Lights, camera, rapidly edited action . . .

You're short on time, there's a character- building story to tell, and you've got some uplifting music to hand – it's time to break out a full-blooded Hollywood montage, writes JOE GRIFFIN

'THE HOURS approaching to give it your best and you've got to reach your prime/That's when you need to put yourself to the test, and show us a passage of time/You need a montage." The montage song in Team America: World Policehighlighted the cliches of an old trope. A quick summary, edited together to sum up falling in love, learning to dance or building a barn is sometimes corny, but it's also a reassuringly familiar device in (mostly) inspirational movies. Indeed, the current remake of Footlooseis generous enough to include three montages (see below). Here's a beginner's guide.

FALLING IN LOVE

What to expect:Carnivals, gentle slapstick and something cute and funny with food (candy floss, perhaps, or pasta) all play a big part. These montages usually include something that women are expected to enjoy, such as yoga or sunset beach walks and activities that men supposedly enjoy, such as eating food, or pelting one another with paint balloons (the latter appears in 10 Things I Hate About You).

Where to find them: Lady and the Tramp, The Naked Gun, 10 Things I Hate About You, Walk Hard, I Love You Phillip Morris, Step Up 3Dand many more.

LONELINESS MONTAGE

What to expect:Apart from traditional shots of looking out of rain-dappled windows, loneliness montages are usually re-shoots of the previous falling-in-love montages, including the exact same restaurants, beach-walk location and sometimes even the same action (accidentally breaking a dinner plate, for example, as in Singles). The crucial difference, of course, is that the couple is revisiting these moments separately, usually to the sound of All by Myselfby Eric Carmen or a Christina Aguilera ballad.

Where to find them: Singles, Dirty Dancing, Team America: World Police, When Harry Met Sally.

PUTTING A TEAM TOGETHER

What to expect:You'll see male bonding, single-arm hugging, names being crossed off a list, former warriors working demeaning jobs, and a welder removing his or her mask. The more audacious team-assembling montages show the potential team-mate introducing a trademark move just before he's recruited. This might be reckless driving, making love to a woman, or climbing into a really small box (as in Oceans 11).

Where to find them: The Blues Brothers, The Usual Suspects, Space Cowboys, X-Men, Oceans 11, The A-Team, MacGruber.

TRAINING

What to expect:Lots of orthodox preparation (sunrise wake-ups, running alongside bicycles, silhouettes doing kung-fu moves) and unorthodox training (eating raw eggs in Rocky, waxing on/off in The Karate Kid, carrying pails of water up giant staircases in Kill Bill II), all looked on disapprovingly by a bitter mentor. These montages are often opportunities to show the posh villain using fancy equipment, while the underdog trains using blocks of wood and the great outdoors (see Rocky IVfor a perfect example).

Where to find them: The Rockyfilms, The Karate Kidfilms, Kill Bill Volume 2, Team America.

LEARNING TO DANCE

What to expect:Economical filmmakers sometimes mix this with the falling-in-love montage, but most learning-to-dance montages include accidental stepping on toes, one dancer laughing while the other remains composed, a mentor losing his temper, and the student practising their moves when everyone else in the rehearsal space has gone home. Dance-training montages are often intercut with other aspects of the student's life being neglected, such as socialising with old friends, attending college or joining family get-togethers. These montages often end with the dancers engaging in freestyle moves, frequently at their workplace.

Where to find them: Dirty Dancing, Strictly Ballroom, The Red Shoes, Step Up(numbers one to three), Footloose.

TRAVELOGUE

What to expect:Travel montages often take place at the end of a film to signify the protagonist opening up to new experiences. These new experiences usually involve touristy landmarks such as the Eiffel Tower or Big Ben, the hero/heroine meeting some earthy locals and a shot of a beautiful, inspiring sunset. Sometimes they're catalogues of decadence, involving shot-drinking, drug consumption, sleeping in bars and meeting attractive, accommodating young women.

Where to find them: Paris, Je T'aime, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Rebound(nice trips); The Rules of Attraction, Eurotrip(decadent trips).

BUILDING AND RENOVATING

What to expect:This appears in various genres. Characters can be building an Amish barn, a futuristic sports car, a set of traps, or a rehearsal/performance space (as seen in numerous musicals). Depending on the genre, expect to see the use of a power saw and a traditional saw, young and old people painting the same wall, tying knots, some gentle horseplay involving paint or water, and a collective semi-hug as the team look upon their creation with pride.

Where to find them: Witness, Speed Racer, Predatorand Footloose– it has a vintage car and warehouse getting a montaged re-decoration.