The word genre comes from the French word for 'kind' or 'type' and has been essential in the study of cinema. It tends to be used exclusively with Hollywood, though it’s important to state that there is no universal agreement on the definition. Conventional definitions of genres tend to be based on the notion that they constitute particular conventions of content such as themes or settings and form/style which are shared by other films which are regarded as belonging to them. In relation to film, Andrew Tudor argued that genre is 'what we collectively believe it to be'. Typical examples of genre are ‘The Western’, ‘The musical’, ‘comedy’, ‘action’, ‘melodrama’. Genre is a complex concept with multiple meanings which could be identified in a number of ways:
- As a formula, structure or framework on which individual films are formed
- As a contract between production and audience expectations.
As Stephen Neale stated in his book Genre “ Genre’s may be defined as patterns/forms/styles/structures which transcend individual films, and which supervise both their construction by the filmmaker.
- Narrative would involve a lone gunman who would need to protect a certain town on the Western frontier after an event disturbed the peace.
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