DEATH TO GENRE

I'm an American male of Irish ancestry.

Knowing only that, what could you tell about me?

Grasping at straws in the dark, you might guess that I'm a drinker, a fighter, and a person prone to melancholy (Socially; Occasionally; and who isn't?).  What you wouldn't be able to guess from just knowing my tribal heritage is that I'm a film nerd, I hate coleslaw, and that I possess a bright yellow bag with the words "Let's Be Eco-Friendly!" printed on the side.

In other words:  Ancestry tells you a lot, but not much that's important and unique.  Genre - being the classification of film and literature into categories like Horror, Action, Romance, etc - functions in a similar fashion:  It's a helpful shorthand for knowing the broad strokes about a film - but who cares about the broad strokes?  The devil, and the fun, is all in the details.

Am I advocating the expulsion of Genre categories from Netflix Instant?  Nah.  If people are looking to get scared, it makes sense to look in the Horror section first and foremost.  This is a plea for filmmakers and film connoisseurs to think outside the pre-packaged boxes.

What's the harm in Genre?  Well, staying on Horror for a moment, let me ask you this:  Why is the acting in Horror films so often terrible?  Give up?  The answer is, mainly, that we, as a culture, EXPECT the acting in Horror films to be terrible.  Once, long ago, people were trying to make so-called Horror Films that were actually, genuinely good - but they were made fast, cheap, and often by first-time directors.  As such, a template was formed - "Horror Films will henceforth be shitty because that's what we're used to now".  Occasionally, a director will make a good film that's designed to scare the pants off of people - such as The Exorcist or Silence Of The Lambs - but these efforts are so few and far between that they're either referred to as "transcending" the genre, or labeled as a different genre altogether (Lambs was referred to as a "Thriller", very pointedly).

So, in the creation of a film, the writer/director/studio labels it as "Horror", and either subconsciously or intentionally gives it a set of parameters in which to play.  Conversely, the viewer comes to the finished product with certain expectations.  Horror has become a ghettoized genre, and films attempting to frighten an audience aren't often given a fair shake on either end of the creative process.

Let me tell you something else about myself - I'm also of English and German heritage.  Probably a lot of other stuff, too.  Whether through crossbreeding or just influence, there aren't a lot of "pure" cultures left anymore - everyone has influenced everyone else.  Likewise, movies aren't often just one thing.  Evil Dead 2 is classified as a Horror film - but it's also really funny.  Is it more of a Horror Film than a Comedy?  Does Rock beat Scissors, so to speak?

Maybe people can see past their pre-conceptions, but I've recently realized that I have difficulty with it.  Despite my experience, or perhaps because of it, I EXPECT a Horror film to be a certain way, and I EXPECT a Romantic Comedy to be another way.

Maybe it's completely naive, but I'd like to believe that films, like people, can define themselves.  I'm not simply Irish-American, English-American or German-American. . .  I am Phil Dean, the Alpha and Omega of myself.  I, like all people. . .  like all movies. . .  take bits and pieces of influence from everything that I've seen, touched, heard and experienced.  To say that I'm a Man is true.  To say that I'm American is true.  Even to be as specific as to call me a Movie Nerd would be true, but it doesn't define everything about me.

To contradict the words of Tyler Durden - I am a unique snowflake, and so is everyone else.  It stands to reason that our works should be equally varied.