Where did genres come from?
Genres originated in the 20's, this happened because they just started to produce the films that were popular at the time. This was because this was when entertainment was becoming more popular as technology was advancing quite a lot.
How did the 'Golden Age of Hollywood' reinforce genres?
Film companies would produce films of a similar story as they knew that people would watch it because they were a popular type of film at the time. And as time went on peoples interest would change so genres were made more noticeable.
Which Genres became popular in Hollywood?
Genres such as film noirs became popular during the 20's because people were interested in the mystery and action of it all, it may have also been popular because of the females which were sometime the femme fatale who were shown to be strong and powerful, which was new for movies at this time. Westerns also became favoured, this may have been because they showed different cultures which a lot of people may have been unaware of, perhaps also because of the action and guns used in the films. Other genres that were popular were musicals and science fictions.
Why do audiences like genre films?
I think that people may like to have genres because when they do watch the film they may have a small idea of what they are going to see so can judge if they're going to like it, meaning they may be saving because they won't be wasting their time with a genre they don't like.
Codes and conventions of film noirs
Codes and conventions are used in films to help make the film fit the genre they are trying to make. Film noirs have quite unique codes and conventions, this is important because it helps to create the movies moods and atmosphere. Examples of some of the codes and conventions are:
- Characters - the most common ones being the detective or the hero and the femme fatale and the main storyline will revolve around these two characters as the femme fatale will begin in the movie acting all innocent which makes the main male character fall for her, but then he will be betrayed by her to get what she wants.
- Lighting - used in these films are usually quite similar as the movies are in black and white and the scenes are usually very dark in order to maintain the movies atmosphere of mystery. Silhouette and shadows are two examples of how this is created because as you cannot see the whole picture is leaves the audience wanting to know what it is in the darkness. This could be considered to be a type of restricted narrative.
- Narrative - the spider and the fly is probably the most commonly used narrative in film noirs as it very easy one to create as it is basically that the main female character will seduce the main male into helping her to get what she wants before exposing that she did it all for selfish reasons, so captures him in her 'web'. There is sometimes a voice-over during the movie which helps to give the audience an idea to what character that's doing it opinion or feelings are.
Film Noir
Film Noirs became popular during the 1920's, this may have been because of the new narrative they used of the spider and fly which would've been portrayed by the hero, main male character (fly) and the femme fatale (spider), which may have drawn the audiences in due to its sexual nature which was a new aspect to the film world in those years.
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