Realism v.s. Escapism- Research (Portfolio Project Post 6)

Hi Glorp. I'm so sick of writing blogs, and I just finished this one. I'm going to do math homework now. 

(OrlaO, n.d.) 

(this is a meme I altered in Microsoft Paint)

A website from The Screen Academy kind of put everything into place for me by pointing how how coming of age films can vary from reflecting realistic issues and dramatizing reality for entertainment-- something they called Realism and Escapism (High, 2024).

brothergirls.

 (Mikey Hardesty Film, LLC., 2024)

A film that's sort of a comedy, but based on situations that can very well happen in real life. Here, the protagonist and a group of girls sneak into her ex's home to get back polaroid nudes she gave him.

I found it funny how, instead of asking for them back or asking for blackmail, the girls go on a heist at night. And, when the ex wakes up to see the protagonist in his room, he isn't shocked or scared-- he's just like "oh, ok." And then the girls take the dog when they leave. 

Sorry about the rambling, I just really thought this film was funny and you need to know the plot so I can explain the rest to you, Glorp. This portrayal of a realistic situation as something light hearted and comedic is part of this "escapism" I pointed at earlier. The purpose of this film is simply to entertain the audience for a few minutes, and portray the wonderful bond between a few high school girls. This is also the same premise in the Diary of a Whimpey Kid movie series, there's not much meaning other than "wowowow so funny!" This isn't to say it's bad though! I quite like these kinds of films, they play on nostalgia in a different way than realistic films, which aim to represent growing pains.

REPLY

(Elle Mills, 2024)

Reply follows the tapes of a young teenage girl who recorded herself over her last high school summer. She fell in love with another girl, but choose to stay with her boyfriend. The story is told year in the future through her son, who emailed the footage to the woman his mother was in love with. God, that's was hard to explain. If that didn't make sense, go watch the film, it's worth it. 

While this film doesn't cover anything dramatic about being queer, it does represent the very real pressure queer people feel to live a life according to the metanarrative. It doesn't excaudate the silliness of situations or attempt to make jokes. Which is why I'm comparing it to brothergirls. Writing wise, the story is still about the complexity of relationships and defining oneself, but this one is far more grounded than brothergirls. The lack of comedy a way to give a realistic coming of age film.

CITES

OrlaO [thechesapeakeripper]. (n.d.). [Cartoon character holding a baseball bat with caption about the flow of time and uneaten produce] [Image]. Pinterest. https://www.pinterest.com/pin/3237030978801633/

High. (2024). High School Screen Academy - Teen Movies Genre. Thescreenacademy.com. https://www.thescreenacademy.com/knowledge/genre/teen-movies-genre

Mikey Hardesty Film, LLC. (2024, August 23). brothergirls. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFzOpBZTerI

Elle Mills. (2024, June 17). REPLY (2022) | A Coming-of-Age Short Film. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhfBv22fdZM