Romance Genre

Romance Film

“It was a million tiny little things that, when you added them all up, they meant we were supposed to be together … and I knew it. I knew it the very first time I touched her. It was like coming home. .. only to no home I’d ever known … I was just taking her hand to help her out of a car and I knew. It was like … magic.” (1993. Ephron, N. Sleepless in Seattle). Who doesn't enjoy staying inside on a cozy couch with popcorn watching romantic films all day? The fact is that whether you admit it or not, romantic films are everyones guilty pleasure, this is one of the main reasons as to why I choose this particular genre.

Romance?

According to The Script Lab, one way to define romantic films is as a genre where the plot revolves around the involvement of two people.  Primarily focusing on the romantic relationship between two people, some of the genre's themes include; love at first sight, forbidden love, love triangles, and sacrificial love (Buffam, N. 2011 March, 26. Romance). Some of the romantic films that show these themes the best include; A Walk To Remember(2002), Titanic (1997), and The Notebook (2004).

The Notebook

Titanic

A Walk To Remember

Sub-genres

Sub-genres are a lesser or subordinate genre or a much larger and broader genre. The sub-genre of romantic films include; historical romance, romantic drama, chick-flick, romantic comedies, and romantic actions among others. 

Conventions

Media conventions are general rules that directors follow in every genre. This is used to create meaning and for genres to be easily recognizable to their audience. In other words, media conventions are agreed upon ways of how to do things when working with a specific genre. the typical narrative in a romantic film is; tow people meet, fall in love, someone usually disagrees, and the couple breaks up. Romantic films are usually known for opening with their main characters; a boy and a girl. This allows the audience to understand that these characters will be important. As far as setting, romantic films are usually set in urban places, for example, a school. This is done tp increase the probability of the two characters meeting. In order to set the mood and atmosphere of a movie, directors use sound. In romantic films, this is of up most importance. For example. directors use instruments to do this. To create a sad mood, a director may what to use a violin. Camera movements and shots can also help directors tell a story. For example medium shots can set the scene and introduce the characters. To show attachment between two people, panning and tracking movements may be used. The way that the shots are edited may also help to establish a relationship between two people. In romantic films, fast cuts are used to create emotion and atmosphere, while shot reverse shot is typically used to establish a conversation that is happening between two characters.