The Most Disturbing Definition: Are Extreme Cinema Films Part of One Big Genre?

Abstract: In this essay I have looked at how the term extreme cinema should be categorized. Should it be categorized as a genre, a subgenre, an umbrella term or something else. To find this out I have divided the essay into three chapters, one long and two short. The first chapter is about how style and narrative affects the way extreme cinema is categorized. The second chapter looks at how reception and awards affect the way extreme cinema is categorized. The last chapter looks at how production, distribution, festivals and marketing all play into the way that extreme cinema is categorized. The essay then concludes with what I think the proper term for categorizing extreme cinema is and why I think so. I also comment on what aspects of extreme cinema is important when categorizing, and which aspects after having written this essay I don't feel are very important when categorizing these types of films.