Thriller Genre

This is a post about what I have learnt so far within Media Studies about the Thriller Genre:

 Intertexual is between texts where the director of a film liked the idea and incorporated it within their film. This is called Homage; in other words it means paying tribute to the original. Intertexuality is when a director using something that is already existing from something else; things such as borrowing ideas creating a parody. Generic conventions are regular features which are expected to be in a film depending upon the Genre.

Binary opposites are when two opposites are clashed; Good Vs Evil - Innocence Vs Evil. Ideology means to have a set of ideas. For instance the idea of Happiness = Material things. Big business are dominant within our society and send us Hedgemonic messages which make us think what they say and present to us is the 'Norm'.

 An example of a Hedgemonic message within Film would be the idea of a Ideal Family. Within Film the ideal family would be a Heterosexual couple; married with kids. Having a big Christmas dinner and the situation where the teenage daughter/son has a rebellion with the mother/father. Hedgemonic messages encourage us to accept certain values within society.

Other messages such as white people are seen to be dominant in Film and that Beauty is essential to be successful. Films which give us these Hedgemonic messages are called 'Ideological Films' - repeat things for us to accept a 'Norm'.

Thriller Moodboard

This is a Moodboard I created of what I think is associated within the Thriller Genre; Thriller is a genre of literature, film and television that uses suspense, tension and excitement as the main elements. The primary sub-genres of thrillers are: mystery, crime and psychological thrillers.

Genre

This is what I learnt during Media lessons.

I made this to show the Triangle and to explain what Genre consists of and the way in which Genre Films (Mainstream) link with Producers/Industry and the Audience. All three of these all need to link in order to produce films. Also as you can see below I learnt about Generic Conventions; this means that there are certain Conventions that are expected to be in the film according to the Genre of the film. 

Thriller Film Openings

During our lesson we watched the first two minutes of 7 different thriller movies, we then analysed each opening and wrote the genres and sub-genres for each one. We also discussed what we thought of each opening and how effective it was to us as the audience and watching them for the first time.

 The Seven thrillers that we watched are called:

Misery (1990) - Conventional Thriller

Cube (1997) - Techno Thriller / Horror

No Country For Old Men (2007) - Cop Sub-Genre

Training Day - (Cop Sub-Genre)

Unbreakable - (Supernatural Sub-Genre)

The Hand That Rocks The Cradle - (1992) Psychological Sub-Genre

The Silence Of The Lambs - (Psychological Horror)

The Vertigo - (Sub-genre)

Discussing Genre

Genre

Why did you learn? 
What are the debates around genre? 
What is the importance of star association with a genre?
What can we look for to identify a genre?
What about the triangular relationship?

You could write some bullet points to sum up your responses.        


During a lesson we learnt a variety of different genres, we learnt the importance of certain genres such as Thriller and the different groups to Thriller. There are many debates around genre, debates such as what movies are associated with the Thriller genre. However there is not just one type of Thriller Genre, for example there are: Action Thriller, Crime Thriller, Film-noir, Psychological Thriller, Science Fiction Thriller, Religious Thriller.


SUB-GENRES OF THRILLER:

Action Thriller

This sub-genre uses physical action to create suspense and emphasis within the film. It contains physical stunts, chases, fights, battles, and races. These scenes contribute to the overall sense of danger within the film. 

Examples: Die Hard, Kill Bill Vol. 1, The Bourne Identity.


Crime Thriller

This sub-genre incorporates suspense and usually center on a serial killer, robbery or manhunt. Crime Thriller's contains physical action but also psychological aspects to build tension and suspense.

Examples: The Usual Suspects, The Fugitive, Jagged Edge.







Film-noir


This sub-genre is a stylistic type of crime-drama or thriller that was popular throughout the 1940s and 1950s. The film would consist of black and white style with stark lighting effects.

Examples: Sunset Boulevard, The Maltese Falcon, Sweet Smell of Success.

Psychological Thriller

In addition to the traits of a regular Thriller, a Psychological Thriller incorporates elements of drama and mystery film. The suspense in this sub-genre comes from the mind, rather than from a psychical threat.

Examples: Memento, Rear Window, Taxi Driver.

Science Fiction Thriller

Science Fiction Thriller incorporates hypothetical, science-based themes into the plot of the film. Traditionally, a Science Fiction film will incorporate heroes, villains, unexplored locations, fantastical quests, and advanced technology.

Examples: Aliens, Inception, District 9.


Religious Thriller 

Religious Thriller film incorporates religious themes, including religious questions, ceremonies, and objects. Though some films can revolve around a specific church, many Religious Thrillers include supernatural experiences not pertaining to a certain religion. Exorcisms, demon possession, and church cover-ups are typical themes of Religious Thrillers.

Examples: The Devil’s Advocate, The Ninth Gate, The Da Vinci Code.


 

 The importance of star association with a genre is what attracts the audience to the film. An example of star association would be in the movie 'Just Go With It' . This movie contains actress Jennifer Aniston, and Adam Sandler. Both of these actors are Stars within the film industry and because they are extremely high up on the scale them both being in a film together will attract the audience. Also because they will have fans who always watch their films, the promotion for a film containing them both will be immense. Star association allows the audience to be able to recognise the video and will make the film appeal more to the audience, the public and fans.


  

Thriller Opening - Analysis 2

You will consider and explore:
• How does the opening engage/create interest for the audience?
• Does it establish characters? How?
• Does the opening introduce themes, mood or story/narrative? How?
• How are the opening titles displayed?
• How is enigma established?

What you will need to analyse:
• Mise-en-scene;
• Use of soundtrack;
• Use of diegetic sound;
• Editing;
• Camera shot, movement and position;
• Use of special effects.

The Usual Suspects

SCREENSHOT 1

The opening of this film engages and creates interest for the audience because of its immediate beginning. By this I mean it straight away begins a scene of a man sitting and lighting a cigarette (SCREENSHOT 1). This immediately grasps the audience and engages interest because they are observing this happening and will want to start guessing and want to watch more of it to find out what the film will be about. The opening does establish the first man who the audience see's in some way. The reason why is because this man is sitting in a sort of warehouse smoking (SCREENSHOT 1) - and in (SCREENSHOT 2) he is lighting a line of oil across the floor. He appears very suspicious and has a 'don't care' attitude and also shows no remorse for himself or the body that is on the floor. As for the themes, mood and story/narrative - this is introduced slightly. Themes for starters is introduced in the very beginning (SCREENSHOT 1), where the audience can take a guess that the film's theme will be action or thriller. Furthermore as for the mood of the opening/film this is shown in (SCREENSHOT 5,6 AND 7) - because the man is just a figure throughout the opening and the audience do not see him at all, besides from his black coat and his hand. This creates a very intense and mysterious mood which engages the audience more. Lastly the story/narrative is introduced from (SCREENSHOT 7 - 12)  this is because from 01:55 - 02:57 the 'unknown' figure sets alight the warehouse in which they are in after shooting the man whom he was conversing with. Enigma is established through the 'unknown' man. This is because the audience are completely unaware of who he is and why he appeared all of a sudden (SCREENSHOT 4),  exchanged a few words with the other man (SCREENSHOT 5 & 6) and then kill him (SCREENSHOT 7) and set the building alight, then escaping (SCREENSHOT 10 - 12). This causes mystery and puzzles the audience hugely. Also at the very beginning the man (SCREENSHOT 1) is sitting in a building lighting a cigarette and looks as if he is completely drained. This is unusual and therefore is where enigma is established. 

Mise-en-scene in this opening would be the building in which the scenes take place. The arrangement of the building such as the boxes and ropes and stairs appear to be warehouse materials, also cylinders of oil are leaking in the building. This sort of scenery and properties represent the place where this opening was enacted because of the way in which they are dangerous equipment to be near and it is very risky if you do. It links with the scenes that happen during this opening (SCREENSHOT 1-12) because of the way in which the actors use their surroundings and scenery as part of their acting and scenes. The use of the soundtrack from 00:30 - 02:49 is very effective. This soundtrack used causes the audience to feel the tension rising as the opening progresses. Also the way in which the soundtrack is made louder at specific points in the opening emphasizes how important and drastic these points are. Diegetic sound is used during the part where the 'unknown' man is walking down the stairs and approaching the man sitting on the floor (SCREENSHOT 4) his footsteps are sounded as well as the soundtrack. Also the gunshots (SCREENSHOT 7) are a good use of diegetic sound. Lastly diegetic sound is used in the very last part of the opening where police sirens are sounded, these sounds used are highly effective and gave the opening more suspense and character. The camera shots used in (SCREENSHOT 3) was panning and in (SCREENSHOT 4) it was a closeup of the ropes but also you can see the man figure in the background. The movement and positioning of the camera were effective throughout because of the way in which the camera was used to not confuse the audience but to show them difference parts of the building in which this was taking place, this gave the audience a slight image in their minds of what the scenery looked like which would enable them to be more engaged to the film. Last but not least the use of special effects in (SCREENSHOT 12) was highly effective because of the way in which the explosion looked very real and very intense, this would have grasped the audience immediately and almost permanently because of its dramatic sense.

SCREENSHOT 2

SCREENSHOT 3

SCREENSHOT 4

SCREENSHOT 5

SCREENSHOT 6

SCREENSHOT 7

SCREENSHOT 8

SCREENSHOT 9

SCREENSHOT 10

SCREENSHOT 11

SCREENSHOT 12

Thriller Openings - Analysis

You will consider and explore:
• How does the opening engage/create interest for the audience?
• Does it establish characters? How?
• Does the opening introduce themes, mood or story/narrative? How?
• How are the opening titles displayed?
• How is enigma established?

What you will need to analyse:
• Mise-en-scene;
• Use of soundtrack;
• Use of diegetic sound;
• Editing;
• Camera shot, movement and position;
• Use of special effects.

The Enemy Of The State 

SCREENSHOT 1

 Enemy of the State opens with a black screen and white writing - one reason for this could be that the director wants the audience to feel as if they are watching a computer screen or confidential file as this is a spy thriller. Another way the director engages and creates interest for the audience early on, is by the music that is used; the music that is used is very suspicious and engages the audience's attention immediately as it was very loud and the volume of the music fluctuates during the titles. The opening of this clip does establish the characters because it immediately goes into a shot of the man and his dog as you can see in SCREENSHOT 2. The character is established because the shot is of the man and his dog coming out of a car; however, in this shot the character is not clearly established and is still a tad vague in that you can't really see his face. Nevertheless this creates an enigma because the audience wants to know what this person looks like.  The audience do get a rough idea of what sort of character the man may be - the audience may even think that he is a friendly character as people who own dogs are seen to be those who are more gentle and kind. The opening introduces story/narrative and themes. For example in SCREENSHOT 3 the shot is of one of both characters, the man who left the car with a dog on the bench and the man who called him standing nearby the bench. This shows some sort of dominance by the man on the bench because the other man is wanting to sit with him. However it can also be seen that the man standing has dominance because he has a higher level. 

 The genre could be political because of the conversation the men have together on the bench where they are both conversing about the 'state' and about a situation. This also brings the mood and story/narrative -  the mood being suspicion and tense and the story/narrative being about some sort of mission or job that either of the men have to do. As I previously mentioned, the opening titles in this clip as shown in SCREENSHOT 1 are in a white font and medium sized with a background. This idea of the story/narrative being political will reinforce the idea that the audience were watching the computer screen in the beginning.The colours used give an edge to the opening because black and white are seen to be colours that cause suspense and are used when emphasis is needed. The enigma is established by SCREENSHOTS 3,4,5,6,7,8,9 and 10. The reason why the enigma is established here is because this is where the audience observe the main part of the opening where when the men converse they talk about the situation occuring and it becomes more intense when the man leaves with his dog as he is attacked by a group of people and killed and put into his car as you can see in SCREENSHOT 10. The amount of questions that the audience would want to ask are insurmountable.


The mise-en-scene in this opening from SCREENSHOT 2 - 10 is done in such a way, for example in SCREENSHOT 4 the character has glasses and a scarf on and also a jacket. The background consists with trees and they are seen to be mysterious and to cause tension. Also SCREENSHOT 3 the landscape behind both characters is arranged in such a manner; having the men placed in that way enhances the importance of the landscape because it is quite mystical and mysterious which is the feel the audience are recieving from watching the opening. The use of the soundtrack from 02:53 - 04:00 is highly effective, it is used in this way, that it causes real suspense and tension for the audience. The soundtrack used is notifying the audience that something tragic is about to occur and the soundtrack emphasises that by the use of violins within the soundtrack; this is orchestral music and is very high cultured. It commences off slow and gradually builds as the scene of where the man is killed (SCREENSHOT 9) begins to transcend. 

The soundtrack is used very effectively and gives the opening that extra edge to it. There is some use of diegetic sound during the part where the man is asking the other man for a favour (SCREENSHOT 4). The diegetic sound used is very effective and is a sort of low mellow sound of a violin increasing, and also the sounds of chimes or bells which make it sound quite sinister; this is because chimes and bells are also part of orchestral music.  The camera shots, movement and position used were very unique and original for example in SCREENSHOT 4 and 5; it is the 180 degree rule which is very successfully used. Also in SCREENSHOT 2,6 and 9, panning is used to capture the movement. The position of the camera in SCREENSHOT 9 is very effective and is a close up of the mans face which creates emphasis on the situation and gives the audience a sense of fear and makes them question what else is about to occur. 

SCREENSHOT 2

SCREENSHOT 3

SCREENSHOT 4

SCREENSHOT 5

SCREENSHOT 6

SCREENSHOT 7

SCREENSHOT 8

SCREENSHOT 9

SCREENSHOT 10