Research on Thriller Sub-Genres

To decide on which sub-genre of thriller to make our film, it seemed fitting to research a few popular ones.
To look at the sub-genres of thrillers we must first look at what makes the broader thriller in general.
"A Thriller is a broad genre of literature, film and television that includes numerous and often overlapping sub-genres. Thrillers are characterized by fast pacing, frequent action, and resourceful heroes who must thwart the plans of more powerful and better equipped villains."
This is the wikipedia definition of a thriller. From my own knowledge I can also say that common thriller forms and conventions include a protagonist that the audience can associate with, a mystery for the protagonist and the audience to solve, and action sequences.
Popular Sub-Genres include:
-Action Thriller
-Conspiracy Thriller
-Crime Thriller
-Disaster Thriller
-Drama Thriller
-Science-Fiction Thriller
-Horror Thriller
-Legal Thriller
-Medical Thriller
-Political Thriller
-Psychological Thriller

Psychological thrillers are considered to be one of the smarter types of film, often playing on human instinct and psychology. They also often cross over into the horror sub-genre, creating suspense through fear. They often tend to have a focus on the development of characters over the plot, and so result in there being more about the psyche of characters rather than intense action.

Crime thrillers on the other hand usually have a focus on physical action rather than psychology. They often follow the criminal to give us an insight into their life, and allow us to follow their crime spree. Crime thrillers feature murders, robberies, chases, shootouts, and double-crosses as central topics.

Continuity Exercise

This is what we produced for our continuity exercise. I think for our first piece it worked quite well. We ran into difficulty getting permission to film in particular rooms that we wanted to, and some shots being difficult to get into position to get, but we managed to work around these problems by finding alternative locations, and ways into places for the camera to go.

Continuity Exercise Story Planning

We were set the task of making a short video, keeping continuity specifically in mind. First we decided on a storyline. We went with something simple that would allow us to experiment with camera angles and positions and get a feel for what the camera could do. We decided to go with a short comedy film about a man who walked down an office corridor into another mans office and asked him for a pen. He then gets thrown out of the office, but is proud of having gotten the pen.

We would open with an over the shoulder shot watching the main character walking down an corridor. He would walk away from the camera.

We would then have a shot facing alongside the corridor, through a gap in the wall. We were able to plan this as we had decided on locations as we decided to do this piece all in school, as it was a practice exercise.

The next shot would be in the opposite direction to that which the character was walking in, so we could see his front.

For the next shot we decided to do a high angle shot, creating a CCTV like feel. We got this shot by placing the camera and tripod high in a window and Mike climbing up with it to adjust it.

Not shown in the storyboard, as we decided to do it as we were filming, to improve continuity, was an over the shoulder shot of the character opening the door form behind. This shot shows the character coming in through the door and closing it behind him. It was a mid shot from across the room.

This shot was an over the shoulder shot as the first character asks the new character for a pen. The second character is at first hidden behind the first character, but when the first character has spoken, he sits up and is visible.

In this shot, the second character shows his anger at being asked for a pen, and stands up and grabs the first character. We used a mid shot and a 2 shot to show both of them fully.

In this shot, the first character is thrown out of the office. It is implied that the second character did this by his anger in the previous shot, however we did not actually have him throw James over, as this would create potential health and safety hazards. Instead we positioned the camera facing down a wall, and had James roll backwards from behind the wall, to appear as if he'd been thrown.

We then had a sequence of close up shots on the first characters face as he walked away from the office, gloating from his success in getting the pen. For this we had to have one person hold the camera pointing at his fave and walk ahead of him, whilst another person guided him around the corners to make the shot as smooth as possible, which was quite difficult to do. We then placed the camera in a few positions as He walked towards it, to allow us to do several cuts.

In the final scene, the character walks towards a set of stairs. He then jumps off them and we froze the image in the editing and used a fade-to-black.

Psycho Analysis

Psycho is one of the most well known, and well respected thrillers of all time. Directed by Alfred Hitchcock 'the Master of Suspense', he used many techniques to create a film that has stood the test of time.
The 'Shower Scene' is perhaps one of the most famous scenes in cinema history, often being copied and almost always being used as an example of his works. In it, lead character Marian is killed by what appears to be an old woman with a kitchen knife. However, as we can see in the picture, the woman is silhouetted , meaning that no details can be made out. This means that anything the audience sees is entirely down to what they believe they percieve. This technique can be a powerful one, as it plays on the imagination of the viewer, and so can feel more frightening to them. This is played with even more, as Hitchcock never actually shows any violence during this killing. We are shown the knife bearers hand drawing back, and going fowards, but then it cuts to Marian's face. The only gore shown is in the small amount of blood that flows down into the drain.
What adds even more to this scene is Psycho's incredibly famous musical score. Using muted violins, Hitchcock has some of the most effective tension raising music used in cinema. It puts the viewer on edge with its unusual sound, whilst letting us know that something key to the plot is soon to happen.
The killing takes place at about 47 minutes into the film, which is 109 minutes long. This is unconventional, as up to now, we are in the belief that Marian is the main character, and the plot of the story is focused on her stealing the money from her workplace. However when Hitchcock kills her off, it confuses the viewer as to what they thought was going to happen next. Up until that point the audience would likely have presumed that Marian would have either figured out a way to give back all the money and make up for her crime, or made a successful escape with it. However her death leads the viewer to a new state of suspense, as they truly don't know what's going to happen next. This was a truly revolutionary move by Hitchcock.
What follows the 'Shower Scene' is a period of no dialogue, where Norman Bates cleans up the murder. Normally this would be seen as a dull, pointless scene, however with the viewer having believed the film was about the stolen money, we find ourselves throughout this scene wondering whether Bates is going to discover the money and/or what he's going to do about it. Throughout the scene the camera often hovers over little details we believe Bates hasn't spotted which could lead to the discovery of this murder, but then he turns back and corrects them. It also lingers over the disguised stash of stolen money, which we belive Bates will find. However he sees it only as a rolled up newspaper, and sinks it with the rest of the evidence that Marian was there. Therefore we can see that from this scene, through small details, Hitchcock has turned what would normally be a dull event for an audience, into a tense scene.
From all this we can see that the techniques Hitchcock used to create tension and suspense were a powerful musical score, and unconventional time in the film for the death of the main protagonist, and using the viewers imagination to make the killing more effective.

Fight Club Analysis

I have decided to analyse both a modern thriller, and a classic thriller, 'Fight Club' and 'Psycho' respectively.

Fight Club is considered one of the greatest thrillers in modern cinema, with Brad Pitt's character 'Tyler Durden' being considered one of the most absorbing and influential characters created. A brief synopsis of Fight Club is that an insomniac office worker (Edward Norton) meets a soap salesman (Brad Pitt), and together they create a fight club, which soon spreads to many other cities. Pitt's character then uses this club to wreak havok across the city.

As you would expect from a film of this name, there are many fight scenes. The pure brutality of these scenes is enthralling to watch, as we see men who willingly go into fights wanting to hurt people and also to be hurt. It is this that makes the fight scenes stand out from fight scenes in other films, as in Fight Club they have an added psychological factor. In most films a fight would occur because a character was angry at another one, however in this film it is merely because the men are bored with their lives. This makes them much more interesting, because it adds a factor of human psychology, something which helps to make a thriller gripping, as I pointed out in my essay about 'Taking Lives'.

What really makes Fight Club stand out as an incredible film then, is not its fight scenes, but it's take on human psychology. It gives us a view of the mentally unstable from their perspective. However it does not reveal it's doing this until near the very end, and this massive twist in the plot is what has helped make many people see this film as a modern classic.

At the start of the film, it looks at human psychology through Norton's characters insomnia. It shows us how it affects his life and his work. It then goes on to show us how he eventually finds his own cure for it - going to support groups for the terminally ill. This gives us an interesting look at how someone can pretend to have a terrible illness around those who actually do.

Towards the end of the film, it looks at how someone deals with discovering they have a serious mental disorder that not only threatens themselves, but many others across the whole city.

Alongside its gripping, realistic fight scenes, it is this look at human psychology that really makes Fight Club stand out as an landmark thriller, that can stand alongside films such as Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho.

In What Ways Does ‘Taking Lives’ Conform to or Subvert From What you Consider to be the Forms and Conventions of the Thriller Genre?

The typical forms and conventions of a Thriller involve the protagonist who achieves great tasks, puzzles and mysteries which surround the story which create a need to find in both the protagonist and the audience, psychology and human nature which intrigues the audinece into finding out bout our basic instincts, action sequences to excite viewers and suspense to make the audience want to keep watching.
The protagonist in 'Taking Lives' subverts from the normal convention of starting off as an average, normal looking man, as seen in Edward Norton in 'Fight Club'. Instead Angelina Jolie stars as an FBI profiler drafted in to help catch a serial killer. The convention of a normal man is because it allows the audience to sympathise with the character. When a character starts off extraordinary, the audience finds it hard to feel connected to them. This is why in a typical thriller the protagonist will start off normal, then become extraordinary in order to overcome the challenges they face - when they do extraordinary things, the audience can sympathise with them better. However in 'Taking Lives' Angelina Jolie's character starts off already extraordinary - an FBI profiler, and both beautiful and clever. Also it is unusual to find a female lead character, possibly because there is a larger male audience and the director/scriptwriter believes they will empathise better with a male character, so here again 'Taking Lives' subverts from the thriller genre in terms of forms and conventions.
Puzzles and mysteries feature heavily in the thriller genre, and as 'Taking Lives' is about an FBI agent trying to find a serial killer, it clearly conforms to this idea. Puzzles and mysteries faeture in thrillers because they allow the audience to get drawn into figuring it out along with the protagonist, allowing for more empathy. The mystery in this film is to figure out who the serial killer is, which not only conforms to the genre in having a mystery, but is a very standard mystery featured in many films. Almost all thrillers feature murder, perhaps because it evokes strong emotions of sympathy in almost any viewer, which allows the film to feel more effective and suspenseful. A thriller without a mystery would likely feel slow and dull, therefore puzzles and mysteries are naturally a part of thrillers which must be conformed to , and 'Taking Lives' is no exception.
Thrillers often focus on human nature and psychology, and 'Taking Lives' conforms to this aspect too. Angelina Jolie's character is brought in to assess the murder and make a profile of the killer. During this she draws out certain character traits to expect from the killer, showing a focus on psychology as she puts herself in his shoes. Through her investigation, the killer is shown to have become a killer because his mother loved his twin brother more. This twisted his mind, and he became a murderer, living the lives of his victims for a while before killing again and moving on. This shows a focus on his psychology, and therefore 'Taking Lives' conforms to the thriller genre in terms of psychology.
Thrillers often have action sequences, however 'Taking Lives' is quite short on these, having only a car chase and an on foot chase through the city centre. Thrillers have action sequences because it allows for shows of physical finesse, showing extraordinariness in the characters. They also heighten the tension, showing that the 'good guys' are close to catching the 'bad guys'. The chase scenes in 'Taking Lives' are quite good, as they are fast paced and make good use of effective camera angles. However, they're short lived and the film would lose none of its effectiveness without them, so in terms of action sequences, 'Taking Lives' subverts from the forms and conventions of thrillers.
Thillers must have suspense and tension, otherwise they're just not thrilling as such, and so 'Taking Lives' does conform to the conventional thriller here. In one particular moment the tension is slowly built up until the killer attacks Angelina Jolie. The tension is also built up by the stories told by the mother, which is very effective it creating suspense. When Angelina Jolie is exploring the hidden basement, it is poorly lit. This plays on the human fear of the unknown, as the mise-en-scene allows us to see very little scenery. In these scenes, tension is slowly built up and layered until the audience is very tense and then the climax occurs. This shows that 'Taking Lives' conforms to the thriller genre with tension and suspense.
From this we can see that in three of the five criteria I chose, 'Taking Lives' conforms to the thriller genre, and only in the criteria of the protagonist and action sequences does it subvert, although not in the way the action sequences are done, but in the quantity of them. Therefore we can see that 'Taking Lives' conforms to the forms and conventions of the thriller genre.

Camera Shots

This post is to show various camera angles used in the film industry, their effects, and when they are commonly used. Camera shots are the angles, zoom level and the placement of the camera in relation to the subjects of the shot.

Establishing shot
An establishing shot is a very zoomed out shot, generally showing a large area or landscape, and sets the location of the scene. They are usually used at the beginning of the scene.








Long Shot
A long shot genereally shows all of a character or characters and also show the surrounding setting they're in. Long shots are often used to show a group of people and their surroundings, or to give a profile of a character.









Medium Shot
A medium shot is at a zoom level which shows a character or characters from about the chest or waist up. They draw the attention into certain points more than a long shot. They also allow the audience to see some of the setting.








Close Up
A close up draws attention onto very specific details, usually a hand gesture or a facial expression. They are often used in reaction shots, to show a characters emotion in detail between exchanges of dialogue.







Extreme Close Up
Extreme close ups are zoomed in to the extent that something small, such as someones eye, fills the screen. This allows the whole screen to be filled with the emotion of the character.











Over the Shoulder
An over the shoulder shot gives a perspective of the point of view of a character. Usually they are also a 2 shot, as they are often used during dialogue, as they show the talker and the reaction of the other character.









High Angle Shot
High angle shots are used to make the subject of the shot look inferior, or powerless. They do this by looking down on the character, giving the audience the feeling they are above them.


















Low Angle Shot
Low angle shots are used to make the subject look powerful. This effect is created by placing the camera beneath the subject and looking up at them, making the audience feel they are beneath the subjects.

Practicing Camera Shots - Stills

For our first task, we had to take a series of still photos using different camera angles and shots to get used to positioning the camera. We had to plan these photos ahead, and arrange them into a storyboard. For this exercise we chose a very simple storyline, where a drugs deal went badly and resulted in a fight.

We started with an establishing shot, to set the scene and introduce the characters. We found a location within school that we thought looked quite run down and suitable to the story.

This shot shows the 2 characters from the previous shot involved in a drugs deal. This is a mid shot and a 3 shot.

This shot shows the dtugs dealer talking to the 2 'druggie' characters. It shows one character in a particularly weak position in relation to the others, sitting on the floor, and the drugs dealer in a much more authoritative stance than the others.

This shot is to improve continuity. In the storyboard this would signal the end of this scene, as the characters having finished the drugs deal would walk away, after helping one another up.

This shot is reflected in a mirror for a number of reasons. Firstly it creates an interesting effect, which improves the whole feel. And secondly because it gives the effect of watching something around a corner. This fits in with what is happening in the story, as the 2 druggies are about to take their drugs, and wouldn't want to be seen, so this creates a sort of spying effect.

This shot shows the druggie taking drug off of a toilet seat. This shot was better for our excercise than showing it from the front, as we would've run into difficulties with making anything look real from the front.

These shots show the characters going up the stairs, they show are establishing shots, as they show the new place the scene is located in.

These shots show the drugs dealer walking towards the druggies. One of the druggies is passed out on the floor already, because of the drugs they've taken. The first shot is an establishing shot, the second and over the shoulder shot, and the third and fourth long shots.

In this scene, the druggies have been unable to pay the dealer, and so a fight breaks out. Being high the druggie clearly loses. The first shot shows a mid shot 2 shot, and the second shot show a mid shot with the camera placed at a very low position, to show the druggies place next to the dealers feet.

After dealing with the 2 druggies, the dealer walks away. In the first shot we have a mid shot, and in the second we have a long shot, to show that everything is finshed. Throughout all of the shots the druggies face is never shown, either hidden by his hood or the camera. This is because it adds an air of mystery to him, and also implies that in their drug fuelled state, the druggies are unable to descern any features from him, and gives us an in sight into the characters.