Welcome to
the second part of my article on Blake Snyder’s genres, a fresh look at putting
your story into a relevant genre. Please feel free to argue with me about any of these definitions!
6. Buddy
Love
This genre
is based on our need to be loved and accepted, whether its romantically or
friendship: two people who need to be together to function. The hero/heroine is
somehow incomplete, then along comes someone who causes some kind of
complication in their life, but they are then revealed to be their perfect counterpart.
Lethal
Weapon- Obviously not a romance, but Danny Glover is stuck in a rut: retiring
soon, feeling old. Along comes Mel: crazy, suicidal but just the wake up call
Danny needs. Gradually they both feel better, and solve the case with their
complementary skills.
When Harry
met Sally- What on earth do these two have in common? Sensible Sally and
drifter Harry. They make a few false starts: other lovers, getting together
when Harry isn’t ready. But they NEED each other…
Dirty
Dancing- Forbidden Love, a popular topic. She’s a middle class girl, bound for
Harvard, he’s a poor dancer from the wrong side of the tracks. But she admires
his passion, he admires her strength- they fit together like pieces of a
puzzle, despite all the obstacles in their way.
7. Whydunit
This genre covers
thrillers, crime, mystery, noir , gangster and detective films. These films must
include the detective, often jaded and put on standard case which turns out to
be more than he bargained for. There is also a mystery or secret which
motivates the crime- any of the seven deadly sins. Finally there is a dark turn,
where the detective throws caution to the wind, tosses morality aside and
breaks the rules in order to unravel the mystery.
Bladerunner-
Jaded Harrison Ford is given another job chasing replicants. But then he
wonders: why did they come back to Earth and what do they want with the Tyrell
Corporation. The dark turn: Harrison’s life is saved by a replicant, one of
those he was hunting.
All the
President’s Men- Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman investigate an ordinary
burglary. The mystery is why one of the burglars worked for the CIA. Robert and
Dustin are intrigued, and take the dark turn of tricking witnesses to go on
record, desperate to find out the answer.
Fargo- a man
wants his wife kidnapped, but why? A seemingly satisfied wife/detective
investigates but her dark turn is meeting an old friend for lunch- why did she
not tell her husband she was meeting him?
8. Fool
Triumphant
These films contain
a fool who is gentle and bluffs his way through life. There is a jealous
associate, which can be a “frenemy” (friends who are really enemies) or a colleague
determined to see the fool fail. The fool must travel to an establishment or an
unfamiliar world in which he does not fit. Then there is a transmutation,
occurring either by accident or by design.
Tootsie- The
fool is Dustin Hoffman, difficult actor who can’t see what he’s doing wrong. He
comes up against the establishment of the acting world- no on will hire him due
to his reputation. So he transforms into Dorothy Michaels, and gets all he
wants thanks to seeing the world from another perspective.
Forrest
Gump- Probably the most famous of this genre. the fool is Forrest/ Tom and the
establishment is ‘society’, which sees him as worthless. When he learns he can
run fast, however, he is transformed into someone useful and shows everyone the
pleasures of a simple life.
Legally
Blonde- Reece Witherspoon doesn’t fit into law school, that much is evident.
Mocked as a fool, she shows the establishment how she can transform into a
clever lawyer.
9.
Institutionalized
These are
films defining the struggle as we pit our wits against society or other
undesirable factors. At the core of these stories is a group, a family, a
corporation or other oppressive system. The hero takes on the establishment to
prove a point, a sacrifice is made and they must endurehardship to prove their
conviction and enrich their souls. The ending is a sacrifice: either beat
‘em, join ‘em or die trying.
M*A*S*H- The
group is obviously, the army and the choice is to go along with their rules or
not. the sacrifice in this case is that the hero did nothing. The army
continues much as it always did.
Do the Right
Thing- The group is the neighbourhood, the choice is whether to join in the
riots or not, and at the end, again, racism carries on as always.
Crash- An
ensemble cast. The group is society and its racism (again). The choice is
whether to join in or not: some characters do racist things, some do not. They
each make sacrifices to get their separate endings.
10.
Superhero
There must be
a superhero with a special power, usually used for the greater good. The hero
needs a nemesis, a bad guy to represent the ugly side of the superhero. He has
powers of equal or greater strength than the hero and knows the superhero’s
weakness- the curse.
The Matrix- Keanu has the special power, his nemesis is
Agent Smith. His weakness is indecision and self doubt.
Gladiator-
Russell Crowe is powered by revenge, and hatred of his nemesis, Joaquin Phoenix.
His weakness is his sense of decency and mercy, but luckily, Joaquin is so evil
he overcomes that.
Spiderman 2-
Spiderman has an obvious power, and in this film his nemesis is Dr Octopus, or
is it the Jamesons? His weakness again
is self doubt but also the hostility of the public, who thinks he’s bad.
Thanks to this website for great summaries:
