I've been reading about film movements recently (IE- Golden Age of Hollywood, German Expressionism, French New Wave) and that got me thinking about modern movies.

An idea I'd like to stress-test is that there are right now several distinct film movements in (but not exclusively in) English language film, starting with a split between what makes money and what is made to win Oscars.

21st Century Blockbusters: CGI allows for 3D-animated films, as well as a greater emphasis on fantasy and superhero films. With the advent of DVD and then Blu-Ray and streaming, it's possible for filmgoers to see any major film they want which allows for much more complex narratives (think about Avengers: Endgame ending with a reunion from characters from a movie that came out eight years earlier, Alfred revealing Rachel's letter in The Dark Knight Rises, or the reveal that Spectre was connected to previous James Bond villains) as well as sequels to films from generations earlier (the new Halloween, Star Wars: A Force Awakens introducing a new generation.) There's also a greater effort to appeal to the international film market.

Prestige Cinema: With genre stuff making money, and the golden age of television dominating cultural discussions, the Oscarbait films have gone more niche. There's a greater focus on films about Hollywood/ actors/ film history (One Weekend With Marilyn, The Aviator, Argo, Hugo), or influenced by earlier styles (Nomadland, The Good German, Django Unchained) or both (The Artist, La La Land.) There are the traditional period pieces (Lincoln, The King's Speech) and films about serious issues (Crash, Green Book, Silver Linings Playbook, The Big Short.)

In recent years, there had been a backlash against the largely white male voices telling these stories. "New Queer Cinema" has been recognized as its own movement, but I think this has approach and understanding has also spread among racial and gender lines.

New Representative Cinema: There's an emphasis on underrepresented voices telling their own stories when it comes to stories of people of color. It's largely African-American, but not exclusively so (Minari, Crazy Rich Asians, The Farewell, Beatriz at Dinner.) One interesting development is the willingness of top directors to make TV mini-series (Ava Duvernay's When They See Us, Barry Jenkins' The Underground Railroad, Steve McQueen's Small Axe.)

New Women's Cinema: There is also the idea that female directors should tell the stories of women. Recent acclaimed examples include Little Women, Lady Bird, Promising Young Woman, Wonder Woman, Zero Dark Thirty, Meek's Crossing, The Babadook, Winter's Bone, The Edge of Seventeen, and Nomadland.)

Some movies will fall in multiple categories. 21st Century Blockbusters have adopted the idea that women should direct stories of female superheroes, and that white people shouldn't direct stories of protagonists of color. Joker was a comic book movie that also heavily referenced 1970s/ 1980s Scorsese (and then went on to get 10 Oscar nominations.) So there may be intersections.

Is this a good understanding of the current film ecosystem? Is there something I'm missing? What do you guys think?