Trinity's Blog: Genre Research: Musicals

Genre Conventions: Content

Musicals are known for their show-stopping components but what characterizes film musicals as a genre is the utilization of music scores, songs, and dance choreography to help the plot of the film progress faster and more effectively than if the only form of communication between the audience and the characters was dialogue. Dialogue is still used in musicals but the saying "music speaks when words can not" is definitely a concept that musicals have adapted. In musical films there is usually a main character that is going through turmoil or is trying to discover their purpose in life/ waiting to have their purpose revealed to them at the beginning of the musical and by the end of the film, the audience has witnessed their issue be resolved after numerous songs and over the top dance numbers.

Example: Annie. Annie is a mistreated orphan that wishes she had parents and by the end of the film she is adopted and is given a family.

Most musical films incorporate a song about the dreams and wishes of a character within the film and this song pretty much lets us know that the entire musical is based around that wish or dream the character has. Musicals obviously incorporate a large amount of music and singing in their productions but there's usually a song from that musical that is easily recognizable by people who haven't even watched the film. The music associated with that musical can be so popular that you don't even have to see the film to know that it comes from that specific musical.

Example: Frozen. The song "Let It Go" has become one of the most easily identifiable songs from a musical film.

Dance choreography is another important element of the production of a musical. Dance numbers in musicals visually tell a story while the characters are singing. The movement of the characters on screen and the choreography that they are doing directly correlates with the song being sung and the message, tone, or story that is trying to be expressed at that specific moment.

Example: Newsies. A group of homeless orphan newspaper boys in New York City sing and dance about going on strike after the newspaper companies raise the prices and they can't make any profit.

Production Techniques

Musicals are classified as an escapist genre that ranges from realistic to dreamlike so all age groups are able to enjoy musicals. The musical aspect of this genre is something that institutions promoting musicals count on to help sell box office tickets and make a profit off of these films. The music soundtrack also helps the directors pique the interest of the age group or other demographic they are trying to appeal to through ads and commercials and keep them coming back. Mise-en-scene is probably the most important aspect of a musical besides the actual music. Production designers have the responsibility of making the film come to life and be believable enough to the viewer.

Time period and character development are factors of musical films that need to be taken into consideration when it involves costuming. With the right costume, costume designers will be able to encapsulate a character's social status, role in the film, etc. without having to verbally reveal it.

Color and lighting are extremely important in the production of musical films because the feeling that the scene is trying to evoke from the audience can not be achieved with only a song being sung or a massive dance number. The emotion at that moment on screen has to match cohesively with the visuals being presented in order for the audience to fully comprehend the intention of the actions being done. A lot of time is put into the positioning, movement, and the amount of lighting a specific scene or number in the film will display.

Example: Chicago. While the main characters are explaining how they murdered their husbands to their fellow prisoners through the song "Cell Block Tango", the manipulation of the lighting to create shadows and spotlights creates a very mysterious and edgy vibe as well as the contrast of the vibrant red that is used to represent the blood of their victims.

Set design and location are important to the realisticness of the film. Set designers are extremely meticulous about how they will build the sets, which props are utilized in scenes and any effects that need to be incorporated to make the film believable.

Example: Aladdin. The production of this film depended on intricate set designs to make the audience believe Will Smith’s character “the genie” was real through CGI, feel like they were on a magic flying carpet ride and like they were in Agrabah (the setting of the movie)

The Greatest Showman (2017) made a bold statement by making the opening scene an over the top musical number without using any dialogue to introduce the main characters or the plot of the film to the viewer. The time period of this movie is set in the 1800s and is following the main character P.T. Barnum through his early life and his adult life where his career takes off as the leader of a circus. He was poor as a child and had big dreams that he followed intently and throughout the duration of the movie you can see through costume design how his character developed from a low-class man to a well-established businessman. Many of the other main characters like the bearded lady and the “smallest man on earth” had drastic costume changes in this film and that was done to make the audience aware of the character's new social status. He brought together a large group of outcasts and helped them celebrate their uniqueness and be unapologetic about who they were through the acts they were apart of in the circus. The singing and dancing throughout encouraged the characters and the viewers to be themselves and keep believing even if others think you’re crazy for doing so.

Into the woods (2014) relies heavily on music to help the movie progress. The director decided to introduce the main characters and what each of them desired most through a 15-minute score prologue written and composed by Stephen Sondheim. This film also merges the stories of multiple fairy tales while still keeping the story line straightforward. The blueish coloring of the woods creates a gloomy and bleak atmosphere created by one of the main antagonists, the witch. The lighter shading of the scenes when the characters are out of the woods gives a more hopeful and lively feeling. The integration of reality and fantasy in this film had to be done in a very careful way so that one wasn't overpowering the other. Scenes were filmed in actual woods to make it look more realistic to the audience but there was also a massive sound stage created in Shepperton Studios in England in order to control the filming environment. The woods were a critical part of the story because the woods represented a scary path that people may need to take some time in their lives. The wood was also a common setting for the characters to meet and interact with each other.

Other musical films:

HAIRSPRAY (2007)

SHANKMAN