough performer to sell the strong, silent cipher that Zee needs to be. I’m not usually a critic who likes to judge the movie that isn’t there but knowing that Lupita Nyong’o was once attached to this before COVID shut down production reveals even more flaws in Emmanuel’s work. Nyong’o can do so much with body language and her amazing eyes that it feels “The Killer” needed to work, and Emmanuel simply doesn’t have the same skill set. Sy makes out much better, reminding viewers how charming he can be, but Silvers is a non-character, used almost entirely as a device.

Of course, most people aren’t here for performance, and they just want to know about the Woo of it all. He once again leans into his clichés—there will be churches, candles, birds, and slo-mo—but there are some undeniably nifty stunt sequences in the film, especially in the final act’s graveyard shootout. It’s nice to see real stuntpeople showing off what they do best under the direction of a genre master, even if it does feel like he’s lost a beat in terms of pacing, both in action scenes and overall. There’s huge mid-film sag in this too-long movie in which people banter about how to finish jobs during which it will be hard for Peacock viewers at home to put down their phones.

And that makes me a little sad. John Woo movies used to strap you into your seat, making the rest of the world fall away as you appreciated their action artistry. That’s just not the case here. And my biggest concern comes in the overall sunsetting of physical media and lack of curation on streaming. Want to watch the original “The Killer”? It’s not streaming for rental anywhere and costs about $50 on Blu-ray. And that means that this faded copy is now easily the most accessible, and there will certainly be people who don’t even know about the first film when they watch it. In that sense, it’s not just a remake but a replacement. And that kills me.

Brian Tallerico

Brian Tallerico is the Managing Editor of RogerEbert.com, and also covers television, film, Blu-ray, and video games. He is also a writer for Vulture, The Playlist, The New York Times, and GQ, and the President of the Chicago Film Critics Association.

• Nathalie Emmanuel as Zee
• Omar Sy as Sey
• Sam Worthington as Finn
• Diana Silvers as Jenn
• Éric Cantona as Jules Gobert
• Saïd Taghmaoui as Prince Majeb Bin Faheem
• Brian Helgeland
• Josh Campbell
• Matthew Stuecken

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The Killer 2024 Movie Review: A Masterclass in Action-Packed Cinema

The action-thriller genre has evolved significantly over the years, with each decade bringing forth new techniques, narratives, and characters that have shaped the way we experience high-octane cinema. The Killer 2024, available on HuraWatch ,  is the latest addition to this illustrious lineage, a film that not only pays homage to its predecessors but also pushes the boundaries of what modern action movies can achieve. Directed by an acclaimed filmmaker, this movie promises to be a landmark in the genre, blending intense action sequences with a gripping storyline that keeps viewers on the edge of their seats. At the heart of The Killer lies a story of vengeance and redemption. The protagonist, a skilled assassin with a troubled past, finds himself embroiled in a web of intrigue and deceit. Tasked with eliminating a series of high-profile targets, he uncovers a conspiracy that forces him to confront his own demons. The narrative is layered, with each twist and turn adding depth to the character's journey. The screenplay is meticulously crafted, ensuring that the pacing never falters, even as the tension builds to a crescendo. The character development in The Killer is one of the film’s strongest aspects. The protagonist is not just a one-dimensional figure; he is a complex individual whose actions are driven by a mix of personal vendetta and a search for redemption. The supporting characters are equally well-drawn, each playing a crucial role in the narrative. The antagonist, in particular, is a formidable presence, providing a worthy foil to the protagonist’s plans. The interactions between these characters are charged with emotion, adding layers to the story that go beyond the usual action fare.

Visually, this movie is a masterpiece. The cinematography captures the intensity of the action scenes with precision, making each sequence feel visceral and immediate. The use of lighting and camera angles adds to the film’s overall mood, creating a sense of unease that permeates the entire runtime. The action sequences are choreographed to perfection, with a blend of practical effects and CGI that enhances the realism without overshadowing the performances. The sound design in it  plays a crucial role in heightening the film’s tension. Every gunshot, punch, and explosion is rendered with clarity, adding to the immersive experience. The score complements the action perfectly, with a mix of pulsating beats and orchestral arrangements that underline the film's dramatic moments. The music is used sparingly but effectively, allowing the natural sounds of the environment to take center stage when needed. While The Killer  is primarily an action film, it delves into themes that add depth to the narrative. The concept of redemption is central to the protagonist’s journey, as he grapples with his past actions and seeks a way to make amends. The film also explores the idea of identity, particularly in how the protagonist is forced to confront who he really is beneath his stoic exterior. These themes are woven seamlessly into the plot, providing a richer viewing experience. This film is more than just an action movie; it is a cinematic experience that sets a new standard for the genre. With its intricate plot, well-developed characters, and stunning visuals, it is a film that will be remembered for years to come. Whether you’re a fan of action-packed thrillers or just appreciate a well-crafted story, The Killer  is a must-watch. Prepare yourself for a ride that is as emotionally engaging as it is thrilling, and don’t miss the chance to witness a masterclass in modern action cinema.

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Blink Twice review: 'Stylish and savage enough to gain a cult following'

Zoe Kravitz's directorial debut is full of "smart ideas, contentious themes, cool images and striking sequences" – but does it work as a compelling thriller?

Zoe Kravitz is known for acting in The Batman and Divergent – and for being the daughter of Lenny Kravitz. But her promising debut film as a director and co-writer suggests that she could become better known for her new career. Blink Twice is a mind-bending black comedy-thriller about a young woman, Frida (Naomi Ackie), who is invited to join a tech billionaire, Slater King (Channing Tatum, Kravitz's boyfriend), on his private island. She and her best friend Jess (Alia Shawkat) can hardly believe their luck as they enjoy the fine wines, culinary delicacies and designer drugs that King and his courtiers provide, but, as the days and nights blur into one long indulgent haze, they realise that they are having mysterious bouts of memory loss.

It might help if viewers had some memory loss, too. As distinctive as Blink Twice is in some respects, it's unfortunately reminiscent of several films from the past couple of years. The most obvious one is the Knives Out sequel, Glass Onion , which had another untrustworthy, new-age-babbling tech tycoon treating his friends to a luxurious stay on his own island, and we've had plenty of other dark satires with similar scenarios, including Triangle of Sadness , The Menu and Infinity Pool. Beyond those, the too-good-to-be-true setting has echoes of Don't Worry Darling , while the mordant fable of an outsider being allowed into a bubble of ridiculous privilege even recalls Saltburn .

There are also some marked resemblances to Jordan Peele's Get Out, which was released in 2017, but all the other films mentioned above came out in 2022 and 2023, so Blink Twice has the faintly stale whiff of a project that is past its sell-by date. It would have had to be truly exceptional not to seem as if it had come late to the party – and it isn't truly exceptional. Mind you, it sometimes gets pretty close.

Blink Twice gets off to an intriguing and wickedly funny start when Kravitz and her co-writer, ET Feigenbaum, establish King's back story in the most contemporary of ways: Frida reads news articles and watches interviews on her phone while she's sitting on the toilet. It turns out that his career was derailed when he committed some unspecified wrongdoing, but a few apologies and some ostentatious philanthropy have put all that in the past. "You really are a changed man," coos an obsequious interviewer.

The wily comedy continues when Frida and Jess are pouring champagne at King's annual charity gala – one of those so-called fundraisers which are so lavish that they cost more money than they raise. The women then swap their waitress uniforms for evening gowns and mingle with the affluent guests, a ruse that goes so well that the handsome and apparently gallant King is soon introducing Frida to his best buddies, a trio of parasitic doofuses played amusingly by Christian Slater, Simon Rex and Haley Joel Osment. Countless glasses of champagne later, everyone is flying by private jet to a tropical paradise with a palatial villa at its heart. Never mind that the women on the flight – including Sarah, played by Adria Arjona – are considerably younger than most of the men. And never mind that Frida and Jess haven't had time to pack: their rooms come equipped with perfectly fitting white dresses and bikinis. "I don't think it's weird," argues Jess. "It's... rich."

Blink Twice

Director: Zoe Kravitz

Cast: Naomi Ackie, Channing Tatum, Alia Shawkat, Adria Arjona, Christian Slater

Run time: 1hr 42m

On the island, Kravitz achieves an almost perfect balance between how enviable the holiday is, and how unsettling it is, between how sophisticated the men seem at some points, and how dangerously stupid they seem at others. You can see why Frida might find the bros' swanky lifestyle ridiculous, but you can also see why she would be happy to partake of that lifestyle herself, despite some hilariously spooky warning signs: Kravitz makes sinister use of the smiling servants who can be spotted in the background, killing the venomous snakes that crawl through King's Eden. The viewer, too, can enjoy all the sumptuously shot, richly coloured opulence while knowing that something bad is going to happen soon.

It doesn't happen soon enough, though. There are some bursts of psychedelic weirdness, but the lazing-by-the-pool montages become rambling and repetitive, and the foreshadowing becomes so blatant that many viewers will guess the big twist an hour before it's revealed. When the memory-loss plot eventually gets going, Kravitz seems determined to make up for lost time. The tone swings wildly between farcical silliness and upsetting grimness, and there are so many points being made about trauma, amnesia, white privilege, cancel culture, the super-rich and sexual exploitation that the concepts overwhelm the plot. Muddled by all its time jumps and memory gaps, Blink Twice is less successful as a compelling thriller than as a collection of smart ideas and contentious themes, of cool images and striking sequences, of dialogue that will be quoted and clips that will become memes.

As cluttered as it is, though, Blink Twice is stylish and savage enough to gain a cult following. And it is undoubtedly the work of a skilled writer-director, rather than an actor who is having a go at directing. Kravitz has elicited terrific performances from all of the cast (Ackie, Shawkat and Arjona, especially), she has constructed some satisfyingly gruesome retribution for the villains, and the finale wraps things up brilliantly. If Kravitz decides to make a sequel called Blink Thrice, it might be even better. 

Blink Twice is released on 23 August

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Screen Rant

Out come the wolves review: a taut survival horror flick that takes a bite out of toxic masculinity.

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10 Movies Like Cocaine Bear That Will Make You Terrified Of Animals

This thriller with 80% on rt is the peak of liam neeson's action career - and it's leaving streaming soon, indian horror comedy movie passes rare global box office milestone as it climbs all-time bollywood record.

Like the best hunters, Out Come the Wolves (2024) excels because of its restraint. Directed and co-written by Adam MacDonald ( Slasher ), the survival-horror film is a tight 87 minutes, but economy of runtime isn’t its only strength . The cast features just three characters: Missy Peregrym ( FBI ) , who collaborated with MacDonald on Backcountry , plays Sophie, a woman who comes from a family of hunters, while Damon Runyan ( Star Trek: Discovery ) plays Nolan, Sophie’s fiancé who’s never fired a weapon. Kyle ( Reacher ’s Joris Jarsky), a skilled hunter who grew up with Sophie, rounds out the trio — and the love triangle.

Out Come the Wolves (2024)

Although the film opens with the promise of violence — one of the injured men crawls desperately across the forest floor — the first 40 minutes or so of Out Come the Wolves is all about the tension between its characters . Tasked with writing an article about where his food comes from, Nolan agreed to venture up to Sophie’s family cabin for a weekend of deer hunting. Kyle, who’s supposed to teach Nolan the ropes while his girlfriend hangs with Sophie, shows up solo. Predictably, this leads to toxic friction between Nolan and Kyle, who harbors feelings for Sophie.

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Out Come The Wolves' Canines Are A Thinly Veiled Metaphor For The Toxic Men In Sophie's Life

The first half of the slow-burn survival horror is all about its characters.

Even though it’s Kyle who teaches Nolan how to nock an arrow and blast beer bottles apart with a rifle, Out Come the Wolves is quick to point out that Sophie is the most skilled hunter and survivalist . She’s the kind of woman who casually slices her apple with a penknife. While she calls Nolan out for his poorly disguised jealousy, Sophie also can’t help but land an arrow a little shy of a bullseye just to protect Kyle’s ego.

Sophie is caught between two men who see her as prey, whether intentionally or not.

At first, Nolan seems to be the problem. During dinner, Nolan lets slip that he and Sophie are engaged — something she would have preferred to tell Kyle, her brother stand-in, at the right moment. The night before the big hunt, Nolan gets drunk and interrogates Kyle about the one time he slept with Sophie. Kyle, a much quieter character, drowns his feelings in beer, stolen glances, and half-truths. Although he is Sophie’s long-time best friend, Kyle embodies a more insidious kind of toxicity : He thinks his “good guy” nature will absolve him of anything.

While Nolan can’t contain his jealousy over Sophie and Kyle’s shared past, Kyle isn’t much better. His first reaction to Sophie’s engagement is to bring up a Frasier Crane and Roz Doyle-style marriage pact they made as 12-year-olds. A former hunter-turned-vegan, Sophie is caught between two men who see her as prey, whether intentionally or not. When the odd couple head to the woods, Kyle proves just how flawed he is when his poor decision attracts the attention of the movie’s titular canines. As in any good survival horror , the hunters become the hunted.

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Out Come The Wolves Boasts A Chillingly Realistic Approach To The Survival Horror Genre

No one is an action hero in macdonald's film, which raises the stakes and tension.

Admittedly, the first half of Out Come the Wolves is slow. Even though that pacing is deliberate, it’s worth mentioning for horror fans who are expecting an adrenaline-pumping ride from start to finish. Not only does the slow-burn approach mimic the way a hunter spends most of their time waiting — for prey, for the right shot — but it also allows the body horror of the film’s second half to really stand out. While the characters’ accuracy scores are on par with Star Wars ’ Stormtroopers , I appreciate that MacDonald takes a more realistic approach to the genre .

Even when Sophie is eventually pulled into the hunt, Out Come the Wolves subverts our survival-horror expectations . Despite being the most resourceful and collected of the trio, Sophie isn’t slicing and dicing droves of wolves, either. Aside from a few lone wolf moments, the canines show the strength of a pack-animal approach, circling their targets and choosing when to strike. This grounded feel, both from the movie's portrayal of the wolves to its protagonists’ reactions to them, deepens the tension.

Out Come the Wolves is definitely a movie that will have you talking at the characters, which is the best horror movies' badge of honor.

The realism is unsettlingly accurate because it makes us forget about the medium’s inherent guardrails. Plus, the actors deliver solid performances that enrich the straightforward story. Although Kyle and Nolan are frustratingly territorial, we momentarily forget about their near-constant pissing matches when a wolf comes out to play. Likewise, even though Sophie isn’t an action hero, we're rooting for her to save these toxic blockheads from being mauled to death . Out Come the Wolves is definitely a movie that will have you talking at the characters, which is the best horror movies ' badge of honor.

From screenwriter Enuka Okuma’s economical-yet-effective script and Christian Bielz’s gorgeous cinematography to the stellar use of practical effects, Out Come the Wolves manages to be a solid entry in a well-worn genre. While body and survival horror fans might not find anything particularly groundbreaking here , and while the toxic masculinity plot is thinly veiled by the bloodthirsty wolves thread, the movie accomplishes what it sets out to do. Ultimately, the bones of the story have been licked clean of any excess, making for a film that will successfully holds our attention in its jaws.

Out Come the Wolves premieres in theaters across the US on August 30.

A secluded cabin in the wilderness becomes the setting for a harrowing fight for survival as tensions rise between a woman’s fiancé and her best friend. Their hunting trip takes a terrifying turn when they are hunted by a pack of wolves, forcing them to confront both nature's fury and their own dark secrets.

• The film's realism is unsettlingly accurate
• Out Come the Wolves' cinematography is excellent
• The story subverts survival horror expectations
• The themes are thinly veiled
• The beginning is slow to get going

‘The Other Laurens’ Review: A Belgian Detective Drama That’s a Little Too Shaggy-Dog

Claude Schmitz’s neo-noir has vibes to spare but not much of a compelling plot.

By Michael Nordine

Michael Nordine

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There’s no one with the first name Lauren in “ The Other Laurens ,” but there are twin brothers: François and Gabriel Laurens (Olivier Rabourdin), one of whom is dead. Claude Schmitz ’s twisty neo-noir — the original French title, “L’Autre Laurens,” is pleasing to the ear in a way its English translation is not — is a thriller of identity, both in terms of how it’s mistaken and how it’s created. For the downtrodden private detective at its center, that entails disentangling his sense of self from that of his not-so-dearly departed twin — a more difficult task than figuring out what became of the deceased.

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But DP Florian Berutti’s photography really is something, giving “The Other Laurens” a distinct ‘70s vibe; awash in saturated colors and the welcoming glow of nighttime neon, these eye-catching visuals heighten the reality to something like a dream state. That’s particularly true whenever there’s a car onscreen: red reflections of headlights bounce around the frame like orbs suggesting an otherworldly presence the film itself can hardly contain.

If everything else in the film — or even anything else — were on the same level, this could have been an exemplar of the genre rather than an eyebrow-raising curio. Maybe the other Laurens would have been more interesting to watch for two hours.

Reviewed online, Aug. 22, 2024. (In Cannes Film Festival, Directors' Fortnight) Running time: 119 MIN.

• Production: Director: Claude Schmitz. Writer: Claude Schmitz, Kostia Testut. Camera: Florian Berutti. Editor: Marine Beaune. Music: Thomas Turine.
• Crew: (Belgium, France) A Yellow Veil Pictures presentation of a Best Friend Forever, Wrong Men and Chevaldeuxtrois production. Producers: Jérémy Forni and Benoit Roland. 
• With: Olivier Rabourdin, Louise Leroy, Kate Moran, Marc Barbé, Tibo Vandenborre, Edwin Gaffney, Patrice Pays. (French, English, Spanish dialogue)

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Lifestyle | ‘Blink Twice’ review: Zoë Kravitz’s…

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Lifestyle | ‘blink twice’ review: zoë kravitz’s ambitious thriller can’t quite transcend its genre.

It’s a foolproof formula. The audience can boo the rich villains while vicariously enjoying the indulgences their money can buy: food, marijuana, champagne and endless days lounging in the sun. There’re usually vape and crypto jokes aplenty, and there’s usually an elaborate set filled with eccentric architectural indulgences, which more often than not catches fire. Within this genre, “Blink Twice” ranks a little higher than “Ready or Not” and a little lower than “The Menu.” It’s not the post-modern masterpiece it wants to be, but it’s a pretty good example of one of the early 2020s’ most reliable film formulas.

The protagonist is Frida (Naomi Ackie), a cocktail waitress who stumbles (literally — she’s struggling to walk in heels) into a gala hosted by handsome tech CEO Slater Gray (Channing Tatum). Soon she’s being whisked away to a dream getaway on the mogul’s private island, which allows copious opportunities for the movie to show us close-ups of food being served and champagne being poured while the sound design amplifies the creaking of corkscrews and the crackling of vape pens to claustrophobic levels. This is a showy film, with nearly every shot employing some kind of gimmick.

The audience is quicker to realize than Frida that something is seriously wrong with the island. “Blink Twice” plays its cards close to its chest, spending a disproportionate chunk of its runtime among Frida and her friends as they eat, drink, lounge and doze through endless sunlit days, tantalizing the viewer with cryptic clues and fearful glances from the island’s ominous groundskeepers. The twist is truly horrific once we learn it, unveiled in a series of brief but shockingly brutal flashbacks that justify the trigger warning shown at the beginning of the film.

These scenes stand at a right angle to the earlier humor, which strikes the same notes as a chick-flick parody like “Bridesmaids” or “Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar” — not to mention the ending, which comes from “Poor Things” by way of “Phantom Thread,” and which is so implausible it feels like a hallucination. For most of its runtime, “Blink Twice” exists so purely on the level of entertainment it’s easy to wonder why the film finds it necessary to show scenes of such raw and disquieting violence. It might’ve been less tonally jarring if it’d played the earlier scenes in more of a minor key, or else let the implications of the island’s secret speak for themselves.

“Blink Twice” isn’t really saying anything about the entitlement of the rich and powerful that we don’t already know from the last decade of headlines (we meet Slater as he’s delivering a half-hearted Instagram apology for an undisclosed past transgression). And Kravitz, a first-time director, has not yet developed the control of humor and graphic content that made “Kill Bill” both exhilarating and potentially traumatizing.

Yet there’s a certain fascination in watching her attack the act of moviemaking with such ferocity. A surfeit of style is better than a lack of one, and there are images that linger in the mind even if the material doesn’t quite deserve them. “Blink Twice” never really transcends its time and genre, but it tries its damnedest, and that’s a lot more interesting than not trying at all.

‘Blink Twice’

Stars (out of four): 2.5 stars

Runtime: 1 hour, 42 minutes

Rated: R (for strong violent content, sexual assault, drug use and language throughout)

How to watch: In theaters

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Asking Eric: I did the work on the family cabin until this email from my wife’s brother

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Speak No Evil

A family is invited to spend a weekend in an idyllic country house, unaware that their dream vacation will soon become a psychological nightmare. A family is invited to spend a weekend in an idyllic country house, unaware that their dream vacation will soon become a psychological nightmare. A family is invited to spend a weekend in an idyllic country house, unaware that their dream vacation will soon become a psychological nightmare.

• James Watkins
• Christian Tafdrup
• Mads Tafdrup
• James McAvoy
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• Trivia A remake of the 2022 Danish film of the same name.

[Agnes and Ant perform a cowboy dance set to "Cotton-Eyed Joe".]

Paddy : [interrupting] Ant, what is wrong with you? Just feel the rhythm in your feet like...

[demonstrating]

Paddy : one, two, three, four. This is a one.

[the children resume their dance.]

Paddy : [furious] NO!

[he chucks a piece of food at Ant.]

Louise Dalton : What is wrong with you?

• Connections Referenced in IMDb Explains: All About Horror in 2024 (2023)
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• September 13, 2024 (United States)
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• Runtime 1 hour 50 minutes
• Dolby Digital

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