What is Disaster Film?

What is Disaster Film?

A disaster film is a type of film that deals with the destruction and death of people. They may be based on natural disasters, accidents, or terrorist attacks.

 

They can be either dramas or action films. These movies often feature a lot of special effects and eye-candy.

 

Origins

Disaster film is a genre of film that features a plot where a community faces the threat of natural or supernatural annihilation. It is one of the oldest genres in cinema history and has survived the test of time well, especially with its ability to create a visceral terror and awesome spectacle.

 

There are a number of factors that led to the creation of disaster films. They include technological and artistic factors, economic, political, ideological and cultural factors.

 

The emergence of disaster films can be seen as a reflection of changing historical trends that occur throughout the course of time. These trends are often associated with scientific, technological and artistic inventions that have a direct impact on the way disaster movies are made (Mast & Kawin, 2010).

 

Some of the factors that influence creation of disaster films include the modes of transportation used during the production of these movies, forms of entertainment and clothing styles that represent the cultural and artistic characteristics of the people at the time of its creation. These factors also portray the level of technology that a community had at the time of its existence.

 

Another factor that contributed in the creation of disaster films is the social life of the people during the era of its creation. These movies can be considered as an excellent source of understanding the lives of the people during a particular era and their ideas related to life (Law, 2010).

 

Finally, there are a few other factors that contribute to the creation of disaster films. They include the technological and artistic factors that change with advancements in the industry, economic factors that relate to the society at the time of its creation and political factors that are directly linked to the history of the people.

 

The earliest movies to feature disasters were those that were produced in the 18th century. They often included films about the burning of buildings, which had been a popular theme for drama and literature since the Middle Ages. Some of these early films were based on actual events that occurred during this period.

 

Plots

Disaster film is a type of movie that is usually set around a natural disaster or other man-made event. Examples include earthquakes, volcanoes, planes in the process of crashing, ships sinking, tall buildings on fire or asteroids and meteors about to strike Earth.

 

The plot of a disaster film is based around the spectacle of mass destruction, with a diverse crosscut of characters thrown together in the middle of this and trying to survive or rescue those who are trapped. They also have to deal with the drama of being uprooted from their normal lives and living in a world that is suddenly unrecognizable.

 

Generally, disaster movies are popular in summer blockbusters and have a lot of action. They are also often big on special effects.

 

They have a distinct crisis or dangerous predicament that is easily visualized, and they frequently explore downbeat social themes. They are usually about people whose lives are uprooted by an event, but they can also involve other events such as pollution or overpopulation.

 

In most cases, the disaster is a massive, overwhelmingly spectacular thing that man cannot overcome. It is something beyond his strength, his science or his organisation.

 

The opposition between the threatening catastrophe and the puny individual can be developed further into survivalism versus annihilation, but it is often just one aspect of a larger story about human nature.

 

There are also other common themes in the genre, including a cast of stock characters. These are characters that audiences enjoy identifying, cheering for or against.

 

It is common for the main characters to have to go against their own instincts, or their sense of pragmatism and morality in order to save others. Some characters will even continue to do this, regardless of whether they are right or wrong, until the disaster kills them off.

 

Another common trope in the genre is a character who is ignored by the authorities, and he or she is eventually revealed to be an expert on the subject of disaster. This character is often the hero in a film that centers on a crisis.

 

Characters

The Disaster film genre is a sub-genre of the action adventure movie that focuses on a group of people dealing with a natural or supernatural threat. These threats include forces of nature, accidents, terrorist or wartime attacks, global catastrophes, pandemics and other disaster-related issues.

 

A typical disaster movie has a large cast of characters, each with roughly equal billing and whose roles are determined by the circumstances surrounding the disaster. It also has a main character, often a hero or heroine, who is called upon to lead the battle against the threat.

 

It usually has a large budget, many special effects, and a large-scale disaster that takes place in one location, which can be an entire city, country or even the entire planet. The majority of the time, the main characters are trying to escape or survive the event, while others try to stop it.

 

Most disaster films feature a good versus evil opposition between the heroes and villains, and there are some that explore the relationships between the individual and society. These movies are also known for a large amount of suspense and for the fact that they usually take place in real places, which makes them all the more popular among audiences.

 

Despite the popularity of this genre, there are some disaster films that fail to deliver on all fronts. These include those with implausible scenarios, bad science, weak plots, and laughable acting from third-rate stars in cliched characters.

 

These films can also be overly exaggerated in their production values, bending science and introducing new technology and situations to the audience. The genre is not as popular today, but it was a resurgence in the 1990s and the turn of the century with the Y2K hysteria.

 

Another common characteristic of this genre is that they typically have a large cast of famous actors. It’s a way to get the audience to identify with the characters and cheer for or against them, and it’s not unusual to see an A-list actor die in a disaster film.

 

There are also many parodies of disaster films, such as Disaster Movie (2008). It is a parody of the genre and popular culture, and is written and directed by Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer. It was released on August 29, 2008.

 

Styles

Disaster film is a genre of cinema that combines the elements of action and drama. It usually involves the destruction of an object or group of people in a spectacular way. These films can be fictional or based on true events.

 

These types of movies are popular at the box office. They are also very effective at drawing in the audience and capturing their interest. The major feature of these films is that they have a spectacular element to them which makes them exciting and unpredictable. This element in them allows the audience to lose themselves in the movie and get carried away by the story.

 

There are many different styles of Disaster films. Some have a more serious approach while others are more comical. Some are based on real life incidents like the Exxon Valdez oil spill or Mount St. Helens volcano eruptions while others are fictional.

 

Historical disaster films are a way of re-presenting events in history by analyzing the social and cultural context of that time period (Law, 2010). These movies are often regarded as a useful piece of historical evidence because they can help people understand the historical era.

 

These movies are a type of cultural representation that is made to reflect the changing trends in society and the sociological issues that arise during that era. The styles of these films are also determined by the technological factors that stand out during their production.

 

Technological factors are imperative in the creation of disaster films as these movies involve the use of vehicles such as airplanes. The modes of transportation used in these films can give a good estimate of the era during which they were made.

 

The use of special effects is another significant factor in creating these films. Some of these movies are made to be a commentary on the state of human civilization and how we are failing to protect ourselves from natural and man-made disasters.

 

Other films may be a hybrid of the disaster and romance genres. James Cameron’s Titanic was a famous disaster and romance movie that was a huge success at the box office.