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Movie Theme Ideas

Although movies have only been around for about a century, film carries a basic element of story and communication that has been around since the beginning of mankind. At the heart of almost every film is an element of story. Strong theme ideas that work for movies are often present in other mediums, such as books, photography or music. An almost limitless range of movie theme ideas exist, but there are a few major ones.
  1. Love

    • One of the most common themes in movies is love. Classic writers such as Shakespeare used love as a successful theme in their writing, and modern movie script writers also frequently blend love into their stories. One of the strongest attributes of using love as a movie theme topic is its genre fluidity. For instance, love can be the theme of a comedy, drama or a melancholic film. An example of movies with a love theme include 1997's "Titanic."

    Social Commentary

    • Another quality movie theme topic is social commentary. This theme is strong because it is timeless, as movie makers can find important social events in any decade. Another beneficial point about this theme is that it is not genre specific.

      Films that use social commentary as a theme can be documentaries or creative fiction. Some examples of films that use social commentary as a theme include the 2008 documentary "Food, Inc." and 1964's comedic satire "Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb."

    Retribution or Atonement

    • A classic movie plot theme is retribution or atonement. Films that use these topics as a theme often feature a character or characters unjustly ridiculed or characters commit unscrupulous acts that don't receive justice.

      This theme can create strong and powerful films because this topic can easily reel the audience in to root for a specific character or characters. These films can also have dynamic and rich plots. A good example of a film that uses atonement as its theme is 1994's "The Shawshank Redemption."

    Rescue

    • Another common movie topic idea uses rescue as its theme. These films are common throughout different Hollywood genres, such as action, comedy, drama or suspense. Films that use rescue can have a strong script, because the plot of the film is usually simple, yet exciting and entertaining.

      Rescue films are simplistic in the sense that the protagonist(s) must travel from point A to B and achieve X. Good examples of films that use rescue as a theme include 2000's "Road Trip" and the 1998 film "Saving Private Ryan."

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