ENG. 215 Film Genres Analysis #1: Classical Hollywood Style

In an original analysis, thoroughly address the following prompts:

  1. Most genre films are presented in what our text calls “classical Hollywood style,” an approach to storytelling dominant in Hollywood since the early 1900s (Ch. 2-3). Classical Hollywood style has several defining characteristics, primary among

 which is the notion of “invisibility” or “verisimilitude.” These terms refer to the illusion of immediacy and authenticity in cinema: in other words, when we watch movies, we seem to be witnessing events, beings, and locales appear and move as we watch. In truth, we are watching an elaborately constructed artifice built from the multi-layered creative details of filmmaking–camerawork, acting, sound design, editing, costume and set design, etc.–but the experience seems like we are watching a story actually “happen” firsthand, even if the story is improbable or unrealistic (i.e., animated, involving improbable or impossible situations, set in non-existent places).

Discuss 2 scenes from the assigned film which are particularly impressive in terms of their invisibility / verisimilitude. (Important note: verisimilitude / invisibility should not be examined based on how “realistic” something is in comparison to our own experiences or expectations: instead, we’re addressing those creative elements in the movie which make the events depicted seem as if they are actually happening as we watch, no matter how unrealistic the movie may be).

  1. According to renowned film scholar Jim Belton in our text American Culture, American Cinema, classical Hollywood cinema is primarily “character centered,” meaning that while plot is important to this style, the characters involved in the story are the most immediate focus of our viewing attention: over the course of the story, some of the characters–usually, but not exclusively, the main characters–undergo internal and / or external struggles in the course of trying to achieve specific goals or solve certain problems, and along the way, these characters discover important things about themselves, others, and the environments in which they exist. Discuss how the assigned film exhibits this “character arc” aspect of classical Hollywood style: which characters struggle to achieve goals, how successful are (or are not) they, and what do they discover in the process?
  2. In classical Hollywood style, the mise en scene–a movie’s visuals and accompanying sound design–is purposefully constructed to emphasize the emotions and the actions of characters as they progress through the narrative. Keep this in mind and examine 2 scenes from the assigned film which demonstrate this purpose of mise en scene: discuss how character actions and emotions are emphasized in each scene by visuals and sounds. (For example, camerawork, lighting, special effects, dialogue, music, and sound effects are all creative elements which can be used to emphasize character actions and emotions).
  3. Often, Classical Hollywood style develops themes which are directly connected with

 “accessible” subject matter featured in a film’s story. “Themes” are the main points / observations that a story makes about its subject matter. For example, a film may

have “parenting” as one of its primary subjects: what the film says about parenting (how to do it well, why good parenting matters, etc.) is a theme of the film.  Keep this in mind and try to identify the main subject(s) and theme(s) of the assigned film, with detailed scene support.

  1. Based on your current knowledge of film genres, to which of the 10 genre(s) we will study in this class–melodrama, musical, comedy, war, thriller-noir, western, horror, science-fiction, fantasy, or action-adventure–do you think the assigned film belongs? Discuss in as much detail as you

Be sure to support your claims with specific evidence from the movie, textbook, and lecture notes: generally speaking, the more direct synthesis created among these three entities, the more substance and length your analysis will have. Each prompt should be given roughly equal attention and space in your analysis.

Assessment, Formatting, Due Date

Assessment: submitted essays earn one of five marks.

70-63 points: essay is extremely detailed and exceeds 2 full pages in length 62-56 points: essay is very detailed and is 1 ½- 2 full pages in length

55-49 points: essay is adequately detailed and is 1-1 ½ pages in length 48-42 points: essay lacks detail and is 1/2 to 1 full page in length

41-00 points: essay has little or no detail and is less than 1/2 page in length

Improperly formatted or incomplete papers earn no more than 48 points, regardless of their content / length. Points are earned only by papers that are submitted on time: missing or late essays earn 0 points.

Papers must address only the prompts detailed on this assignment sheet. Papers which are designed to address, or which include discussion of, prompts from assignment sheets used in previous sections of this course earn 0 points.

Format: single-spaced; 12-point Times font; name and response # centered at top of p. 1; double-space once in between heading and beginning of essay; do not double- space in between paragraphs; 1” margins on all sides