The Reel Deal
"Workers Leaving the Lumiere Factory" (1895) is a perfect example of this kind of film style
Realist (or Realist Fiction)
This retroactively named style of film is typically about the fall of a character, and a deterioration of their morals as the film progress; usually ending bleakly
Film Noir
This realistic style of film featured non-professional actors, is shot on location, with subject matter reflecting poor or working class conditions
Italian Neorealism
This type of film is nonconformist and set out to challenge the orthodox ideas about what a film can show and how they show them; such films rarely focus on plot, narrative or story
Experimental Film, avant-garde, underground, or personal
This realistic style of film featured depictions of the working class, dissatisfied/alienated characters, and disillusionment with British society
"Kitchen Sink" Realism
"The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" (1920) is a perfect example of this distinct kind of film style
German Expressionism (or expressionist)
This type of film may include a character interrupting the story to speak to the camera. This kind of cinema has generally been seen as opposed to mainstream cinema’s realistic illusion, which hides processes and conventions from immediate view
Self-reflexive film
This movement was characterized by its rejection of traditional filmmaking conventions in favor of experimentation. This experimentation can be seen in "Breathless", directed by Jean Luc Godard
French New Wave
This person had this to say about their films: "The Hollywood movies are more like novels, and the kinds of films I make are more like poems.”
Stan Brakhage, experimental filmmaker
Arguably the most famous, important, and discussed of ALL experimental films is this film by Spanish filmmaker Luis Buñuel
“Un Chien Andalou” (An Andalusian Dog), 1929