Hellboy:
Hellboy is a great example of a movie integrating fantasy into the modern world, and the main character is not something you’d see in an archetypical story. The universe of Hellboy focuses on the supernatural side of the modern world where mythical creatures co exist with us. Hellboy bends more on the side of fantasy than science fiction. Although set in the modern world, the difference lie with the fantasy creatures and environment. No changes in technology from reality are shown.
The Hero, Hellboy, is born as a demon said to bring about the final judgement on humanity. But an incident occurs, and a baby Hellboy is adopted by a scientist who researches paranormal problems- mainly on the experiments of the Nazis. Hellboy’s foster father brought him up as a protector of humanity, and a warrior against the forces of evil and his destiny.
Although he tries to help others and fight against evil, Hellboy’s presence is more rejected as a freak than accepted as a saviour. His motives are more of his personal feelings than what he should be doing to save humanity.
He has cracked down on many situation of paranormal activity, but the final question comes in mind: “Will Hellboy pull the trigger for the final judgement on humanity because of how they treat him so harshly.”
Still waiting for Hellboy 3...
Silent Hill:
As a game and a movie title, it has been a recognizable horror series. Silent Hill is much like a ghost town in another dimension where supernatural activity comes and goes. The character would most likely be alone in Silent Hill with not contact for help at all, giving the player a sense of insecurity. To make matters worse is the existence of grotesque monsters roaming around Silent Hill. Such monsters may consist of human like attributes such as a four legged human with no face. As a mutation of the human body, we are able to recognize it but would be shocked by the unexplainable existence of such a horrifying creature.
Silent Hill utilizes the elements of horror to create a sequence of events. In a dark corridor lighted with a creepy orange light, you can hear the shuffling of feet. Because you know there is no one else in Silent Hill, your imagination gets you to think of the next possibility. You turn the corner and find no one there. A shuffle behind startles you and you turn back to see a human with a skull face and broken limbs limping looming over you.
Horror prevails in Silent Hill as the character tries to survive the unknown depths of the dimension.
My Neighbour Totoro:
THis movie is majorly based on surrelism. The movie is like something out of a child's mind, of the adventure of child and imaginary friend. Transrealism is the appropriate genre for this film. Such things as a cat bus is definitely not a technology inventors would think of engineering, nor is it totally magical. It is more of the ridiculous. It's a charming tale where the producer has brought a child's imagination to life on screen. The innocent mind of a child can present a wonderful source for transrealism- such that most Transreal games are made for the young audience.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Transrealism/Slipstream
This is a special genre which does not concern reality, but more of the total opposite. Science Fiction can be present in this genre as the author tries to make sense of the ridiculous. Slipstream conflicts with reality, making the impossible possible.
A good example is the game Little Big Planet where it is set in a sandbox world where the player can do just about anything with what they are given. Its design side is what we know of foam, fuzz, and sacks, which makes it highly improbable to exist. The science of the game is simple to understand
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LittleBigPlanet
Another game example is the simple VVVVV. Its a simple 2D game where the science is in changing the gravity to evade obstacles. It’s a simple mechanic and so is the art style. Try it out
http://www.kongregate.com/games/TerryCavanagh/vvvvvv-demo
Slipstream is unrealistic and is a good genre where producers can invent new things and it is a genre where it goes beyond reality except by maintaining a small percentage of real life components to give us a loose sense of belief.
A good example is the game Little Big Planet where it is set in a sandbox world where the player can do just about anything with what they are given. Its design side is what we know of foam, fuzz, and sacks, which makes it highly improbable to exist. The science of the game is simple to understand
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LittleBigPlanet
Another game example is the simple VVVVV. Its a simple 2D game where the science is in changing the gravity to evade obstacles. It’s a simple mechanic and so is the art style. Try it out
http://www.kongregate.com/games/TerryCavanagh/vvvvvv-demo
Slipstream is unrealistic and is a good genre where producers can invent new things and it is a genre where it goes beyond reality except by maintaining a small percentage of real life components to give us a loose sense of belief.
Horror
Horror stimulates fear in the audience psychologically. People find entertainment through horror to feel a sense of fear that most probably would not be able to experience in reality. Unexplainable and frightening situations do not happen to the audience, hence, horror in forms of media are used to experience what they would not want to in reality. This is done using elements of the extreme, imagination, sound, lighting, and venue.
Elements of the extreme usually concern gore, where the killer murders his victim in such inhumane ways that our minds wouldn’t be able to comprehend. Violence is prominent in this element as it is brought to a much higher level. Decapitation of the victim and many other forms of gruesome deaths shock the audience, because of the unexplainable physics concerning the dismemberment of the victim.
Imagination is the result of what is played on screen. The horror of what the audience has watched plays in their minds as they imagine such horrors happening in real life. The audience tries to explain the unexplainable but is making it worse for himself/herself in the process as he/she would be led to believe that this could happen to them.
Sound is captured with the sense of hearing and is an important element in the horror genre. Where lighting is scarce, humans would turn to their sense of hearing to aid them. Because hearing is amplified and concentrated on, sounds lead the audience to imagine what might be lurking around the corner.
Lighting in horror tend to be dark to force the audience to use their sense of hearing rather than sight. What scares them in the end is clear visibility of the horror inducing subject.
All these elements eventually build up suspense which is a main part of the horror genre.
Horror comes to life with real life disasters. Terror has become one such example where victims are executed in cold blood, bombs explode in populated areas. We live in fear of these. You ride an airplane, and you hand over your life to the pilot who steers the plane. You are unsure if the pilot is dependable or not and if human intervention causes the plane to crash.
Normally, death would be the real factor behind horror.
Elements of the extreme usually concern gore, where the killer murders his victim in such inhumane ways that our minds wouldn’t be able to comprehend. Violence is prominent in this element as it is brought to a much higher level. Decapitation of the victim and many other forms of gruesome deaths shock the audience, because of the unexplainable physics concerning the dismemberment of the victim.
Imagination is the result of what is played on screen. The horror of what the audience has watched plays in their minds as they imagine such horrors happening in real life. The audience tries to explain the unexplainable but is making it worse for himself/herself in the process as he/she would be led to believe that this could happen to them.
Sound is captured with the sense of hearing and is an important element in the horror genre. Where lighting is scarce, humans would turn to their sense of hearing to aid them. Because hearing is amplified and concentrated on, sounds lead the audience to imagine what might be lurking around the corner.
Lighting in horror tend to be dark to force the audience to use their sense of hearing rather than sight. What scares them in the end is clear visibility of the horror inducing subject.
All these elements eventually build up suspense which is a main part of the horror genre.
Horror comes to life with real life disasters. Terror has become one such example where victims are executed in cold blood, bombs explode in populated areas. We live in fear of these. You ride an airplane, and you hand over your life to the pilot who steers the plane. You are unsure if the pilot is dependable or not and if human intervention causes the plane to crash.
Normally, death would be the real factor behind horror.
Fantasy
The Fantasy genre concerns magic and supernatural themes. Fantasy has a lot of potential to go past what we expect from reality, but eventually we will be anchored by our knowledge of reality. Examples of this are flying without the use of a vehicle, casting fire spells, werewolves, floating castles, etc. Fantasy can be truly called what it is when there are some things which are believable as in reality. Fantasy is a supernatural amplification of our ordinary lives.
In ancient times, Fantasy plays a major factor in entertainment and belief. Legends lead people to believe in another dimension of reality. In truth, people from ancient times took fantasy as their modern fiction, much like entertainment.
Legends such as King Arthur had people believing in a brave king slaying demons and necromancers with a magical sword. Take the sword Excalibur for instance, it’s a common weapon for a medieval warrior, but it has been used as a base for a powerful weapon with magical capabilities.
Modern legend can concern games. Fantasy games such as Legend of Zelda have captured the hearts of many by its simple fantasy setting. It uses the base of the real world for environments, weapons, and characters; talking trees, magical swords, and the main character being an elf.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Legend_of_Zelda
A non-archetype fantasy type can be seen in Howl’s moving castle where it is set in a magical/steam punk era. The setting is much like a dream and so is the adventure. This shows how far fantasy can reach if the creators can be creative enough to think out of the box. Hardly anyone could imagine a castle trudging along the mountains.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howl's_Moving_Castle_(film)
Fantasy does not remain constant as there are many ways components of a fantasy world and adventure can be connected to formulate a new idea. Usually these components are archetypes so the combinations tend to be limited.
Fantasy can be expanded far beyond reality if we let it grow and learn to relate to even the most fantastical of worlds.
In ancient times, Fantasy plays a major factor in entertainment and belief. Legends lead people to believe in another dimension of reality. In truth, people from ancient times took fantasy as their modern fiction, much like entertainment.
Legends such as King Arthur had people believing in a brave king slaying demons and necromancers with a magical sword. Take the sword Excalibur for instance, it’s a common weapon for a medieval warrior, but it has been used as a base for a powerful weapon with magical capabilities.
Modern legend can concern games. Fantasy games such as Legend of Zelda have captured the hearts of many by its simple fantasy setting. It uses the base of the real world for environments, weapons, and characters; talking trees, magical swords, and the main character being an elf.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Legend_of_Zelda
A non-archetype fantasy type can be seen in Howl’s moving castle where it is set in a magical/steam punk era. The setting is much like a dream and so is the adventure. This shows how far fantasy can reach if the creators can be creative enough to think out of the box. Hardly anyone could imagine a castle trudging along the mountains.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howl's_Moving_Castle_(film)
Fantasy does not remain constant as there are many ways components of a fantasy world and adventure can be connected to formulate a new idea. Usually these components are archetypes so the combinations tend to be limited.
Fantasy can be expanded far beyond reality if we let it grow and learn to relate to even the most fantastical of worlds.
Science Fiction
The Science Fiction genre concerns technology myths in a world setting of the future, another universe, or the developing modern world. In the modern world, technology would be attainable in the close future as we foresee it. In the future, current modern technologies are developed even further to what inventors could only dream of creating physically. In another universe, technology can go beyond what we expect from what we have in our world.
An example of modern science fiction is the game Ghost Recon Future Soldier. The game brags a futuristic arsenal given to the character. The technology is said to be what is actually being invented or have already been manufactured.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Clancy's_Ghost_Recon_Future_Soldier
Future modern science can be seen in Halo. Physical enhancements to the soldier, power suits, and advanced weaponry, all of which would provide inventors with inspiration for future technologies. Such technology would most likely be impossible in present times, so inventors can only dream of this technology in the far future.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halo_(series)
Future technology in another universe can be seen in Bioshock. The character’s abilities concern weird science which would be highly unlikely to invent given the unreasonable mechanics behind it. The technology in Bioshock is Steam punk which is also weird science. Future in another universe usually boasts weird sciences that would not be possible in reality due to its limits. This genre can go far beyond the boundaries we have set for ourselves in the real world.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BioShock
Science Fiction is a fascinating genre as it showcases how far technology can go. It serves as inspiration for inventors. We can only hope that science can prevail to bring fiction to reality.
Science Fiction has been argued to be more of Fantasy, but in truth, Science Fiction concerns change whereas Fantasy concerns difference. Some media classified as Science Fiction can have a slight relation to fantasy. Bioshock can be one of them as the character’s abilities mimic magic spells, and the steam punk technology is an exaggerated difference of real technology.
With Science Fiction being the fantasy of inventors, it has a chance to go beyond the boundaries of reality.
An example of modern science fiction is the game Ghost Recon Future Soldier. The game brags a futuristic arsenal given to the character. The technology is said to be what is actually being invented or have already been manufactured.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Clancy's_Ghost_Recon_Future_Soldier
Future modern science can be seen in Halo. Physical enhancements to the soldier, power suits, and advanced weaponry, all of which would provide inventors with inspiration for future technologies. Such technology would most likely be impossible in present times, so inventors can only dream of this technology in the far future.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halo_(series)
Future technology in another universe can be seen in Bioshock. The character’s abilities concern weird science which would be highly unlikely to invent given the unreasonable mechanics behind it. The technology in Bioshock is Steam punk which is also weird science. Future in another universe usually boasts weird sciences that would not be possible in reality due to its limits. This genre can go far beyond the boundaries we have set for ourselves in the real world.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BioShock
Science Fiction is a fascinating genre as it showcases how far technology can go. It serves as inspiration for inventors. We can only hope that science can prevail to bring fiction to reality.
Science Fiction has been argued to be more of Fantasy, but in truth, Science Fiction concerns change whereas Fantasy concerns difference. Some media classified as Science Fiction can have a slight relation to fantasy. Bioshock can be one of them as the character’s abilities mimic magic spells, and the steam punk technology is an exaggerated difference of real technology.
With Science Fiction being the fantasy of inventors, it has a chance to go beyond the boundaries of reality.
Hero Mythology
A Hero is a unique character of every story. He/she would be the one with special powers that he/she would use to make a difference in the story. Such heroes are fantasised characters of the author and audience that would most probably never exist in the real world.
What makes a Hero interesting is his/her external and internal status. He/she could be helping those in need, but because he/she wants to be loved. Heroes whose internal status conflicts with his external status makes him/her unique by adding a much more human character. He/she would be believable if he/she was not perfect.
The archetypical Hero’s journey begins with the Hero being an ordinary being until a change of events. The Hero would first refuse his calling for internal conflicts, but would later submit, and enter the climatic situation. It ends when the Hero completes his/her task with a chance of a dramatic price to pay, such as resurrection or sacrifice.
The Hero from the Greek legend of Perseus is an example of the archetypical hero. A sudden incident forces him to take up his sword and stand as a hero to save a damsel in distress. But his internal conflict is to take revenge on the gods who had taken his foster family from him.
A popular adventure of the archetypical Hero is from Star Wars. Luke’s aunt and uncle are killed by the Empire which spark his personal intention of revenge. He learns of his task at hand and proceeds willingly to “save the world”. His strays from his personal intentions of revenge when he learns that the villain he was aiming to kill turned out to be his father. The plot twist led to the tragic death of Luke’s father.
The Hero sets the basis of the story, but has begun to bore the audience to the point that smart authors may choose to appoint the main character of the story as the antagonist instead of the protagonist. This brings the Hero’s journey to a whole new realm.
We can see how the Hero can change his/her character. To construct a believable Hero, the Hero must have a human personality whereby changes occur and he/she is anything but perfect.
What makes a Hero interesting is his/her external and internal status. He/she could be helping those in need, but because he/she wants to be loved. Heroes whose internal status conflicts with his external status makes him/her unique by adding a much more human character. He/she would be believable if he/she was not perfect.
The archetypical Hero’s journey begins with the Hero being an ordinary being until a change of events. The Hero would first refuse his calling for internal conflicts, but would later submit, and enter the climatic situation. It ends when the Hero completes his/her task with a chance of a dramatic price to pay, such as resurrection or sacrifice.
The Hero from the Greek legend of Perseus is an example of the archetypical hero. A sudden incident forces him to take up his sword and stand as a hero to save a damsel in distress. But his internal conflict is to take revenge on the gods who had taken his foster family from him.
A popular adventure of the archetypical Hero is from Star Wars. Luke’s aunt and uncle are killed by the Empire which spark his personal intention of revenge. He learns of his task at hand and proceeds willingly to “save the world”. His strays from his personal intentions of revenge when he learns that the villain he was aiming to kill turned out to be his father. The plot twist led to the tragic death of Luke’s father.
The Hero sets the basis of the story, but has begun to bore the audience to the point that smart authors may choose to appoint the main character of the story as the antagonist instead of the protagonist. This brings the Hero’s journey to a whole new realm.
We can see how the Hero can change his/her character. To construct a believable Hero, the Hero must have a human personality whereby changes occur and he/she is anything but perfect.
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