In this comprehensive introduction to the study of genre, Steve Neale discusses all the major concepts, theories and accounts of Hollywood and genre, as well as the key genres which theorists have written about, from horror to the Western. Taking issue with much genre theory, which has provided only a partial and misleading account of Hollywood's output, Neale calls for broader and more flexible conceptions of genre, for the nature and range of Hollywood's films to be looked at in more detail, and for any assessment of the social and cultural significance of Hollywood's genres to take account of industrial factors. Insightful and provocative, Genre and Hollywood puts forward new arguments about the importance of genre in understanding Hollywood cinema.