Sub genres (Genre and Convention)

Not all teen films appeal to all teens/young adults. That is because they are divided into subcultures. Here are some examples;

• High school
• Psychological thriller
• Realist/drama 
• Comedy- explicit/exaggerated/extreme 
• Coming of age
• Fantasy 
• Horror
• Romance 

Teen films- Themes and Topics

I watched a series of trailers (4) in chronological order. I was able to associate themes and topics with these trailers. 

'Rebel Without a Cause' (1995) is the trailer that I watched first. 

This trailer is rather lengthy as film technology had not adapted to what it is now, so producers may have found it difficult to promote the plot of the story in a normal length advert. 

Many of the generic teenage issues were shown in this trailer. It is clear that the main character gets involved in many family conflicts. He also gets into trouble with the police, he rebels against authority, mise en scene supports this attitude as he is wearing a bright red jacket which was not the norm in the 1950's, he is rebelling against society as he refuses to conform to the accepted dress code (shirts etc). It is clear that he enjoys partying and drinking alcohol (stereotypical teenage activities). He also finds love, of course. Love is often a key theme within teen movies. 

'Grease' (1978) 

Themes and topics in this trailer included; love and comedy. The theme of love comes up a lot in teenage movies as many teenagers find it an easy to relate to. This trailer differs from the other trailers as music plays a big role (it is a musical) as it includes a lot of singing and dancing. Props are used a lot in this trailer, in the form of big, flashy cars, this is another generic idea, all teenagers love fast, flashy cars. 

'Love and Basketball' (2000)

This advert embraces ethnicity as it was made in 2000, when ethic minorities were given a lot more freedom. Love is one of the main themes in this trailer, along with sport. Sexuality and the conflict of genre is also portrayed through this trailer. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elnfChCjZjk

'My Brother the Devil' 2012

This is the most recent trailer I viewed. This type of movie could be considered a realist/drama movie. Gang culture is one of the main themes within this trailer, along with violence, sexuality, criminality, family conflict and the feeling of alienation. This trailer brings real life issues to life through the movie, many british boys are able to relate to this trailer/movie as many of the issues arise within our society on a regular basis.