As an English major, I’ve always been, for the most part,\u00c2\u00a0more fascinated by literary theory than the literature itself. Not significantly, but when class discussion turns toward a deconstructionist analysis of The Great Gatsby rather than talking about what kind of car Gatsby drives, I tend to participate a lot more. I enjoyed English 295 because it wasn’t dedicated so much to the nitty gritty of literature itself, but used literature as a tool to reach greater literary and metaphysical truths. So now I’m babbling and I’ll shut up.<\/p>\n
\u00c2\u00a0Anyways, that’s why I really enjoyed reading the essays in our film book. I have never been privy to such an in depth study of film theory, and as a self-proclaimed student of pop culture, I found it especially interesting to classify popular (and more obscure) films into the genres which were discussed. I was thinking about the recent batch of romantic comedies released just in time for Super Bowl weekend, the terrible reviews they got, and how films like “Catch and Release” and “Because I Said So” pretty much fit the definition of genre film to\u00c2\u00a0a tee.<\/p>\n
I honestly believe that these films, at the moment at least, are completely devoid of any sort of intellectual or artistic value, especially in comparison to recent films like Pan’s Labyrinth, The Queen, etc. Maybe they’ll be of some historical value 50 years from now, although I seriously doubt that as well. I believe it was mentioned in class that genre films of any lasting cultural value are the ones that in some fashion, break the traditional mold. It is doubtful that Smokin’ Aces, Epic Movie, or Blood and Chocolate will be available in any sort of home viewing format in 25 years let alone be remembered and culturally valued.<\/p>\n
So yes, I do believe that SOME genre films have value; either those that are extremely well done or those that tweak the traditional formula. But there is a large category of films that are pure forgettable junk pumped out solely as a product.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
As an English major, I’ve always been, for the most part,\u00c2\u00a0more fascinated by literary theory than the literature itself. Not significantly, but when class discussion turns toward a deconstructionist analysis of The Great Gatsby rather than talking about what kind … Continue reading