Sunday, 15 December 2013

Analysis Of Three Teen Movies


1) John Tucker Must Die 



John Tucker Must Die is a romantic comedy which appeals to mostly teen females between ages 13 - 19. The star appeal of the film is Jesse Metcalfe, who appeals to young females because of his good looks and charming character. 
The storyline of the film is that there are three girls, who plot to break the heart of an unscrupulous basketball star after they learn that he has been dating all three, claiming that each is 'The one' for him. Another character is included in the scheme to publicly humiliate the 'player'* by making him fall in love with her, then rejecting him. 
The plot of the film appeals to young girls/women because any female would like to see the humiliation or deterioration of an unfaithful man. The way that the plan in the film goes ahead is engaging because of the humorous aspects that are shown throughout the film. 
Another factor of the film that appeals to young females is that, the main characters are mostly females. Therefore, there are particular occurrences that females can relate to that take place in the film. 




Trailer: John Tucker Must Die 


















2) Shank 


Shank is an action film aimed at the youth generation. Although this film may appeal to both young females and males, I believe that it appeals to teenage males ages 13 - 19 more because of the plot of the film. This film is about a gang set out on a chase to avenge the murder of one of their own. In my opinion, males can relate to gang wars more because there is more violence between male dominated gangs than conflicts between female cliques. Another reason that has lead me to believe that Shank would appeal more strongly to young males is that, majority of the characters in this film are males. There may be certain situations in this film that a teenage male would be able to relate to. The film is set in 'a decaying future London'. Most of the dramatic scenes take place on the streets. This may appeal to young males because teenagers, mainly males,  happen to like 'hanging around' on the streets/ street corners. Another thing that may appeal to teenage males is the fact that this film has a lot of action which means that it is a strong, bold, energetic film and this engages males as opposed to females who are more interested in sensitivity, passion and affection. 



Trailer: Shank













3) Warm Bodies

Warm Bodies is a Romantic comedy horror which appeals to young teenagers and adults. It can create an interest for anyone who likes horror/comedy/romance as the film is a mix of these aspects. The film is about a zombie (male) and a human girl who form a relationship that sets in motion events that might transform the entire lifeless world. 

It is an engaging movie because of the humour, romance and the storyline itself. 

Another thing that may interest the audience is that we get to see the zombie from a different perspective, because usually zombies are portrayed as violent, unintelligent brain-eating monsters. However, this film is shown through the eyes of a zombie and we get to see what goes on in the mind of a zombie although they don't actually exist. 
Certain parts of the film, such as the romantic scenes may appeal to teenagers who can relate to situations because, even though the relationship is between a Zombie and a human, circumstances are still pretty much the same. 





Trailer: Warm Bodies






















*Player - A person who is skilled at manipulating others/ Usually a male who dates several girls at the same time

Friday, 13 December 2013

What happens at the beginning of a film ?

Films start of with a instuition indent, such as 20th Century Fox, Paramont Pictures, and Warner Bros. They tell the audience who distributed and broadcasted the film.


It is then often followed by the production company of the film, this is to tell the audience who backed the film with required money. Whether it's for a big blockbuster produced by Walt Disney Pictures or a low budget film produced by a company such as Big Talk Productions.



It is then often followed by a title sequence and list of main cast (often with the character they act as)
-The title of the film also addresses to the audience the film they are watching, the film cast gives credit to the cast and can also build hype over a film by a famous actor such as Brad Pitt or Actress such as Jennifer Aniston. Sometimes the title sequence is shown whilst the movie begins.


Music during the beginning of a film also sets the mood of the start of the movie, for example tense music would be used for a horror or thriller movie.









Thursday, 12 December 2013

GENRE CONVENTIONS

I have been researching common elements that are included in the a teen film and the alternative type of Genres.

What is a Teen Film ?
A teen film is a film that is targeted at teenagers and young adults. The characters are mainly teenagers however there are also other characters who aren't teenagers such as the parents or school teachers.

Common themes that are explored in a teen film are the following; 

  • First Love 
  • Rebellion 
  • Teen Angst 
  • Conflict with parents 
  • Sexuality 
  • Gangs 
  • Alienation
  • Crime 
These themes are normally represented to the audience in a stereotypical way or they're sometimes challenged for example in the film love and basketball ( 2000) a girl is an aspiring basketball player - this shocks the boys. 

Sub Genres in a Teen Films 

There are variety of Sub Genres In Teen Films 

  • Psychological Thriller 
  • Comedy ( Exaggerated, Extreme, Explicit ) 
  • Horror 
  • Realist/Drama 
  • Action 
Typical Characters In A Teen Film

The main objective is to create an accurate representation of how teenagers behave so teenagers can learn from the representations and relate to the characters in a teen film. In order for a this objective to accurate the characters must be stereotypical. Examples of characters are the : 

  • Th Class Clown 
  • The Loner
  • The Band Geek

  • Class Hottie
  • Class Clown
  • The Nerd 

Genre and Conventions

What is a teen film?

A teen film is a movie aimed at teenagers. targeted at 16+.
they are made to relate with teenagers and also if adults watch it they feel nostalgic and reminisce about their past.

Themes and topics
common themes are; love, sex, family and school.
 it was during the 1950s that teenage films came about and one of the first was "rebel without a cause" it included the start James Dean who inspired teenagers to be rebellious and act against the traditional expectation that adults had of them. the key themes in it was thrill, family conflict, alcohol,parting and love.

 















grease came outing in 1978 and showed some new themes like; musicals, cars, proms, drive in cinemas. this was fresh as the music from the film was put on cds showing synergy.













love and basketball is a good example of ethnicity being shown. it also gender stereotype. as the main actress is giving a hard time for wanting to participate in sports.
















teen films also have sub genres such as love, psychological, high school, fantasy, coming of age, action, comedy(explicit and exaggerated)



these sub genres are usually exaggerated and explicit as they appeal to the teenage audience. a teenager may laugh at some jokes from films while an adult may not find it disturbing and not funny. 
some of the main types of characters in a film revolved around school would be the: the nerd, a group of girls who are mainly blond and the bulling type and the good looking character who is a boy mainly in the football team

in British films the characters may in some cases be quite stereotypical. for example looking at 'Attack the Block' the main characters are young boys who behave in a anti-social way. the boy who causes trouble is black and all the younger children are poorly influenced by the teenagers. there is also an explicit use of drugs and violence.


some of the key settings you can notice in teen films are bedrooms, schools, local areas, school playground or canteens or the neighborhood.





Genre and Convention

A teen film is a film specifically targeted at teenagers or young adults. The storyline is usually based upon particular interests of teenagers such as rebellion, first love, coming of age teen ants, conflict with parents, etc. This is because teenagers are engaged by the plot as they can relate to the experiences the characters in the movies are going through. Teen films can be exaggerated and realistic depending on the genre. 

Examples of teen movies 




























































Teen films are divided into sub genres. Examples of sub genres are: 
- High school
- Action
- Romance
- Fantasy
- Psychological Thriller
- Realist 
- Comedy 


There are several typical locations in teen films. 


Locations within the home are: 
- Bedroom
- Kitchen 
- Bathroom 






















Locations in school/college are:
- Classroom
- Corridor
- Car park
- Library
- Toilets 























Sport locations are:
- Track
- Changing rooms/shower
- Basketball court 
- Football pitch 




















'Hang out' locations are:
- Cinema
- Party
- Friends home 
- Diner 






















Other locations include:
- Street corners
- Shops/ Shopping mall 
- Transport e.g bus, train, car  





















An aspect that teen films have in common is the characters. Characters in teen films are usually based on strong stereo types. 
Examples of three stereotypical characters are:


The Cheerleader




















The Jock 
























The Unpopular Girl


















Trailer - Not Another Teen Movie  






This Trailer of 'Not Another Teen Movie shows several stereotypical characters that are in teenage movies.
The movie is described as a 'A sendup of all the teen movies that have accumulated in the past two decades'.




Genre and Convention

Teen films are specifically targeted at teenagers and young adults. the plot of teen films mirrors that of teenagers social interests; there are many topics for teen films such as the unfairness of gender stereotypes, the difficulty of chasing ones dreams, and the harsh reality of love.

Popular sub-genres for teen films are:

- Drama
- Comedy
- Horror
- Sci-Fi
- Musical
- PsychologicalThriller
-Action

There are many locations used in a teen film, some of them may include

Prelim waterloo road


12. PRELIM - Amina, Mohamed, Esther, Saheba from 283goswell on Vimeo.