High concept
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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High concept, in film, is a term typically used to refer to the style and mode of production developed by Hollywood studios in the late 1970s. Steven Spielberg's Jaws (1975) and George Lucas' Star Wars (1977) are commonly referred to as the first high concept movies. However, some argue that some blockbusters from the past, such as Casablanca and Citizen Kane, were high concept movies in that they explored broad themes with a universal appeal.
"High concept" is sometimes used as a derogatory term by some movie critics, to refer to movies that pander to the lowest common denominator and are only concerned with financial profit.
The plot of a high concept movie is easily understood by audiences, and can often be described in a sentence or two, and succinctly summarized by the movie's title.
High concept movies feature relatively simple characters and a heavy reliance on conventions of film genre. Stylistically, high concept movies tend to be high-tech, crisp, and polished. Such movies also rely on pre-sold properties such as movie stars to build audience anticipation, and use heavy advertising, market research, and test screenings to ensure maximum popularity. Some high concept movies are built as star vehicles for successful music and sports personalities to enter the movie business. Often high concept movies are pitched as combinations of existing high concept movies, or unique twists on existing titles.
High concept movies also have a presence outside of theaters, and usually have soundtrack and music video tie-ins to cross-promote the movie. Promotional tie-ins can extend into dozens of venues; a common occurrence is themed products sold at fast-food restaurants.
High concept movies often have themes which tie into an area of popular fascination--such as sharks, dinosaurs, vampires, snakes, planes, flying saucers, and so on--and thus have a ready-built foundation of subsidiary issues and ever-ramifying facts that can feed the marketing machine, from magazine articles to weblog chatter, on levels ranging from the superficial to the intellectually or factually exhaustive.
Examples
- Jaws
- Phone Booth
- Speed
- The Terminator
- Twister
- Van Helsing
- Snakes on a Plane
- Star Wars
- Independence Day
- Armageddon
