Thriller Opening 4 - Unforgiven - Clint Eastwood - 1992 (Western Thriller)

(Up-to 122:37)

Camera - At the begging of the extract the camera remains in a fixed position whilst the solitude character digs a

grave. The director chose to do this as to allow text to scroll up the screen. Both the text and the camera position

give an insight into the narrative of the extract. The extreme long shot allows the audience to see where the text is

set. The red sunset, the mountain and the wooden buildings are all common to the 'Western' genre. From this the

audience have a preconceived idea of what the extract will contain based upon its genre. The director pans around

the town. This shows the setting of the text, in addition the audience is shown the silhouette of a couple kissing then

the camera falls on a window. This panning allows the audience to 'soak' up the atmosphere of the text before being

led to the main story line. During the struggle between the characters a shot-reverse-shot is used between the

character with the knife and his victim. This allows the audience to see both characters expressions and reactions.

This allows the audience to engage with the characters allowing them to feel more a part of the action. Shot-reverse-

shots are common in Thrillers as the director can build suspense by switching between the two characters.

This is common in a 'face off' between the protagonist and the antagonist.

Editing - The opening shot last for a long time with out any cuts. This allows the audience to engage with the

atmosphere of the text. In addition it leaves along enough time for the text to scroll down the screen. The director

chose to use a fade transition between takes. This shows the passing of time. Usually this would be used in a Thriller

to allow the audience to 'recover' from the action. As the text continues the

director begins to use straight cuts. These can be effectively used to create

suspense at the begging of the action. The pace of the editing matches the

pace of the action. Suspense is a common convention of Thriller movies.

Sound - At the beginning of the extract the non-diegetic sound runs parallel

with the narrative. The music is suited to the genre of the text. The director

chose to do this as to set the atmosphere of the text. Contrapuntal music

wouldn't of appealed to the audience and their ideologies. The director

effectively uses a sound bridge between 2 scenes. This keeps continuity in the

text. Also it helps to build on suspense, this is because it is unexpected and

almost makes the viewer 'jump' Furthermore the director combines diegetic

sound and editing to effectively create suspense. Effectively combining the

two allows the audience to engage as suspense is created. At the end of the

action all the diegetic sound is quietened so that the click of the gun is

emphasised. This shows the importance of the gun to the narrative of the text.

In addition it shows that silence is also an effective way of creating suspense,

common to Thriller movies.

Mise-en-scene- At the begging of the extract the audience see a silhouetted landscape consisting of a house, a tree

and a man digging. This silhouette is created by the a glorious sunset. From this the audience have an impression

of the location and genre of the text. Such sunsets are associated with deserts thus the audience is led to believe that

the film is of a western genre as all 'westerns' are set in dry deserts. In addition to this the silhouette creates a sense

of ambiguity about the text. This is due to the fact the audience is limited to what hey can see. The director has done

this to make the scrolling text more effect as the audience need to read it to understand the narrative of the text. As

the scene progresses the audience are shown an apparently empty town due to the rain. However as the camera crabs

the audience see another silhouette, this time of a couple kissing. The director is trying to convey the idea that the

specific characters aren't important however the connotations associated with their actions are. The idea of conveying

an action allows the audience to add their own personal opinion to the text increasing their engagement. The

characters costume convey to the audience the characters social standing. From this the audience are allowed to

engage with the characters more. This is common to all Thrillers as it increases the effect of suspense films on the

audience. In addition to costumes the director has effectively used props. Such props as the gun are common to mostly

all thrillers. However each sub-genre of thriller has its own style of weapon. This is important to the text as it helps

establish genre.

Special Effects - Very few special effects are used in the opening of the text. The only point where special effects

are used is during the fight scene. The blood from the cut woman is common to a lot of thrillers. However it is not

necessarily apart of all thrillers. However the climax of a suspense scene is very important. In this extract the climax is reached however the action continues and suspense is continually created as the audience don't know what will happen to the character.

Titles - The titles and the scrolling font are in a classic typing font. This font suits the opening and the genre of the text. The director chose to use white text as it stands out against the background. In addition the director choice white to juxtapose the red colour of the title of "Unforgiven". Furthermore there is inconsistency in the font. The sinister font of the title of the film creates the impression to what the narrative will contain this then links back wit the chosen colour of red which has symbolic meanings of "danger" and "blood" . This is consistent within all Thrillers.

Thriller Opening 3 - Saw II - Darren Lynn Bousman, 2005 (Psychological Thriller)

Camera - Initial Point of View Shots allow the audience to see what is happening as the character does.

The audience is aware of the fact that the character doesn't know where they are. This is reflected in the

fact that the panning of the camera is quick, showing the characters distress and in the fact that there is

non-diegetic panting sound. From this is the director has effectively created suspense, a common

convention to the Thriller genre. Instead of switching to a close up of the characters face, the director

choses to use an over the shoulder shot to reveal the characters situation. This allows the audience to

engage with the character. The camera slowly zooms in on the character on the Television screen. The

director has chosen to do this to add emphasis to the importance of the character. In addition the director

uses a shot-reverse-shot technique to show the facial expression of the character as he hears what is

being said on the tele, further allowing the audience to engage. The director uses extreme close ups of

the characters eye to show the importance of it to the narrative of the text. The 360 degree panning of

the character shows the audience the full extent of the situation. In addition it helps build suspense as the

panning increases speed.

Editing - At the beginning of the text there are long takes. This helps

to establish the initial setting of the text. However as both character

and audience become aware of the distressful situation the pace of

the editing quickens. This builds on suspense increasing the audience

engagement. The director effectively quickens the pace to suit the

narrative of the text. This eventually leads to a montage sequence

continually building on suspense. After the climax of the action the

editing slows pace, thus allowing the audience to 'recover' from the

action. This is a common convention of Thriller movies.

Sound - At the beginning of the extract the director effectively

emphasises diegetic sound of the props in the scene. This adds to the

ambiguity of the situation. The director effectively uses non diegetic

eerie sounds to help build suspense. In addition it also gives the

audience the impression that the character was under sedation. This

provides an insight into the narrative of the text. As the character

realises his situation the sound levels increase as the the action

heightens. When the timer begins to start the non-diegetic sound stops.

The only sound comes from the ticking of the clock. This adds emphasis to the importance of time thus

heightening the suspense as time is against the character. In this text silence is used as effectively as loudness

The non-diegetic sound reaches a creshendo as the action reaches its peak. The director emphasises the diegetic

sound of the moving of the x-ray pictures. This helps to create suspense. 

After the height of the action the non diegetic sound quietens. This suits the 'recovery' stage of the extract and 

leads into the title scene.

Mise-en-scene - The decor of the room looks very real, however there is a low verisimilitude as the likely

chance that this situation would occur is very low. The opening shot is filmed using low key lighting.

This reflects the dark mood and atmosphere showing the audience the theme of the narrative. The colour

red is present in the text. Red has is culturally symbolic of danger and blood. This leads the audience to believe

that these will be present in the narrative of the text. The Television is used by the antagonist to communicate

to the characters. The use of common household objects as props in Thriller films is a common convention.

I believe the director chose to use a Television because the audience can relate to it. In addition through

effective use of narrative an technical codes the audience can engage with the text and come to fear the

object as much as the characters in the text.

Special Effects - The trap placed around the characters neck obviously isn't real. The special effects make it

appear very realistic. As a result there is more of a 'cringe' factor associated with the scene. This makes the

text more believable allowing the audience to engage more.

Titles - The title scene has an 'eerie' feel to it. The apparent floating text fades in then fades out. The director chose

this because it suits the genre of the text. An 'eerie' atmosphere is a common convention of all psychological thrillers.

The text is centralized, emphasizing its importance. The director chose to use white as the colour for the title.

White is symbolic of purity and innocence. The 'off' white colour helps to provide an insight into the narrative of

the text. Due to the symbolic meaning the 'off' white colour tells us that there will be a change to the purity or

innocence.

Thriller Opening 2 -The Matrix - The Wachowski Brothers, 1999 (Science Fiction Thrller)

(Up to 6:39)

Camera- In the opening sequence to the matrix all aspects

of camera movement where used. However the key ones 

to analyse are the hand held camera shots, the swipe pan 

and the 360 degree pan. When the character known as 'Trinity'

fled the fight scene the director chose to follow her with 

other the shoulder shot by a hand held camera. This 

allowed the audience to engage with the character, 

in addition the unclarity of what is in the shot helps build

suspense. This effect is also present when the director 

chose to use a swipe pan in the fight scene. This 

blurs the image making it unclear to the audience what is

happening to the character thus building suspense. 

The 360 degree pan of 'Trinity' in the air subtracts 

from the realism of the text. However it also provides 

an insight into the narrative as the audience can tell

that from the genre of the text is science-fiction as well

as thriller. Allowing the audience to engage with the text

appears to be a convention associated with all Thriller.

Editing - The extract starts with long takes however 

as the action scene begins the takes get shorter. All

editing is done using straight cuts. This helps 

create the pace of the text and the narrative. When

combined with 

the non diegetic 

sound suspense 

is effectively 

created this 

allows the 

audience to 

become more 

involved with 

the text.

Sound - Both

diegetic and 

non-diegetic 

sound are used 

effectively in 

the extract. 

The non diegetic 

musical score 

runs parallel to the text and fits in time with the editing.

The fast tempo  and long notes help to create suspense.

As the action climaxes so does the musical score reach 

a crescendo. The diegetic sound is made louder in areas 

to add emphasis and to create suspense in the text.

'Suspense' is a common convention of all Thriller movies.

Mise-en-scene - The extract is shot in a very low key 

lighting. This helps create the atmosphere and suspense.

Scenes of low lighting are common to Thrillers as 

darkness is an easy way to  create suspense because what

is going to happen next is unclear to the audience. The 

lighting also suggests an insight into the narrative of the

text. Such props as the police gun provide the audience 

with an insight into the narrative. Guns have connotations

of violence which is common to most action thrillers. The

colour green is present at the title scene. The green text 

creates adds an eerie futuristic feeling to  the text. This 

is common to the hybrid genre of science-fiction. I 

believe the title scene wouldn't of  been as affective 

with another colour.

Special Effects - The title scene is made using CGI. 

The director uses special effects to create the green

falling symbols. These relate to the narrative of the text

and help portray to the audience what is going to

be included in the text. This relates back to the conventions

of genres. From this use of CGI the audience get an 

understanding of what to expect from the text. In

addition CGI are used when the audience see the

tracing of a call. The camera slowly zooms in on one

number. From this the director is trying to show the

importance of technology in the text further using 

conventions of a genre.

Titles - The director has chosen to use a font commonly

associated with computers and technology. This

stereotypical font reinforces the directors choice of 

narrative. The director has stuck with the color of green to keep

a certain style going. Combining the falling symbols with 

the title effectively keeps the narrative flowing, in addition it 

effectively reinforces that the established genre is present in 

the narrative as the titles are the same as the convention already

established. An effective technique used by the director is

keeping the colours and the lighting of the titles similar to 

that of the opening scene. This keeps continuity.

Thriller Opening 1 -Psycho - Alfred Hitchcock, 1960 (Horror Thriller)

Camera - Throughout the opening credits the camera doesn't 

move nor change angle. The credits are presented to the audience

in front of them. In addition the titles are centralized in each shot. 

The director chose to do this to add emphasis to the titles and draw

the audiences attention to deeper meaning in the title sequence. 

The meaning interpreted from the extract links to the animation 

and graphics.

Editing - The title sequence consists only of short takes all 

accompanied by straight cuts. This is faced past editing which 

effectively combines with the non-diegetic sound. From this the 

audience expect the pace of the title sequence to be reflected in 

the pace of the narrative. In addition the editing 

(combined with the non-diegetic sound) effectively creates suspense. 

This is a convention commonly associated with Thrillers from this 

the audience gain an insight into the genre of the text thus meaning 

that they have preconceived ideas about what to expect from the 

text. As a result the director has instantly influenced the audiences 

attitude and expectations from the text as a result the director can

build on this to create an effective Thriller movie.

Sound - There is no diegetic sound present in the title sequence. 

The non-diegetic musical score provided by an orchestra is common 

to many of older thrillers. The high pitched string instruments 

effectively create suspense. This

links back to the editing to help create pace.

Mise-en-scene - The title sequence consists 

of only titles and straight lines. The straight 

lines are symbolic of rigidness and normality

this is reinforced when the lines interlink

smoothly. However this idea is juxtaposed 

when the lines and the text don't align 

smoothly representing abnormality. This 

shows the audience that the theme of 

abnormality is present in the narrative of 

the text. This is common to phycological 

thrillers.

Special Effects - The lines present in the title sequence are 

CGI images animated to move.  I believe the director chose 

to express his ideas using symbolic images rather than using 

iconic images. As a result the meaning is left slightly ambiguous

and for the audience to interpret themselves. I believe the 

director chose to do this to allow the audience to engage 

with their own opinions and ideas.

Titles - The chosen colour for the titles is white on black 

background. The positioning of the titles doesn't follow any

particular structure however most titles appear to be 

centralized in the shot. This emphasizes there importance. 

The colour white traditional has connotation of purity and

innocence. However in this title opening scene the letters of the

word 'Psycho' is distorted. I believe the director has chosen

to do this to show the idea that purity and innocence is

lost in this text.

What is a Thriller?

What is a Thriller?

Genre is a form of categorization in which media texts are sorted based on common stylistic conventions and narrative. We can use this idea to extract relative information on conventions of Thrillers. Such conventions of a genre are the: characters, locations, narrative, use of technical codes and semiotics. The main convention across all types of thriller is to give the audience ‘thrills’ and excitement by increasing adrenaline levels. The director does this buy building on tension; as a result the audience is left ‘on the edge of their seats’ usually leaving them wanting more.

 

It is rare to find a text singularly categorized as a Thriller this can be due to disputes over the classification as a genre, but more commonly because there are a large number of sub genres. Sub genres are hybrids between two types of genre. In the case of Thrillers there is a large amount. Some examples are: action-thrillers, horror-thrillers, crime-thrillers, medical-thrillers, sci-fi thrillers, disaster-thrillers, supernatural-thrillers and psychological thrillers. Each type of hybrid has its own set of conventions, which slightly differ (additional conventions common to the other half of the hybrid). When it comes to analysing Thriller extracts I will choice from a wide range of sub genres.

 

Common conventions of thrillers include:

 

Narrative- Present in all forms of Thrillers is the general narrative. This consists of the protagonist disrupting and preventing the antagonist’s plans. Usually the narrative is complex with lots of ‘twists’ in the plot. These intrigue both the protagonist and the audience of the text. For example “The Village”⁽⁶⁾ such ‘twists’ effectively create tension and help the audience engage. In addition the protagonist is usually ‘brought to there knees’ by the antagonist by exploiting their flaws. A thriller climaxes when the hero, often saving the lives of others, eventually defeats the villain. Initially the protagonist is put into peril. The survival of the protagonist isn’t guaranteed. The previous general narrative is found in the films “I am Legend”⁽⁷⁾ and “The Hills Have Eyes 2”⁽⁸⁾

 

Characters- In Thrillers the protagonist is usually seen as a ‘hard man’ (or women!) from this I mean a character who is used to danger and conflict such as an army officer, law enforcement officer or a spy.  Such as the ATF agent in “Déjà vu”⁽¹⁾ similarly the protagonist usually has a background of deadly skills and training. For example the EX-CIA agent in “Taken”⁽²⁾ other common protagonists include ‘every day’ people caught up in a serious danger. For example the character of Neo in “The Matrix”⁽³⁾, such protagonists are put into dangerous situations where the audience fear for their lives this tension is then heightened by the director’s use of technical codes and semiotics.

 

                          Opposing the protagonist is the antagonist. Common antagonist roles include assassins and terrorists. For example the renegade general in “The Rock”⁽⁴⁾ who captures the famous American landmark of Alcatraz and holds San Francisco hostage with nuclear weapons. However other common characters include psychotic individuals such as the character of Jigsaw in the film “Saw”⁽⁵⁾ such characters are more common to the genre of Horror of which closely links to thrillers.

 

Locations- Due to the large amount of subgenres the location is dependent on the other half of the hybrid. For example the audience would expect a medical-thriller to be set in a Hospital! As a result there isn’t one general location of thrillers. Locations can range from cities, to deep space, to abandoned warehouses to exotic locations. I believe location has some effect on the tension created in the text however the majority of tension and ‘thrills’ is created through the use of technical codes and semiotics. 

 

Technical Codes – Each technical code (camera, sound, editing and mise-en-scene) can be used to create different effects on the audience. Tension is successfully and effectively created when all are used together. The master at creating tension was Alfred Hitchcock. The renowned shower scene in the film “Physco”⁽⁹⁾ this is an excellent example when all technical codes are used to effectively to build tension and increase audience engagement. I plan to look closer at the technical codes when I analyse extracts from thrillers.  

Bibliography

1.    Tony Scott, 2006

2.    Pierre More, 2008

3.    Andy & Larry Wachowski, 1999

4.    Michael Bay, 1996

5.    James Wan, 2004

6.    M. Night Shyamalan, 2004

7.    Francis Lawrence, 2007

8.    Martin Weisz, 2007

9.    Alfred Hitchcock, 1960

Practice Animatic

I believe my groups first attempt at an Animatic was very successful. The diegetic sound fitted well with the piece and the genre of the text. In addition it fitted the pace of the editing. Furthermore I believe the recreation of camera worked well especially in the panning. I believe this allows the audience to engage withe text and the text helps build tension. This is due our use of conventions common to the genre of Thriller.

To improve our animatic firstly i believe some of the images where unclear in meaning. Next time we will try to draw neater and shall research key storyboard techniques and notations such as directional arrows. In addition to improve the quality of the images we shall user a scanner instead of a digital camera. This will make our pictures clearer. In addition it will be easier to crop them to the right size removing writing around the edges.

Furthermore i believe we should of added some parallel non-diegetic sound to play along in the background. This would have to suit the genre and tie in with the editing. Non-diegetic can be used to create suspense and increase audience engagement.