Research into Genre

Drama

 Drama films generally rely on the emotional development of complex characters whilst exhibiting real life situations. The films usually include a range of anti-climaxes and climaxes in order to record the character's journey with some form of realisation being made at the end of the story. Drama films tend to be recognised with supplementary terms that detail it's certain subgenre, such as 'comedy-drama', 'costume-drama' and 'historical drama.' These terms normally stipulate a certain setting or subject-matter and/or qualify the serious tone of the story with events that fuel a wider range of feelings and moods. 

History: 

The noun 'Drama' first came to use to describe a theatrical play that was neither a comedy or a tragedy. It comes from the Greek word for 'action' with the two masks representing the traditional but polar opposites of comedy and tragedy. The masks are thus symbols of the ancient Greek muses Thalia (comedy) and Melpomene (tragedy). Thalia was the muse who presided over humour and idyllic poetry. She was a daughter of Zeus and Mnemosyne. Melpomene is her sister who was originally known for her involvement in 'chorus singing' but then came to be known as the muse of tragedy. 'Play' was the term that was being generally used to describe the Drama genre before William Shakespeare's era. However, Drama in it's more narrower sense is a play that is neither humorous or tragic. Film and Television adopted this broader term and it has subsequently been viewed as a creative way to tell stories about human struggles in it's respective media. 

The Muses: Melpomene and Thalia.

Conventions:

Usually, in Drama there is some sort of conflict taking place and it is down to the main character to resolve this conflict and in turn reach a happy ending. Although, this is the general chain of events, not all Drama films have stuck to this stereotype. For example, in Titanic (1997) Kate Winslet and Leonardo Dicaprio's characters don't both get to survive or leave the ship together. However, Winslet's character does learn more about herself in the process which shows a unique approach to a resolution in the form of self-discovery.

Titanic (1997)

A Drama film can have peaks and troths as well as characters that are easily accessible to the audience. It's important that the audiences find the main character likeable otherwise the story won't remain compelling. Noam Kroll said in his 5 Tips for Writing Better Characters For Your Screenplay that 'writing likeable characters can be done in an infinite amount of ways. For instance, simply writing dialogue that shows how witty or charming the character may be can go a long way. Or they could be made likeable through their actions, showing a selfless act early on in the film to establish them as a positive force. And keep in mind, all this can be done in the context of the world you are writing in, and by no means has to paint your characters as perfect people.' Drama films generally focus on trying to make the characters feel 'real' by giving the characters emotional upheaval and turbulence in an episodic narrative. This genre tends to have a climatic ending that provokes feelings of tension from the audiences. However, because of this tendency, the story can sometimes have a limited amount of characters, scenes and events that are tightly constructed in order to be able to build the story up to a high point.
Setting:
Depending on the sub-genre in which the Drama is based upon, setting is extremely important in establishing the atmosphere. Because our film is a War-Drama, I have decided to look into settings that are primarily used in conflict related films. In Saving Private Ryan (1998) the Invasion of Normandy is portrayed through a brutal and violent opening of American soldiers landing on Omaha Beach. Directors tend to use settings like wide open spaces such as deserts, forests and fields to reconstruct historical places like war zones, trenches and beaches.

A setting that could be found in a War inspired film.

The use of close up shots of the soldier's faces as they wait to meet their imminent deaths reinforce to the audience the fear that these people would have been feeling about facing the unknown while, the long shots of the beach reiterate the scale on which the war took place. It is impossible to watch this film without feeling a visceral and humane response to the killings that take place, even though we know as a modern viewer that the actors are not really suffering blows from the diegetic rings of the machine guns. Tom Hanks, who plays the main character Captain John. H. Miller, recalled that filming the D-Day sequences were particularly hard for the cast:

 "The first day of shooting the D-Day sequences, I was in the back of the landing craft, and that ramp went down and I saw the first 1-2-3-4 of guys just getting blown to bits. In my head of course, I knew it was special effects, but I wasn't prepared for how tactile it was."

http://tune.pk/video/6173444/saving-private-ryan-omaha-beach-scene

Music:
Dramatic music usually has an orchestral element due to instruments like the violin, cello, piano, lute, organ, synthesizer, trumpet and bass drums being used to evoke strong emotion from it's listener. Music has the ability to add to a scene and emphasises feelings like sadness and happiness just from using certain instruments. For example, the piano is commonly featured in more sombre scenes while the lute might be used to uplift a scene and convey the feelings of the character to the audience.

Costumes:
Dramas are usually noted for their ability to capture a period of time and immerse their audience within that duration. Our film would most likely be considered to be some part costume as well as a war drama due to the clothing, such as camouflage and military style that they would expect to see our actors wearing. Costumes play a very important part in helping to shape a character's identity and tell the audience more about their personalities and even their backgrounds.

War Horse (2011)

In War Horse, Tom Hiddleston's Captain James Nicholls is seen in his uniform for his entire screen time in the film. Not only does the uniform infer that Captain James Nicholls is a prestigious soldier but also that he is possibly a well educated gentleman from a middle class background who has never truly known war before. This can be inferred from how smart he is dressed nevertheless the polite yet cautious way he speaks to the soldiers around him. Nevertheless, Lone Survivor (2013) is based upon the unsuccessful Navy SEALS mission called Red Wings that included a four man team to track down and kill the Taliban leader Ahmad Shah. Set in a modern day context, the costumes that the actors wear are much more practical in their use of heavily armed armour like bullet proof jackets, guns, camouflage and hats as opposed to the more traditional and old-fashioned uniform of Captain James Nicholls.

Lone Survivor (2013)