conventions of a thriller

What is a thriller?

• A thriller normally consists of a conflict between the protagonist and the antagonist.
• The story contains a chain of tragic events leading to the climax.
• The antagonist seeks to destroy justice whereas the protagonist plan to foil their plans.

conventions

• Low key lighting
• Quick cuts
• Shadows
• Tension music
• Changes in the angle of the shot
• Diegetic sound of breathing
• Black and white shots
• Montage of shots
• Protagonist is in the mercy of the antagonist

characters

• The protagonist is often a brave male who seeks to restore the equilibrium.
• The antagonist will normally have a hidden identity that the audience uncovers as the film progresses. Often the antagonist goes out for revenge from a past event.

cinematography

• There will be a lot of close-ups and extreme close-ups of the protagonist character, this is often used to show their facial expressions and emotions. It can also be used to focus of props to aid the narrative.
• The shots of the antagonist will be cut quickly and aim to hide their identity, e.g. a shot of the back of them with backlighting to show their silhouette or shadow.

Editing

• The director will include lots of jump cuts because there will be things happening that the audience is unaware of but is essential to make the film make sense.
• Cross cutting is a key point in editing as it is used to build suspense which is essential for a thriller.
• continuous editing is used to make the audience understand the film better.

Sound

• music is essential in any film to understand the mood of the characters and hint at a significant part in the film.
• In a thriller it adds suspense a tension. It will often start slow then build up to make the shots more dramatic for the audience.

Mise-en-scene

• The location is important in the film because it allows the audience to establish the theme.
• Lighting is often low key.
• Antagonist is usually in dark/black clothing, and the antagonist will usually be in normal clothes.

Types

• Horror e.g. Saw
• Psychological e.g. The Insomniac
• Crime e.g. Black Mass
• Medical e.g. Coma
• Spy e.g. James Bond
• Romantic e.g. The Bodyguard
• Supernatural e.g. Sinister
• Action e.g. Seven