7. MORE MUSICAL FILMS??!

At the end of my last post, I referenced that I wanted to give some opinions about how I felt about The Greatest Showman.

This will not be that post.
I'll hold off on that analysis for another day :)

In the meantime, I might as well give some recommendations/a top ten of films in the musical genre that I througoughly enjoyed.

1. Mamma Mia!

This film is a collection of music from musical group ABBA,  including "Dancing Queen" and "Mamma Mia". This film is about a girl (Amanda Seyfried)  who invited her three possible dads (Colin Firth, Pierce Brosnan, and Stellan Skarsgård)  to her wedding behind her mothers (Meryl Streep) back; the mom had slept with these three men around the same time of the daughter's conception.

2.Grease

This classic film is about lovers Danny Zuko (John Travolta) and Sandy Olsson (Olivia Newton-John) and their interactions amongst their friend groups.  Contains famous songs such as "Grease Lightning", "Beauty School Dropout", and "Oh Sandy".

3. Into the Woods

 

This film took the Broadway musical and adapted it into a large scale film with some of the biggest names in Hollywood.  James Cordon, Maryl Streep, Anna Kendrick, Chris Pine, and Johnny Depp star in this movie, all of them providing vocals to this musical masterpiece about intertwined stories.

4. West Side Story

Although I discussed this film in my last post, this is still a fantastic film that inspires many films to this day (ironic because it was inspired by another work).  This film is about how disagreements can ultimately lead to some sympathy towards other parties, and brings to light the prominence of racial slurs and gang violence in New York (at the time).

5. The Sound of Music

This film is hands down one of my favorite musical films.  Julie Andrews (Maria) has a fantastic performance, and sings catchy songs with the Von Trapp children.  This film is a classic in the musical film scene because of songs such as "The Sound of Music",  "My Favorite Things", and "Sixteen Going on Seventeen". 

6. Bohemian Rhapsody

The most recent prominent musical film is Bohemian Rhapsody.  This film is a celebration of Freddie Mercury (Rami Malek) and his band entitled Queen.  Famous songs such as "Somebody to Love", "Under Pressure", and "Bohemian Rhapsody" are played throughout the film. 

I am very excited for more musical films to appear in theatres (hopefully sooner rather than later). When I view more films of this genre, I will leave an in depth opinion of what I thought of the film :)

Have a great week :)

-J

6. Film Sample #2

I can't think of an introduction to this movie. So here it is......

Hugh Jackman in all his charisma in:

The Greatest Showman.  One of the hit movies of 2017, making over $400 million in total sales.

Let us analyze this film and see how "Great" this movie truly is.


GENRE CONVENTIONS:

- 11 fantastic songs that contain stunning vocals not only from Hugh (yup, first name basis) and the rest of the cast
- Plenty of long shots to show the dances as well as the colorful costumes of the characters:

The characters are performing at their event.

Hugh Jackman's character singing with Michelle William's character.

A scene in a bar where the characters are singing and dancing.

- Utilizes recognizable actors such as Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron, and Zendaya.

GENRE CONVENTIONS (CONTENT):

Here's the checklist:

Singing.
Dancing.
Pertinent Songs.
Songs are so exuberant they make the viewer (or even the character) forget about their world.

- 11 songs of solos and ensemble vocals

- High-intensity dancing to match the vocals (also a song where Efron and Zendaya use acrobatics in song)

- Song "A Million Dreams" is about the dreams shared by Jackman and William's characters

- The finale of the film occurs in a circus tent, where the characters are celebrating their journey and mission to create an escape for people that do not fit into societal norms. 

In another post, I'll attempt to explain my personal experience of the film, mainly because I really want to rewatch it after doing research about it just now. 

- J

5. Film Sample #1

In my next two postings, I will elaborate on two different films.

1. One film of my choice (West Side Story)
2. One recent film (The Greatest Showman)


So let us not waste any time.

(TONIIIIIIGHTTTTTT) West Side Story is going to be discussed.  Released in 1961, this film is based on the theatre musical of the same name that was on Broadway in 1957, which was based on William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.

DOES IT HAVE WHAT IT TAKES?

Now, we'll get more interesting.  Utilizing the information I have gathered over my last few postings, we will break down this film to see if it truly has what it takes to be in the Musical Film Genre.


Simply put, does this film contain singing and long shots to see the dances?
The simple answer is, well, Yes.

but allow me to give some examples.




GENRE CONVENTIONS:

- The soundtrack consists of 19 songs, sung by the entire cast ("Somewhere", "America"), or by soloists ("Maria" and "Somewhere (Reprise)").
- The character "Tony" was played by a recognizable actor, Richard Beymer, who had starred in The Diary of Anne Frank 2 years before this film.  "Riff", played by Russ Tamblyn, was recognizable from Tom Thumb and Seven Brides for Seven Brothers.

- Long Shots

Above & Below shows "The Jets"

Above shows "The Sharks" at a club

Another shot of "The Jets" Mid leap

GENRE CONVENTIONS OF CONTENT:

Here is our criterion for musical films:

Singing.
Dancing.
Pertinent Songs.
Songs are so exuberant they make the viewer (or even the character) forget about their world.

Let's see if the classic West Side Story fits the (Play)bill.  Never enough theatre references.

- 19 songs where characters sing and dance

- The opening number is an 8 minute song with no dialogue (if this has any indication on the rest of the show, the audience knows they're bound to see men dancing in jeans)

- "The Jet Song", "Tonight", "Officer Krupke", "Maria", "America", and "I Feel Pretty" are some of the most recognizable themes of all musical pieces.

- The song "Officer Krupke" takes the characters out of their own world and into a reality where they can mock the neighborhood police officer that was chasing them. 

This film definitely satisfies the ballot.  Especially considering that this film was based on an actual stage musical, West Side Story definitely is a film in the musical genre.

-J 

4. Institutional Conventions

GOOOOOOOOD Afternoon!

What are some of the methods utilized to market a musical film? 

After analyzing some movie trailers, there appear to be some similarities. 

1. CATCHY SONG

Many trailers use the main theme of a film as the music for the trailer.  This usually is the film attempting to encapsulate the entire plot/content of the film into this one song.  For some movies, this song could even share the title of the film, such as High School Musical and Into the Woods.

These songs are also performed by the actors in a plethora of angles, but always in a long shot to see the full movement of the choreography.

2. Recognizable Actors

Many movies in the current era use famous actors and actresses in their films to make them more appealing to their audience.  Disney does this the best; for Teen Beach Movie they pulled cast members from their shows on the Disney Channel to star in the film (Ross Lynch from Austin and Aly, for example).  This was also used for the movie Into the Woods, where James Cordon of The Late Late Show was cast as the Baker.

Additionally, many of these films are derived from a theatrical musical, such as West Side Story, Grease, Hairspray, and Les Misérables. By using songs already familiar to the public, these films ride off of the success of the stage version of the story and bring a beloved story or group of characters to the big screen.

In my next post(s) I'll explore two of these films and assess if they possess the traits I have discovered in my last few postings.

-J

3. Genre Conventions - Production Techniques

Howdy!

In my last posting I had placed emphasis on the 4 main traits all films in the musical genre must follow.

Singing.
Dancing.
Pertinent Songs.
Songs are so exuberant they make the viewer (or even the character) forget about their world.

Although this is the content evident in every musical film, what are some universal production techniques used in these films?


Obviously, loud and catchy soundtracks are included in the film.  These songs can either be original to the movie (High School Musical, The Greatest Showman) or can be something previously produced (Bohemian Rhapsody, West Side Story).

Another production technique utilized frequently is long shots. These shots are frequently used in group numbers when the ensemble is present to express unity and cohesion of the cast. It is not only used just to fit the ensemble into the frame, but this is usually before the climax of the film to show the protagonist facing the problem head-on.
        
Long Shots are used not only in ensemble shots but also during dance numbers in general.  This is to show the full movement of a character (or group of characters) to see the choreography.  If every dance number was shot in close up, there would have to be a plethora of cuts between each appendage as it shifts to hit a movement.



These are the two primary production techniques used throughout films of the musical genre.  Close-Ups and Two Shots are used as well, but long shots and soundtracks are used most frequently from beginning to end of the film.


In my next post I'll discuss some marketing techniques used to promote these types of films.
I also hope I'll figure out how to add pictures to my posting because that'd be awesome content.

-J

2. Genre Conventions - Content

Singing.
Dancing.
Pertinent Songs.
Songs are so exuberant they make the viewer (or even the character) forget about their world.


These were the four points of my musical theatre checklist. Singing. Dancing. Relevant Songs to the storyline. Escapist songs.

These four traits are evident in any musical film piece.


High School Musical
- Plenty of songs
- I'm sure there was a basketball dance in ever movie 
(edit: there was a sports song in every movie)
- Characters sung about graduating...... at graduation
- Sharpay's song "Fabulous" was just that....... fabulous

The Sound of Music
- Doe, a deer a female deer, ray.......
- Not a plethora of dancing, but was present in songs such as "Sixteen Going on Seventeen"
- Children sung an over glorified goodbye to Maria ("So Long, Farewell")
- Edelweiss was a beautiful piece celebrating Cpt. Von Trapp's family and their incoming journey out of Austria.  The characters were able to disconnect from their world, which was in the midst of World War II.

These four traits can be applied to any musical film.  These conventions are the core traits that categorize musicals in this genre. 

In my next posting, I'll explore how the film looks, and what production techniques are common for this genre.

- J

1. Genre

To begin, one must understand what topic is being analyzed.  I know of musical movies such as The Sound of Music and High School Musical, but how can they be defined?


One must start with a definition:

“Musical film is a film genre in which songs sung by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, but in some cases, they serve merely as breaks in the storyline, often as elaborate ‘production numbers.’”

Simply put, a musical is a normal story where characters sing about their situations, which may be developing the characters or distracting the audience from the narrative. However, we must take into consideration the source of this definition (Wikipedia), and perhaps combine this definition with one from another resource.


AMC's film site has a fantastic overview of this genre:

"Musicals / Dance Films are cinematic forms that emphasize and showcase full-scale song and dance routines in a significant way (usually with a musical or dance performance as part of the film narrative, or as an unrealistic "eruption" within the film). Or they are films that are centered on combinations of music, dance, song or choreography. In traditional musicals, cast members are ones who sing. Musicals highlight various musical artists or dancing stars, with lyrics that support the storyline, often with an alternative, escapist vision of reality - a search for love, success, wealth, and popularity. This genre has been considered the most escapist of all major film genres. Tremendous film choreography and orchestration often enhances musical numbers."

Allow me to break down the two definitions into a "checklist" of what a film needs to be in the musical genre:

• Vocals
• Exciting Dancing
• Songs support storyline
• Songs are an "escape from reality"

Wow. Four simple points.

Singing.
Dancing.
Pertinent Songs.
Songs are so exuberant they make the viewer (or even the character) forget about their world.

In my next post, I will analyze this checklist in my next post and break down genre conventions for content.



Sources:

http://www.filmsite.org/musicalfilms.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musical_film

Introducing.... Me!

My name is Jacob Fretwell and on my blog, I’ll be exploring and documenting my research of Musical films. I’ll begin by analyzing what the genre explores and then some films that are under the umbrella of notorious musical films.

I’ll be exploring the musical genre due to my hobby of musical theatre. I’ve been in seventeen productions with numerous companies; I am currently working on another production (Mamma Mia!).  I hope to learn more about these films and potentially how they differ their real-world counterparts.