It wasn’t a critical darling, but the recent dramedy starring Jason Bateman, Tina Fey, Adam Driver, and Jane Fonda is an excellent example of one of Blake Snyder’s less-produced genres: Institutionalized. In this podcast, Master Cat! José Silerio and Guy Thompson identify the three critical elements for the genre that are indeed in this story: 1) a group, in this case a family; 2) a choice for the protagonist (Bateman); and 3) a sacrifice that must be made, leading to one of three endings: join, burn it down… or commit “suicide.”
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“Institutionalized” is a very versatile genre. Look no further than the current top placeholder at the box office: Clint Eastwood’s “American Sniper” — a “Military Institution.” And Academy Award Best Picture nominee “The Grand Budapest Hotel” is a “Mentor Institution.” All of Blake’s genres can account for stories that range considerably in style and tone, perhaps none more so than this one.