Crime Genre

Crime Genre

The crime genre has a wide range of who it targets, both genders enjoy watching however crime is focused towards the male gender. Males are interested as they are stereotypically involved in crimes realistically nevertheless females take a curiosity in crime films because of the lead role. Female actresses attract both genders but focus on attracting the males as they find them attractive therefore stereotypically the males would watch them for the visual effects.

Crime films typically have a certificate at the age of 18, this is because of the content used during the films. High violence scenes and some graphic content involved will help the decision making of the age rating because their target audience will be targeted at those who find crime dramas interesting which are typically at the age of 30.

Crime films have become successful and are mixing with genres like thriller to engage a wider audience. The audience have noticed the repeated conventions and because crime are becoming increasingly popular the producers are sticking to the same basic storyline, the allows the audience to guess what is going to happen and during the films they will foreshadow ideas to engage the audience making them feel that they are part of the film and being involved. 

In 1972 The Godfather was released, on IMDB it has a rating of 9.2 and is extremely popular in the Crime drama genre. This appealed to a variety of audiences however is was rated as an 18 due to its content but viewers found it incredible. The film made a Gross of $134,821,952.

Many of the crime films have focused on the American culture, its gangster feel in its genre is enhanced by the high crime rate in America. The need for explicit violence by the public are met by crime films by using plots commonly seen in violent areas of America. Crime films are meant to reflect society for example where law and crime go against each other and law are meant to restore the moral order.

Goodfellas Opening Analysis

 'Goodfellas' was released in 1990 and is based on a ture story in New york 1970's. directed by Martin Scorsese who is an Italian American director. IMDb have given it a 8.7 rating and the narrative follows the main character Henry from his late teens. It shows him building up to his career as a professional criminal associated with the mafia and in the opening scene a monologue is read which says "As far back as I can remember, I've always wanted to be a gangster."

The opening scene shows a graphic example of the casual violence that surrounds Henry from a young age. The laid back violence infers that gang violence was seen as a norm which may affect audiences as it isn't known as a universal way of dealing with issues. 

In this first shots of the scene the opening credits are shown in white writing. The wording that appears on the screen quickly slide across the screen from the right to the left in a large white font. The sound goes with the word transitions of diegetic traffic noise.This gives the audience an idea of the setting.

In the first moving image shot, we are shown a tracking shot of a car driving down an empty road in the darkness. This shows a foreboding atmosphere which helps emphasis the gangster image. The shot plans slowly, coming alongside the car which gives the audience the impression that we are following it and the people inside are a key part of the narrative.

When the shot changes to a medium shot and we see the three men inside the car. There is focus on the driver showing a close up, this indicates that he could be the main character. We also see in this shot that two out of three men are sleeping giving the impression that it is late in the night and they are up to no good.

The next shot in the scene is when the men get out of the car to investigate the noise in the boot. The use of long shot allows the viewer to see the environment, a forest, which indicates that they have gone to a place where they can't be seen from the public. The next shot is of a low angle which shows the characters in side profile, the audience gets the view that they are looking up at them, suggesting that the characters have authority and are in control . This makes them more believable as gangsters.

There is a slow zoom to the boot of the car; the camera then shows a close up and we hear that this is the source of the noise. This cuts quickly to a medium shot of two men holding weapons, which are obviously getting ready for conflict. The camera pans round to focus in on the un-armed man to reveal an open boot with a man covered in bloody white sheet. The red connotes danger and is emphasised on the white sheet to show innocence. The camera moves slowly again to show the men looking confused, which creates anticipation for the audience through the build up of tension.

 The scene ends with a still image of one of the men, from this we can assume that he is the main character. He slams the boot shut and we here non-diegetic music of Tony Bennett's Rags to Riches, this is appropriate as the song was realised in the 50's, which was often thought of as the peak of the American Mafia.

The last shot is the title in red writing on a black ground. The colour connotes to the audience that this is associated with death and power as black normally has a negative appeal. When black is combined with red it gives an aggressive feel and is used as the background colour as it contrasts well and the font is able to stand out. Red is used for the title 'GOODFELLAS' because red is the colour of blood and is associated with danger, power and determination. Red is also a stimulant colour which makes us make quick decisions about the film.