Movie Musical Genre Research

 What is the Musical Film Genre?

    The musical genre in film is described as movies where musical numbers are incorporated into the plot. When the sound era of film began, producers were quick to take advantage of the new auditory feature in film, and so the very first musical film The Jazz Singer came out in 1927. Since then, hundreds of movie musicals have drawn in audiences from around the world and of all ages to enjoy. 

Content

    A musical film is more than just a movie that has music in it. A musical film is a movie in which the plot, theme, and even the development of characters is done through various musical numbers that include singing and sometimes dancing. Typically, a musical film contains some form of a romantic plot within the movie, and almost always ends with a happy ending for the protagonists. And while musical films are always formalistic, as no one in real life is actually bursting into spontaneous song and dance, they can depict real life events or circumstances. For example, Kenny Ortega's 1992 movie Newsies is based on the New York City newsboy strikes in the 1890's. While the movie does retell actual details about the strikes, the movie uses musical numbers to tell a good portion of the story, hence creating artistic take on the story, rather than making a documentary on the events.

Other musicals like Mary Poppins, however, delve more towards the unrealistic, and fantastical side of the spectrum. I believe that one of the best things about musical films, and what allows for different demographics of people to enjoy them, is that they can be anything from a drama to a comedy or a romance. 

Production Techniques

    Movies within the musical genre are structured plot wise like any other movie would be, except they include characters singing to develop the plot. Usually, during filming, actors would lip-sync the lyrics of the songs, and the studio recording of the song would be put over the audio in post production. Movie musicals often go this route to allow things to go a lot more smoothly during filming, and to ensure that the singing quality is at its peak, with the help of any auto-tune in rougher areas of course. 

One musical film that did not take this route, however, was  the 2012 movie adaptation of the musical Les Misérables. Unlike other musicals that added in the studio recorded music after the movie was filmed, director Tom Hooper decided that he wanted all of the singing to be recorded on set, as the movie was being filmed. This was done by giving the actors earpieces that played the piano accompaniment of the song as they sung live on set, and then adding in an orchestral accompaniment in post production. The audio was captured specifically using DPA 4071 lavalier microphones which captured a more open sound, without needing the distance away from the source of the sound that boom mics need. By recording the singing audio the same way one records dialogue, actors were able to give more authentic performances, and the singing itself sounded a lot more realistic compared to studio recorded songs that may sound a lot less passionate than what is being portrayed visually on screen. Another movie that also contains singing recorded on set is the 1976 adaptation of A Star is Born featuring none other than Barbra Streisand. 

How it's Marketed

    It's not uncommon to see advertisements for movies that feature big celebrity names as their main form of drawing in audiences. This is known as "celebrity marketing." 

    The 2019 adaptation of Cats is the perfect example of celebrity marketing in use. By making a point of casting and listing big name celebrities such as Jason Derulo and Taylor Swift, the marketing team is attempting to give those who view the advertisements a sense of familiarity. Seeing someone recognizable in a new movie, is more likely to draw in bigger audiences since people tend to gravitate what is familiar to them. This technique of working with audiences' sense of familiarity can also be applies to popular stage musicals being turned into movie musicals. This form of advertisement can be seen with movies like the original 1961 adaptation of West Side Story. 

Samples

   
    The 2021 movie musical In The Heights, featuring Anthony Ramos and Corey Hawkins is based on Lin-Manuel Miranda's stage musical by the same name. The movie covers the diverse yet tight-knit community that is Washington Heights, and mainly follows Usnavi, Benny, Nina, and Vanessa as they chase their dreams of wanting more for themselves and their loved ones. This movie includes many musical numbers like "96,000" in which characters are dancing and singing, in this case about what each of them would do if they won the 96,000 dollar lottery money. The way the movie takes place in a real-life setting and uses plot points that can very well happen in real life, allows for some viewers to possibly relate to, and connect with the characters within the movie. Songs like "Paciencia Y Fe," can allow viewers to not only get a glimpse of how Abuela Claudia, played by Olga Merediz, got to Washington Heights, but also describes the experience of Cubans who immigrated to the U.S. allow depict In The Heights is an excellent example of a marketing team using the popularity of the original stage musical and the creator of the musical, Lin-Manuel Miranda, to inspire bigger audiences to go watch the movie. 

    The 1986 film Little Shop of Horrors, follows Seymour Krelborn, played by Rick Moranis, a nerdy florist who lives on Skid Row and finds a "strange and unusual plant" and decides to nurse it back to health. The only issue with this is that this plant is a lot more frightening than it appears to be. This musical comedy is very over the top with just about everything, from the circumstances in which the story takes place, to the characterization of each character. The movie is as cheesy as can be, and almost seems to be poking at different tropes from time to time. This movie, like most other movie musicals, has a romance tied into the main plot of the story, and this romance is even a motivation for Seymour for a good portion of the movie.