- published: 07 Jan 2009
- views: 18852
The buddy film is a film genre in which two people of the same sex (historically men) are paired. The two often contrast in personality, which creates a different dynamic onscreen than a pairing of two people of the opposite sex. The contrast is sometimes accentuated by an ethnic difference between the two. The buddy film are commonplace in American cinema; unlike some other film genres, it endured through the 20th century with different pairings and different themes.
A buddy film is the pairing of two people of the same sex, historically men. A friendship between the two people is the key relationship in a buddy film. The two people often come from different backgrounds or have different personalities, and they tend to misunderstand one another. Through the events of the buddy film, they gain a stronger friendship and mutual respect. Buddy films often deal with crises of masculinity, especially related to class, race, and gender. American Masculinities: A Historical Encyclopedia explains, "[Buddy films] offer male movie–going audiences an opportunity to indulge in a form of male bonding and behavior usually discouraged by by social constraints." Ira Konigsberg writes in the The Complete Film Dictionary, "Such films extol the virtues of male comradeship and relegate male–female relationships to a subsidiary position."