Even when a movie genre seems to have fallen out of fashion, it only takes one big hit to bring about a revival. Sometimes, one movie can breathe new life into an entire genre by coming up with a fresh approach. It’s natural for audiences to tire of certain genres if there aren’t enough new ideas to go around, and any genre can go stale within a few years. The flip side is that a genre can become trendy again in an instant.
Genres fade in and out of fashion, and there’s no certainty that audience tastes will remain the same. Some genres which seem incredibly outdated may be just one creative movie away from a revival. It’s important to remember that Westerns, music biopics and spy movies were all seen as old-fashioned fairly recently, but they are now winning awards and making tons of money once again.
Clint Eastwood had been a legend of the Western genre ever since starring in Sergio Leone’sDollarstrilogy, and he brought the genre back to prominence withUnforgiven.Eastwood directs and stars in the Best Picture winner, leaving one final parting gift for the genre before moving on to other projects.Unforgivenis often credited with bringing back Westerns after a barren stretch in the 1970s and 1980s.
Eastwood’s protagonist inUnforgivenis a morally gray anti-hero. He could be the polar opposite of the Gary Cooper and John Wayne type that used to be the genre standard. This continues to influence the Western genre, and many of the 21st century’s best Westerns owe a great debt toUnforgivenin one way or another. The genre has seen a resurgence at the box office and during awards season.
Historical epics were big business in Old Hollywood, with movies likeBen-Hur, CleopatraandThe Ten Commandmentsunderlining the genre’s popularity. New Hollywood put an end to this trend, and it took a long time for historical epics to come back into fashion. There were a few exceptions here and there, butGladiatorwas the movie that signaled the true rebirth of the genre at the beginning of the 21st century.
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With Gladiator II as his most recent hit, it’s worth revisiting the best movies of legendary director Ridley Scott to see where it stacks up.
Ridley Scott’s historical epic seems to hark back to the days of sword-and-sandal movies likeSpartacus,but it inspired a new wave of similar movies.The 2000s producedTroy, 300and Scott’s ownKingdom of Heaven.There were a few more imitators that weren’t nearly as successful, partly because historical epics require a big budget to sell the authenticity and scale of the period. The cost also explains why studios are reluctant to make historical epics unless it’s a proven trend.
The recent wave of music biopics can be traced back to the success ofBohemian Rhapsody.Not only did the story of Queen make $910.8 million at the box office, butRami Malek won an Oscar for his portrayal of Freddie Mercury.There have been some great music biopics before, butBohemian Rhapsodypresents a new take on the genre, with more focus on atmosphere and entertainment than historical accuracy.
Bohemian Rhapsodyis probably a big reason why movies likeElvis, Back to BlackandBob Marley: One Lovehave all been made in the last few years.
Bohemian Rhapsodyis probably a big reason why movies likeElvis, Back to BlackandBob Marley: One Lovehave all been made in the last few years. Its influence could also stretch as far as Timothée Chalamet’s new Bob Dylan biopicA Complete Unknown,andSam Mendes' upcoming Beatles biopics. Actors often score big awards for playing real-life people, so the music biopic trend could continue for a while.
The spy genre was at a low ebb just beforeThe Bourne Identitycame out.TheAustin Powersmovies poked fun at the genre’s tropes and eccentricities,Mission: Impossiblehad produced two mediocre movies, andJames Bondwas in need of a serious update.The Bourne Identitybreathed new life into the genre. It turned into a big franchise, but it also changed the other important spy franchises:Mission: ImpossibleandJames Bond.
It turned into a big franchise, but it also changed the other important spy franchises:Mission: ImpossibleandJames Bond.
Daniel Craig’s tenure as Bond opened with one of the franchise’s best movies:Casino Royale.Many ofCasino Royale’s fight scenes in particular seem to take inspiration from theBournemovies, with a lot of shaky camerawork and heavy punches.TheBournefranchiseeschews the spy genre’s penchant for glamorous super spies, and its gritty, complex storytelling continues to inform the genre.
Slashers reached their peak in the 1970s and 1980s, an era that many of the genre’s biggest franchises can trace their roots back to.Halloween, Friday the 13th, The Texas Chainsaw Massacreand more all started in this period, but the genre started to lose its vitality throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s. Wes Craven’sScreamwas part of a new generation of slashers that employed self-referential techniques to deconstruct the genre from within.
Many new slashers follow inScream’s footsteps by introducing humor and murder mysteries.
One thing thatScreamdoes to break the mold is it introduces elements of mystery movies.It’s as much a whodunnit as it is a slasher, and this inspired plenty of imitators. TheScreamfranchise has continued to set trends for the genre as it has grown. Many new slashers follow inScream’s footsteps by introducing humor and murder mysteries these days. TheupcomingScream 7will likely be as self-satirical as ever.
Disney led the way in Western animation for a long time, and the so-called “Disney Dark Age” of the 1970s and 1980s coincided with an overall dropoff in animated movies across the board. There were a few gems here and there, but overall Western animated movies didn’t reach the heights of the old Disney classics likeCinderella, Sleeping BeautyandSnow White.The Little Mermaidwas a triumphant return to form.
For the first time ever, there were plenty of movies to rival Disney’s animation domination, likeThe Iron Giant, AnastasiaandThe Prince of Egypt.
The Little Mermaidkicked off theDisney renaissance of the 1990sin style, and big hits likeThe Lion King, MulanandAladdinsoon followed. The 1990s also saw the rise of other animation studios. For the first time ever, there were plenty of movies to rival Disney’s animation domination, likeThe Iron Giant, AnastasiaandThe Prince of Egypt.Of course,Toy Story’s computer-generated animation was another game-changer in 1995.
The firstJohn Wickgave rise to a new generation of action thrillers. Its success proved that there was still a huge audience for gritty, pared-back actioners in an era when superhero movies were still the dominant force in the genre.John Wickstood out for its practical stunts and its intense, almost balletic fight choreography. David Leitch and Chad Stahelski blended martial arts with explosive shoot-em-ups, and Keanu Reeves' performance sealed the deal.
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There have been a ton ofmovies inspired byJohn Wickin the last decade, some of which are derivative ripoffs, and some of which are gloriously entertaining.Monkey Man, The BeekeeperandSisuare among the best. Not content to rest on its laurels, theJohn Wickfranchise has kept reinventing itself with each sequel.John Wick: Chapter 4is more eccentric and complex than the first entry, and there are more sequels and spinoffs in the works.
BeforeGravity,there hadn’t been a truly great astronaut movie for a long time, perhaps as far back as 1995’sApollo 13.However, the time was right for the genre to come back, as news headlines promised a new dawn for space exploration with scientists setting their sights on Mars.Gravityalso made the most of the 3-D movie craze, andit became a must-see event that resulted in a box office haul of $723.2 million.
Interstellar, The Martian, Hidden Figures, First ManandAd Astraall drew big stars and big directors to the genre over the next few years.
Gravity’s success is one reason why so many of thebest space exploration moviescame out in the 2010s.Interstellar, The Martian, Hidden Figures, First ManandAd Astraall drew big stars and big directors to the genre over the next few years. The trend seems to have died down now, but there was a good few years when plenty of major studios were trying to replicate the success that Alfonos Cuarón had withGravity.
Cloverfieldcombines the kaiju genre with found-footage horror. It doesn’t immediately seem like a natural fit, since kaiju movies are often about big-screen spectacle, and found-footage works best on a smaller scale. Against the odds,Cloverfieldworks brilliantly, and it kickstarted an entire franchise. The unorthodox style makes it feel much more realistic than older kaiju movies, and this has a greater impact.
As well as its stylistic innovations,Cloverfieldreturns the kaiju genre to its roots by tying the monster to a real-world disaster. The originalGodzillareferenced the nuclear bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima, andCloverfieldis an allegory for the September 11 attacks.The 2014 reboot ofGodzillaandPacific Rimseem to emulate some ofCloverfield’s techniques, and the kaiju genre is back after a long period of dormancy.
Heist movies were a staple of the film noir genre, and there were some outstanding movies produced in the 1950s, like Jules Dassin’sRififiand Stanley Kubrick’sThe Killing.However, the genre needed some reinvention before it would become truly popular again. This reinvention came in the form ofOcean’s 11,a more stylish and less violent kind of heist movie that had more in common with British crime capers likeThe LadykillersandThe Lavender Hill Mobthan American gangster movies.
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The best heist movies can be comedies, dramas, or thrillers. But they all need an eclectic crew and a big score waiting for them at the end.
Thanks to the charms of Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Dean Martin and their Rat Pack friends,Ocean’s 11was a big hit. It soon inspired a new style of heist movie, and many of thebest heist movies of the 1960swere just as suave, likeThe Thomas Crown AffairandHow to Steal a Million.Ocean’s 11also stood out because it allowed the criminals to win. Danny Ocean and his gang may not get the money, but they escape as free men without any casualties.Coincidentally, the 2001 remake with George Clooney and Brad Pitt revived the genre once again.
