Research into Romance Genre

Romantic films are usually aimed at a female audience, because they are usually more emotional than men. The films typically have a man and a woman who meet and fall in love, it is rare to find a homosexual relationship being the main story-line. Nearly always the male and female protagonists start off as not knowing each other, and the film is about them falling in love. Popular romantic films that do this are: The Fault in Our Stars, The Notebook, Titanic and Begin Again. Romantic films do not usually follow a typical ending, they either have a sad ending (where the couple split up, or one dies), or they will be a happy ending. Lots of romantic films are 'feel good' films, even if they do have a sad ending. RomComs are the majority of the 'feel good' films. Conventionally in romances the audience is usually given indications that the protagonists are meant for each other before they meet.


Colours used within the romance genre are usually relaxing soothing colours, which signify the film is quite slow and about the the gradual love between two people. Usually the films do not use too much colour, which connotes it is not a fast paced action film. Also the colour red is common in the genre, because it signifies passion and love. In the marketing for the genre images of the two lovers are usually seen together in love, e.g. in each others' arms. This is to clearly connote to the audience the genre, and that there will be love in the film. Locations in romantic films are usually common places, such as a park bench or a coffee shop. This is because the characters in the films are often regular people, which appeals to the audience because it shows this scenario could happen to them. The places in the films are where the protagonists are dating, and so the locations are conventional of the genre. Most of the time films of the genre are set in modern day, so costumes are the clothes we wear today. These clothes make the characters more relatable to the audience, which is part of the genres appeal. Music is conventionally upbeat and happy, which signify that love is a wonderful thing, relating to the fact that most of these films are made to make the audience feel good. Fonts used in the text for romantic film do not usually have a typical theme but are usually relevant to the title of the film, for example Titanic uses a fancy bold looking title, which connotes the grand, huge ship. Conventional characters in romance films, are relatable likable characters, so that the audience can feel connected with them and want them to fall in love.

Rick Altman's theory is about the two elements in every film, conventionally romantic films follow this. Common semantic conventions in a romantic film is relatable clothing, props such as a ring or flowers, and lots of use of red. Typical syntactic conventions are love, and sometimes sadness.

Typical actors in romance films are: Channing Tatum, Zach Efron and Leonardo DiCaprio. And typical actresses are: Julia Roberts, Cameron Diaz and Sandra Bullock. Typical directors for the genre are: Woody Allen, John Allen and Rob Reiner.

Using the Uses and Gratification theory an audiences watch these films for escape and entertainment. Lots of romantic films are made to make the audience feel good, which is why people may watch it for escape. The main reason people watch the films is for entertainment, and so an audience may appreciate a heartwarming romance which ends sadly. A popular reason for watching these films is to make someone feel emotional, either through happiness or sadness. Many single people may watch a romantic film, because they are looking for a romance, and so this would be a form of escape.