Superhero films have become increasingly popular over the last decade but the genre started with The Adventures of Captain Marvel in 1941. Since then characters such as Batman and Superman have become common film icons who have had many films made about them over the decades. The Crow in 1994 opened the doors in darker and more violent films with anti-hero characters because before then superhero films were more family friendly with the simple story of good vs. evil which have become a narrative convention of the genre. In the past decade Hollywood has seen the potential of the genre and many superhero films have been made each year the biggest being the re-booted Batman, X-Men and Spiderman franchises, with Batman The Dark Knight Returns earning $1 billion.
The superhero genre has many conventions the most common being that the superhero protagonist has to fight their arch enemy to save their city. Each superhero seems to have their own city which can be real or fictional which they protect. This usually forms the basis of the narrative and also usually the villain has plans to rule the world which the superheroes goal is to prevent. The superheroes themselves have distinct conventions, the most obvious being that they have super powers or abilities which can vary widely from superhuman strength to energy bolts. Others have special weapons or technology instead of powers such as Iron Mans powered armour. It is slowly becoming more common for superheros to not have any superhero powers at all and use their intelligence to create weapons and take control. They also have a individual costume which they can be recognised from, these are to conceal their identity to protect their family and friends from harm. Another common convention is a secret base of operations such as the Batcave for Batman which is kept hidden from the general public. Overall the most important convention for a superhero is a strong moral code to protect others by risking their own safety which makes them a likable protagonist.
A less obvious convention of superhero films is that it is very common for the superhero to wear glasses when he hiding his superhero identity. As soon as they become the heroes they seem to not need glasses anymore which is never explained such as Spiderman and Kick-Ass. In my film I will play on this as my protagonist wears glasses but still needs them when he is a superhero.
Superheroes are seen as in charge with bringing peace, fighting violently if necessary, and trying to maintain a normal life. Some audience members may relate to that concept, either on a personal level or in relation to their ideas about war and any current world situations which opens the genre to a mass audience. Superhero films have remained popular because most superheroes serve as a hope-inspiring figure and image of someone who can save us from difficult times. Superhero movies promote the ideas of peace, safety and freedom and may be popular now more than ever.
The second genre I will be using is the spoof or parody film. Parody films take a familar genre and its conventions and either exagerates or subverts them for comic effect. These films started in the 1960’s with spy spoofs and have grown ever since with the most popular being the Austin Powers and Scary Movie films.
A convention of the parody genre is exaggerated stereotypes such as Austin Powers ‘British’ teeth. This could be used in superhero films with over the top villains. My protagonist will be an exaggeration of the teen superhero such as Spiderman whose narrations in the films can borderline on cheesey. This also ties into exaggerated actions or actions with no consequences which are often seen in Monty Python films. This can work well with some superhero films which follow the style of the early bright comic books such as the 1960’s Batman series and film.
Another convention is mocking iconic and well known scenes from specific films from the genre it is spoofing. Spoof films cover a wide range of different genres including zombie films with Shaun of the Dead and more obscure genres like musician biographies such as Walk Hard. Using these conventions I can now plan my own film with a goal in mind to create a superhero parody film by using these conventions. However when making my own I do not want it the characters to be too over the top, I want the film to be believeable and the audience to accept that someone could to this in reality.
No comments:
Post a Comment