Today’s Film:Baz Lurhmann’s

Red Curtain CinemaAnd

Strictly Ballroom

Baz Luhrmann• Australian director,

screenwriter, and producer best known for The Red Curtain Trilogy (Strictly Ballroom, William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet, and Moulin Rouge!)

Red Curtain Cinema

• Red curtain cinema: theatricalised, participatory cinema form set in a heightened world. Three rules/conventions governing this genre.

• First Rule: the story needs to be set in a heightened creative world, peopled by larger-than-life characters.

• Second Rule: the story should be based on a recognizable story shape. (example: David and Goliath, Fairy Tale, etc.)

• Third Rule: red curtain cinema is also audience participation cinema. For Luhrmann, the audience needs to be aware that what they are watching is not meant to be real.

A combination of Genres

• Baz Luhrmann defines Strictly Ballroom as red curtain cinema, but it also draws from several traditions in film and theatre: slapstick elements of silent film; commedia dellarte; �even mockumentary. � �

• It can be described as a combination of the following genres: a romantic comedy, a fairy tale, a dance musical, a satire, and finally an example of kitsch comedy.� �

• Baz Luhrmann uses these conventions in Strictly Ballroom, but he also parodies them.

• The film self-consciously subverts our expectations of the backstage musical, so that far from being a celebration of the show business dance community as films like Top Hat (1935), the all-powerful Dance Federation is represented as the enemy in Strictly Ballroom.

• Mockumentary interviews in the �opening sequence provide another example of the film's parodying of conventions.

For future reference:• Character Names:• Scott Hastings: Hero• Fran: Heroine• Barry Fife: Villain• Doug Hastings: Scott’s Father• Shirley Hastings: Scott’s Mother• Liz Holt: Scott’s first dance partner• Les: Co-owner of the studio;

• Scott’s mom’s former dance partner• Rico: Fran’s Dad• Ya Ya: Fran’s Grandmother• Ken Railings: Champion dancer• Tina Sparkle: Champion dancer