Trisha Opolot- Wednesday 4th February

Gangster Conventions

A gangster film is very similar to a crime film. It involves various aspects of crime and the criminal justice system, and it is developed around the sinister actions of criminals or gangsters. Crime stories in this genre often highlight the life of a crime figure or a crime's victim. Or they glorify the rise and fall of a particular criminal, gang, bank robber, murderer or a rival gang.

Settings:

• Dark locations
• Busy cities
• Urban Lifestyles
• The Slums- 'living in poverty'

Narrative:

• Action
• Violence/murder
• Rivalry between gangs
• Comedy?
• Foul language/slang
• Money
• Drugs
• Weapons (guns,knives...)

Characters:

• Gangs
• Individual characters
• Leader of group
• Criminals/drug dealers
• Gamblers
• Victims (innocent or even involved in the crime)
• Gangs from ethnic backgrounds
• The young or old ?

Gangster Films:

• Snatch
• The Godfather
• American Gangster
• The Departed
• Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels

In our group (Trisha, Yazzmin and Nathan), we decided to analyse a gangster film called 'Snatch', and how this film contributes to the different gangster conventions.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2j6YOg8B418

From the opening scene of 'Snatch', there are many points that we can immediately tell that it's a gangster movie, such as:

• The props: there are weapons such as hand guns which are used in the film to attack the rivals.
• There are fighting skills as well to show that there is a lot of action.
• The mise-en-scene starts off with a dark setting- which shows that there is something mysterious that is going to happen.
• The group move around together as a gang- no one is alone, which shows that they are going to start trouble.
• The music when fighting is very dramatic and also there are many sound effects such as throwing objects around and punching.
• They unexpected Jewish folk music which turns into action- very unexpected.

From the credits and the characters of the film, we can immediately see that Guy Ritchie directed the film. This makes us to expect that it will be a very good and successful film. The sub genre of this gangster film would be a British gangster film. as the characters acting are British. Older teenagers and adults would be the audience for the film since the age certificate is '18

Different Film Genre Conventions

Comedy Conventions

A comedy film is a genre of a film, in which the main emphasis is based on humour. Also, films in this style typically have a happy ending. Comedy, puts more focus on individual stars, and while many comedic films are lighthearted stories with no intention other than to amuse, others contain political or social commentary.

There are many sub genres to comedy films. These include:

• Romantic comedy which involves the development between a relationship between a man an woman, normally with a stereotypical plot. Some examples of romantic comedy films are, 'When Harry met Sally', 'Four Weddings and a Funeral' and 'Pretty Woman'. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2MqPcOPIgRw

• Action comedy films blend comic antics and action where film stars combine one-liners with a thrilling plot and a daring status. Some examples of action comedy films are, 'Hot Fuzz,' 'Beverly Hills Cop,' and 'Rush Hour.' http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2q0UTE6swg
• Comedy horror is a type of horror film in which the usual dark themes are treated with a humorous approach. These include films like. 'Scary Movie,' 'Little Shop of Horrors' and 'Dead Alive.' http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cu8ynFSiuM6c