"Why Thrillers Thrive"

• To see a life in other perspectives - "The kind we don't experience ourselves"
• To have a little fright or excitement in our life/experience something new. - "Our nature is such that we must have these 'shake-ups,'"
• They drag you in to compelling storylines. - "We don't sit by as spectators; we participate."
• There is a sense of danger, although we are safe. - "In this there is no harm, because in our subconsious we are aware that we are safe,"
• However this safety can be compromised... - "The cinema can leave the spectator with a subconsious of absolute safety, and yet surprise his imaginationinto playing tricks on him."
• You can relate to the character/s. - "...characterwho has won the audience's sympathy is involved in danger,"
• The camera can help show this. - "On the screen he is no greateractual dangers, yet you look over and see for yourself..."
• Having a small fright is good for your health! - "Such scenes, which set the blood pounding through the veins, are highly beneficial for indigestion.
  

Analysis of student Thrillers

Using fast obvious cuts through out this opening sequence shows us that the genre if the film you are about to watch, the glitches make it obvious that it will be a thriller because they are abnormal and distort your viewing. The diegetic sound throughout is a fuzzy heart beat, this again makes the viewer know even before having any sense of narrative that they will be watching a thriller.
They have fitted the opening credits in with visual clips, this gives the opening credit mystery also it stops the viewer getting bored.
The lighting is dark and saturated which is another element of thriller.

Over all the clip defiantly leaves you with mystery and suspense, it also fits in many of the thriller elements but its isn't very original and you don't have a clear sense of narrative.



opening is in black and white which is a nice convention that shows us straight away that it is a thriller, there is the vulnerable female character/s, this is the damsel in distress which is a general convention of the thriller.

Donnie Darko Opening Sequence Analysis

The opening stops at 2:20 minutes in.
Donnie Darko incorporates many conventions of a thriller for example: Main protagonist has a major flaw which is his psychosis and the fact that he sleep walks, the lighting is dark to correspond with the style of the film, the location is familiar to him but at the same time is unfamiliar about how he got there, the non-diegetic eerie music sets the scene, the initial mystery of the film is that you do not know how he ended up asleep on the road in his pajamas in the first place.

JFK - Political thriller

JFK is a political thriller, You know it's the film is politically influenced by the opening sequence.

The opening sequence starts with up beat diegetic music that contains drums, the fact the music

is a drum beat shows its importance which could be represented as a salute to a political leader.

The first visual you see it a quote "To sin by silence when we should protest makes cowards out of men"

- By Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Who her self is a political poet, this also shows us straight away that the film will include a lot of political

behavior.

The film title is JFK, so we know it's will be about assassins which makes it a thriller, they don't need to

make it obvious.

Definition of Genre

A way of categorizing films, A genre has a set of conventions to conform to or challenge.

Audience - Satisfaction/Expectations - Predictable

Surprising audience

Thriller - Hybrid, Action thriller, Horror thriller, Fantasy thriller

- Sub Genre, political thriller - power struggle. crime thriller/legal thriller, war thriller, psychological thriller, apocalyptic thriller, Neo noir, Film noir

[Identity - Psychological thriller] Voice over to start with links in, psychological thriller, You hear the voiceover before visually seeing anything, Complex narrative - cuts out part of the story. Shifting montage editing style put the audience on the edge of their seat.

[Malcolm X - political thriller.]

American flag shows straight away that it's a political thriller, Lighting is dark, The police men, authority, a crowd applauding the voiceover and the voice over preaching tone show its a political thriller. The fact you don't see who id giving the voiceover leaves mystery.

Vertigo analysis

Conventions in Vertigo.
-Identity
-Suspense, Music, score
-Mystery
-Darkness/shadow
-Title is linked
-Damsel in Distress
-Protagonist, flawed hero, fear, in danger
-Women, Voyeurism

Deadlines

Shooting wed 29th feb

Rough cut 1st march mon

Final cut mon 8th march

Inter writing mon 15th march

Final writing 22nd march

Conventions of thrillers

Conventions:

-Music/Sound/Silence
-dark/dingy/shadowy lighting
-fear of the unknown
-Protagonist, in danger, damsel in distress, fear
-Killer, alter ego
-Identity, stolen identity, no identity
-Flash backs
-Not-linear, not following normal concepts
-Mystery
-Film noir, Neo noir
-suspense, putting the viewer on edge
-False sense of security
-Obsession

Prelim Evaluation

Our Preliminary Task

Preliminary Task

Establishing shot of person in corridor.
Close up shot of the person answering the door
then a match on action of the door opening.
A reaction shot of the second character looking towards the door.
A long shot showing both characters.
Filming the conversation.

Over shoulder shot of Nick and zombies
Close up of the window

Long shot and establishing shot of haunted house.




The 180 degree rule displayed in picture.

youtube definitions

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TuqA7I7LLk


Dawn of the dead
- Title credits
- Diegetic soundtrack
- Establishes narrative
- Set and location
- Genre/characteristics
- Doesn't introduce characters but we know there are zombies
It includes a lot of close ups which gives us a glimpse of what is happening which leaves us intrigued.