Researching Codes and Conventions of Romantic Tragedies

 

As a part of my research, I decided to get to know more about Romantic Tragedies.

What is a Romantic Tragedy?

A romantic tragedy is a story that blends love and loss, focusing on the emotional and often heartbreaking consequences of romantic relationships. Typically, it involves two characters who experience deep emotional connections, but their love is thwarted by circumstances such as illness, death, or societal barriers.

         Source - https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/sad-romances-on-netflix

Characters

Most tragic romance movies tend to revolve around female characters as they narrate the story and there are different character archetypes such as;

The Male Characters Include:

Mis-En-Scene of Romantic tragedies

Setting: Empty beaches, abandoned parks, or quiet city streets. These settings can symbolize the characters' emotional isolation or the distance between them and the world around them.

Seasons and weather: Rain, snow, or fog can serve as metaphors for the characters' inner turmoil or the inevitability of their fate.

Soft, dim lighting: Soft lighting creates a melancholic or nostalgic atmosphere. The lighting may emphasize shadows, which can suggest ambiguity, secrets, or the emotional distance between characters.

Contrasting light and dark: A mix of light and shadow can represent the emotional conflict of the story, highlighting both moments of love and the darkness of impending loss or separation.

Costumes and Props; 

• Character clothing: 

• Symbolic props: 

Cinematography; 

• Camera shots such as; 

Wide shots

Wide shots convey the characters' physical or emotional distance from one another. These shots often highlight the isolation or separation between lovers, even when they are in the same space.

Close-ups 

Close-up shots emphasize the characters' emotions, focusing on their facial expressions and conveying the depth of their internal struggles.

Colour Pallette; 

After doing this research and analysis, I developed a better understanding of romantic tragedies and how visual elements like lighting, setting, colour, and framing contribute to storytelling, reinforcing themes of love, loss, and fate. This opened my eyes to codes and conventions of the genre that I hadn't given much thought to, and found it really useful for my own film opening task.