new "youth film'?

[Aaron Gerow]

As with any genre or film cycle, there is the problem of definition.  
David cites films that I consider quite similar narratively: they  
featured not just gentle youth, but youth getting together in a  
collective to succeed at some unusual task in an atmosphere that is  
rather light, comedic, and positive. In this more exclusive  
definition, many of the films mentioned by others would not fit.  
Sekachu and other melodramatic works seem to me to have different  
world views. But some, like Nana would probably work. It definitely  
overlaps with some sports narratives like Touch or Ganbatte ikimassho.

Yaguchi seemed to be making this a cottage industry, but note that  
Suo did it much earlier with Shiko funjatta. It also doesn't quite  
work as an auteurist trait, given that Yaguchi's first two features  
are a bit more satirical if not cynical, and don't really feature  
collectives.

Note also that Waterboys was turned into a TV drama as well. And  
there are manga like Nodame no kantabire that could fit in this  
phenomenon as well.

David posits the interesting hypothesis that some youth films could  
be considered as working as alternatives to more horrific tales of  
youth. Perhaps in that formula, the definition based on narrative  
structure that I propose above is not necessary, but I do feel that  
if we accept this hypothesis, we should consider that different kinds  
of youth films offer different alternatives.


Aaron Gerow
Director of Undergraduate Studies, Film Studies Program
Assistant Professor
Film Studies Program/East Asian Languages and Literatures
Yale University
53 Wall Street, Room 316
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Phone: 1-203-432-7082
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e-mail: aaron.gerow at yale.edu
site: www.aarongerow.com