Research Post

 Coming-of-age Films - Research

Since I have set my mind on a horror film, I decided to refer back to my dream of doing a coming-of-age film. I'd use this research as a comparison to horror films and what my film opening would need and what it should lack.

In my opinion of the coming-of-age films that I've watched, these movies are often sculpted around the raw/sometimes innocent emotions that kids and teenagers experience. Since these films usually circle around these age groups, the audience is around the same age with a range of pre-teens to young adults (11-20). For horror though, the audience is way more broad since horror movies don't have one idea or plot for that genre. Therefore, the audience can range from 13-27 year olds. 

These type of films usually have a protagonist who finds their sense of identity, or learns a lesson throughout the movie that they needed to develop as their own person. This usually makes these films very inspirational to me and something that I can relate with/hold dear to me. A few examples are 'The Perks of Being a Wallflower', 'Ladybird', 'Beautiful Boy', 'Didi', 'Mid-90's', 'Stand By Me', 'The Goonies', 'What's Eating Gilbert Grape', 'Five Feet Apart', 'Little Women', 'Juno', 'My Girl', 'The Outsiders', 'The Sandlot', 'Juno', 'Flipped', 'Dead Poets Society', 'Close', 'Wonder', and 'A Walk to Remember'. I apologize for the long list but these are some of the coming-of-age films that I have watched and absolutely loved. I think about some of these almost every day. 

These type of films can really shape a kid who is also struggling with finding their identity, like me. Unlike a horror, which can be thrilling for the moment and may or may not traumatize you for longer than just that moment. However, horror movies still play a big role in our society by letting an audience experience intense emotions of dread, fear and disgust. Which, in most other movies, you can't feel. Some movies can also help to raise awareness within a current problem in our society, like kidnapping or killing. Such movies can include 'Scream', 'Friday the 13th' and 'Split' which cover only these two topics.