Thriller Genre research
What I will be researching
- Genre- Code and conventions,storylines and locations
- Narrative structure- Teodorov theory
- Media language/technical aspects - miss-en-scene, sound, editing, special effects and cinematography
- Character types-stereotypes
- Directors- why famous?
- Evolution of the genre/has it merged/ is it a hybrid?
- 3 key films
- Marketing- how advertised- posters
- Theorists- Vladimir Propp
Theorists
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We are following the equilibrium theory from Tzvetan Todorov. This narrative structure has been used in real media products is the majority of hollywood films. It's also commonly featured in Superhero Films and animations. For example, the equilibrium in The Dark Knight Rises, Bruce Wayne is hiding and has not been Batman for the last 8 years because of the incident with the Joker in which he took the blame and Batman is consequently seen as a vigilante. The disruption of the equilibrium comes from the appearance of the mysterious and Bane adversary Bane. Bruce Wayne consequently recognises the disruption and decides to become Batman once again. In this effort he loses the fight and his back is broken.He then begins his campaign of attempting to repair the damage. He does defeat Bane and Talia Al Ghul, but has to get rid of the nuclear bomb. In doing so, he fakes his own death and a new equilibrium begins.
Marketing
Often slow trailers that build up, have short sequences, quick cuts- sometimes may not tell us too much about story to build suspense. An example is the Purge trailer that introduces us to the protagonists before the pace beings to build up and the action intensifies. A sense of tension is created through the montage of quick clips that don't show off much about the story but intend to keep the audience interested. No Country For Old Men also starts off with a slow pace to introduce certain characters and possibly highlight their intentions and motives. However, to gain a bigger audience, Thrillers will have to advertise action to bring in more people who are susceptible to watching films that contain action and fast paced sequences. Thrillers as the sole genre of the movie are not that prevalent and as a result, thriller films are often advertised as being part of a sub-genre of something much bigger-i.e a horror. Posters for thriller films will often have the protagonist at the front and center of it and then have them surrounded or in some sort of issue/dilemma, desperate for help or escaping.
Three Key films
Trailer Examples
No COuntry for old men
No Country For Old Men is a epitome of the Thriller genre as it remains intense throughout. The main character/protagonist Moss played by Josh Brolin is hunted by a ruthless and vindictive antagonist, Chigurh who will stop at nothing to get back his money. The film plays out like a cat and mouse chase between the two, and the slow pace throughout helps build and create the tension. The mannerism and presence of Javier Bardem is enough to prove him as a worthy villain- of which he is considered to be one of the best of all time. The trailer kicks off by using an establishing shot that shows a barren and isolated location and then cutting to Javier Bardem's character- immediately signifying his importance and role.
Codes and Convetions
The thriller genre is most famous for films such as, Se7en, Heat and The Usual Suspects. The thriller genre is one of suspense and tension, and include gripping story lines, which makes the viewer want to watch more. Most thriller films include a battle between the Protagonist and Antagonist, which includes a variety of a chain of events in the process. The conventions of a Thriller are, low key lighting is often in thrillers to create drama and a sense of atmosphere, quick cuts and fast paced music are also used to increase tension (and blood pressure!) levels.
Character types
There are some character conventions of the 'Thriller' genre which are shown below:
Psychological thriller:
Conspiracy thriller:
Overall, stereotypes typically include the antagonist who may mentally or physically challenge the protagonists. The protagonists will often be presented as being weaker,however if they ban together they may be able to overcome the antagonist. Females are often seen as being weak and vulnerable to the antagonist. This can be seen in the Scream franchise and Psycho (1960).
Psychological thriller:
- Convict
- Criminals
- Stalkers
- Assassins
- Innocent victims
- Menaced women
- Characters with dark pasts
- Psychotic character
- Terrorists
- Cops or police
- Fugitives
- Private eyes
- Drifters
Conspiracy thriller:
- Assassins
- Mentally Unstable
- Terrorists
- Politcal
- Manipulative
- Spies
- Hero
- Villain
- Terrorist
- Escapees
- Superhero
- Weak Female
- Stereotypical female
- Police/ Corrupt
Overall, stereotypes typically include the antagonist who may mentally or physically challenge the protagonists. The protagonists will often be presented as being weaker,however if they ban together they may be able to overcome the antagonist. Females are often seen as being weak and vulnerable to the antagonist. This can be seen in the Scream franchise and Psycho (1960).
Notable directors part of this genre
It should go without saying that Alfred Hitchcock belongs on this list. Most of his films prominently feature thriller elements and are renowned for being some of the best around. Films such as Psycho from 1960 for example. Similarly, directors and brothers Joel and Ethan Coen have films such as No Country For Old Men under their belt- which I felt is a perfect example of the genre.
Alfred hitchcockSome of his most famous films include Psycho (1960), Vertigo (1958), Rear Window (1954) and North By Northwest (1959). All of these films are thrillers and were at least nominated for Oscars and are critically acclaimed.Psycho is arguably one of the most iconic Thriller films, and reinvented the genre. In an essence, his films have been the inspiration for many modern thrillers.
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Todorov's narrative theory
Todorov's narrative theory is made up of of 5 steps- equilibrium, a disruption, realisation, restored order and equilibrium again.
This theory is something I am looking to implement into the narrative of our teaser trailer.
- The equilibrium stage involves life being normal and nothing out of the ordinary not occurring.
- The disruption stage involves life for the protagonist/main character being interrupted by a problem they will need to solve.
- The realisation stage involves everyone understanding the problem and coming up with a way in which they can solve it.
- The protagonist/main character will try to solve the issue.
- Equilibium once again
This theory is something I am looking to implement into the narrative of our teaser trailer.
Evolution of the genre
In my opinion and from what I've seen over the last few years, the thriller genre has changed it's appeal from dark themes to meet the younger generation (teenagers). This is evident by the type of films we used to get in the 50's and 60's with Alfred Hitchcock; Psycho and Rear Window. Nowadays we get films like San Andreas, The Conjuring. Films such as the Conjuring and Paranormal Activity show how the genre has become a hybrid with the horror genre and that films often refer to cheep thrills and jump scares to be classed as a thriller. Occasionally however, we get hidden gems such as Gone Girl and No Country For Old Men. Whilst these films are critical successes, often being praised for fantastic performances and boasting great stories, they hardly gross past their own budget and make enough to see a profit. Gone Girl is an 88% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes and made $368,061,911 on a $61m budget. This was due to positive word of mouth as well as already having an established fan base being based on a popular novel. Moreover, sometimes great thriller films from director David Fincher such as The Zodiac has an 89% rating on Rotten Tomatoes but only made $84m worldwide on a $64m budget. This shows how the films of the genre don't always gross a lot of money and are most definitely not a guaranteed success at the box office, but may be critical successes.More recently, films such as Blackhat ($19m on a $70m budget) and Child 44 ($12m worldwide) have failed miserably at the box office. New technology has seemed to take away from these films with CGI and visual effects now being preferred over practical sets and the use of little visual effects. The audience demographic has also seemed to dramatically changed with teenagers often now being the target audience for the majority of thriller/horror hybrids like Paranormal Activity.