Film genre patterns and complex narrative strategies in the service of authorship

• Authors: Andrea Virginás
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

From the Euro-American canon of contemporary filmmaking a selection of films has been made, the directors of which transition from low-budget, arthouse, regional first features made in the years 1997–1998 (mainly Cube and Pi, with occasional references to Run, Lola, Run and Following) to big-budget, Hollywood-funded blockbusters presented in the years 2009–2010 (Splice and Black Swan, occasionally referring to The International and Inception). Within this framework the issue of how generic patterns are used by these directors fond of narrative complexity is discussed. While in the debut features narrative complexity is the main issue, leading to a revisionist usage of sci-fi (Natali) and psychological thriller/horror (Aronofsky), as well as action film (Tykwer) and noir detection film (Nolan), in the 2009–2010 blockbusters narrative complexity is hidden behind apparently sincere generic imitation. This latter procedure, on closer inspection, reveals the allegorical recreation of genres as types (as defined by Laetz and McIver Lopes in The Routledge Companion to Film and Philosophy). The aim is to examine narratively complex designs as tools in establishing the authorial names of these directors, based on their first features, with attention paid to the consistency of film genres referenced.

Keywords

EN

film genre; complex narration; author cinema; generic allegory; contemporary film

PL

gatunki filmowe; złożoność narracyjna; kino autorskie; alegoria gatunkowa; kino współczesne

• Publisher: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Wroclawskiego
• Journal: Literatura i Kultura Popularna
• Year: 2018
• Volume: 24
• Pages: 25 - 37

Contributors

author

Andrea Virginás

• Sapientia Hungarian University of Transylvania, Romania