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| GenrePlex™ | ||
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The GenrePlex™ is a graphical representation of film or book's cross-genre nature. Find a detailed description at the bottom of the page. Or, to have some fun now, click on the diagram below to create your own GenrePlex™ . Click within the circle to set the value of each Facet (click below the bottom of the Facet to set its value to zero). Click the centre spot to reset all values. The Text button toggles the text. The Zoom button toggles the size. And the Copy button copies to the clipboard. (Ahem, correction, this doesn't work in web-browers it seems. Watch this space). Copyright © 2006 Paul J. Newell |
| GenrePlex™: the axes The GenrePlex™ has two axes. The vertical Weight axis and the horizontal Reality axis. Weight. The more colour at the top (orange), the 'lighter' the movie. That is, the more light-hearted/humourous/suitable for kids/etc. the movie is likely to be. The more colour at the bottom (blue), the 'heavier' the movie. That is, the more dark/adult/serious/etc. the movie is likely to be. Reality. The more colour to the left (green), the more based in our reality the movie is likely to be. The more colour to the right (red), the less based in our reality the movie is likely to be. |
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| GenrePlex™: the facets The GenrePlex™ is divided into a number of Facets. Each Facet is akin to a traditional genre and can take a value of 0 to 5, indicating to what degree a particular movie belongs in that genre. Each Facet is placed in the appropriate quadrant. For example, Fantasy in Surreal, and Comedy in Light. Also, where possible, within each quadrant, the Facets are ordered appropriately based on analysis of common film styles. For example: Fairytale is at the Light end of Surreal; Romantic is at the Realistic end of Light; and Horror is at the Surreal end of Heavy. The positioning of Facets within the GenrePlex™ does not exclude any mix of genres. It just means that less common mixtures will have a more fractured graph, whereas more 'standard' films will have a more concentrated pattern.
Note that the value for a Facet should indicate the intended nature of a film and not be a subjective opinion as to how well it acheived that aim. So a film that was made as a comdey should be give 5 in the Comedy Facet regardless of how funny it was. Full guidelines for the Facets are given below. |
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| GenrePlex™: facet definitions | ||
| Romantic | The extent to which the film is intended to be romantic. | |
| Comedy | The extent to which the film is intended to be a comedy. Not how funny the film actually turned out to be! | |
| Satire | The extent to which the film is intended to be satirical in nature | |
| Family | The extent to which the film is intended to be suitable for a family, and therefore children | |
| LIGHT | A central Facet on the Weight axis, this gives an overall indication of how light the film is in nature. See definition of 'Weight' above. Remember that a film may be light in some parts and heavy in others. | |
| Slapstick | The extent to which the film exhibits slapstick humour | |
| Musical | The extent to which the film is muscial. An actual Musical would be rated 5, but other films my be musical to a lesser extent. | |
| Spoof | The extent to which the film is a spoof on a traditional genre. | |
| Animation | The extent to which the film is animated. Obviously rate 5 for an animated film. Think of Roger Rabbit for a half animated film. Also, films with intentionally 'cartoony' CGI should have a non-zero rating in this Facet. | |
| Fable / Spiritual | The extent to which the film is intended to be a fable or spiritual in nature | |
| Myth / Fairytale | The extent to which the film is based on myth, fairytale or folklore | |
| Fantasy | The extent to which the film is intended to be a fantasy | |
| Eccentric | The extent to which the film is intended to be eccentic in nature. That is, weird, odd, strange, different, experimental. | |
| SURREAL | A central Facet on the Reality axis, this gives an overall indication of how surreal the film is in nature. Think of 'surreal' in the broad sense of removed from our own reality in any way. Something like Superman is surreal in this sense. See definition of 'Reality' above. Remember that a film may be surreal in some parts and real in others. | |
| Futuristic | The extent to which the film is set in the future. The lower the value the nearer the future. | |
| Sci-fi | The extent to which the film is intended to be science-fiction | |
| Supernatural | The extent to which the film is intended to be supernatural or paranormal in nature | |
| Noir | The extent to which the film is 'noir' in nature. That is, dark, downbeat and twisted. Think of Dark City or Bladerunner. Don't confuse this Facet with solely referring to the specific historical genre film-noir. | |
| Horror | The extent to which the film is intended to be a horror movie | |
| Action | The extent to which the film is intended to be an action movie: car chases, fight-scenes, etc. | |
| Adventure | The extent to which the film is intended to be an adventure movie. Action and Adventure are often lumped together, but deserve to be different facets. James Bond is pure action, whereas Indian Jones has a high degree of adventure (as well as action). Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves is more of an adventure movie. | |
| Psychological | The extent to which the film is intended to be psychological in nature. These films play with the viewers mind. Think Momento, Fight Club, Sixth Sense. | |
| HEAVY | A central Facet on the Weight axis, this gives an overall indication of how heavy the film is in nature. See definition of 'Weight' above. Remember that a film may be heavy in some parts and light in others. | |
| Violent | The extent to which the film is violent in nature | |
| Erotic | The extent to which the film is intended to be erotic in nature. Pornographic movies score top marks obviously, but any film with sex scenes should have a non-zero rating in this Facet. | |
| Mystery | The extent to which the film is intended to be mystery | |
| Thriller | The extent to which the film is intended to be a thriller or suspense movie. | |
| Crime | The extent to which the film has a crime or criminal theme. This can be true of films that do not have crime as a key part of the plot. | |
| Gritty | The extent to which the film is intended to be gritty in nature. Gritty films focus on unsavoury elements of society and tend to be quite realistic. Think Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. | |
| Drama | The extent to which the film is intended to be a drama | |
| Social | The extent to which the film is intended to be societal in nature | |
| REAL | A central Facet on the Reality axis, this gives an overall indication of how real the film is in nature. That is, how closely based on our reality it is. See definition of 'Reality' above. Remember that a film may be real in some parts and surreal in others. | |
| True-life / Biographical | The extent to which the film is based on a true-life incident or is biographical. | |
| Contemporary | The extent to which the film is intended to be contemporary, how modern its themes are. | |
| Historical | The extent to which the film is based in the past, be it fictional or real historical events. | |
| Documentary / Factual | The extent to which the film is a documentary or factual. Think Supersize Me or Fahrenheit 911. | |