THE THRILLER GENRE

1. THE THRILLER GENRE Thriller is a genre that creates a certain psycological/emotional experience for the audience. It makes the spectator excited; feeling suspense, chills and breathlessness. Basically, a movie that “thrills”.

2. Thriller Timeline 1949 The Third Man Carole Reed 1960 Psycho Alfred Hitchcock 1971 Play misty for me Clint Eastwood 1926 The Lodger Alfred Hitchcock 1940 Rebecca Alfred Hitchcock 1923 Safety Last Harrold Lloyd The master of suspense, Alfred Hitchcock, has been the pioneer of the thriller genre. He is one of the most influencial director on this type of films.

3. 1980 Dressed to kill Brian De Palma 1990 Misery Rob Reiner 2007 Funny Games Michael Haneke 1999 The talented Mr. Ripley Anthony Mingella Nowadays, the genre has diversified. There exists many sub-genres and hybrids. Adaptations of novels and remakes are also very popular.

4. The Thriller sub genres and hybrids • Stalker/ romance gone bad • Disaster • Psychological • Serial Killer • Spy • Legal • Action • Crime • Medical

5. Narrative conventions : • The story is often based on a crime (murder, kidnapping, abduction, etc.) E.G. : two 7 year-old girls kidnapped in Prisoners. • Extraordinary events happen to ordinary people. E.G. : the taxi driver, Max, falls into a dangerous situation in Collateral. • The structure is complex, full of twists and turns, which keeps the spectator in suspense. E.G. : Inception • The narrative is restricted, the information the audience is given is limited. Which makes us question, wondering what's going to happen. E.G. : Bourne Identity • The plot builds towards a climax, which is often an unexpected ending to surprise/shock the spectator. E.G. : The village

6. Characterisation The two main characters : • Protagonist: The hero can be: - an ordinary person, an innocent victiom who is in the wrong place at the wrong time. E.G. : Max in Collateral. - A detective, cop/ex-cop, cop duo or other law enforcer. E.G. : Cop duo in Se7en. He often has a flaw (the antagonist knows it and uses it against him) or a dark past and he is unwillingly put in a dangerous situation by the villain. • Antagonist: The villain in thrillers is intellingent, psychotic and mysterious. His/Her identity is often unknown, which makes it more difficult for the hero to stop him. E.G. : The villain in Phone Booth

7. Mise-en-scene • Location/Setting: Thriller are set in ordinary places, but in the isolated and dangerous areas. It is often a remote part of a city, in a urban background (parking space, tunnels, abandonned building, etc.). E.G. : The crime scene in Brick. • Lighting/Colour: Low key lighting : the image is very dark, with a lot of shadows to create a scary, unwelcoming and mysterious atmosphere. The colours are de-saturated (to make it depressing) and can be: - Blue: For a cold, dark ambience. E.G. : Drive. - Yellow : For a sick, uncomfortable atmosphere. E.G. : The place beyond the pines.

8. Props: Ordinary objects: weapons (knive, gun), blood, briefcase, objects with negative connotation (cigarettes, drug, alcohol). E.G. : Guns and cigarettes in The Usual Suspects. • Costume/Makeup: - If the hero is a normal person : casual clothes which reflects his personality and status. E.G. : Brandon in Brick. - If he is a cop or a detective : suit/ trench coat and hat. E.G. : The US Marshalls in Shutter Island. - The villain is often dressed in dark colours, and quite ordinary to make it “invisible” and difficult to find. E.G. : Vincent in Collateral.

9. Figure/Facial expression: - The hero: Most of the time, he is an ordinary guy, who has flaws, can be afraid, overwhelmed. He acts like any normal person to let us indentify ourselves to him. His gesture gives us information about his personality, status and emotions. E.G. : Billy in The Departed. - The villain : He is pshycotic (can have OCD'S for example). He is intelligent, confident, which puts him in a superior position, he controls the situation. His expression often shows that he's powerful. E.G. : Frank in The Departed.

10. Cinematography Cinematography is very important to convey emotions, information to the spectator. - Camera shots : In thrillers, Mid close ups, close ups and mid shots are often used to start the film to let the audience guess about the events, characters and narrative. Wide and long shots come a bit later in the movie to establish the setting and location. MID SHOT : It shows the subject from waist up, so we can see the body language, figure expression, costume ; which give us information about the identity/personality of the characters and the relationships between them, a very important thing in thrillers. Mid shot in the opening of Funny Games E.G. : Wide shot in Zodiac

11. CLOSE UP: It shows characters's makeup and emotions. In this genre, this shot is used to express feelings like, fear, apprehension, sadness, nervosity, anger or confusion. E.G. : Close up of Cole in the Sixth Sense. EXTREME CLOSE UP : This shot reveals extreme emotions, it is often focused on the eyes. It can also show a part of an object or an important detail. This shot is used to make the audience feel the sentiment shown or to make us feel uncomfortable and claustrophobic E.G. : Extreme close up in Buried.

12. POINT OF VIEW SHOT: We can see through the character's eyes or be a third person following the action, looking over the shoulder (associated). It is used in thriller films to immersed the spectator into the action, make us feel what it is going on (suspense, fear...). Example: Goodfellas https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hp5mLbSpKT8

13. - Camera angles: HIGH ANGLE : When the camera positioned high and looking down at the subject. Used to express the vulnerability, weaknessess of what's shown on the screen. LOW ANGLE : When the camera is positioned down looking up at the character. Used to reveal the power and dominance of the subject. E.G. : Prisoners E.G. : The Town

14. UNVENTIONAL ANGLE : Used to make the spectator feel uncomfortable, disturbed and anxious → The main goal of the thriller genre. E.G. : Oblique angle in Twelve Monkeys

15. - Camera movement : • PANS : They often reveal the scene slowly to keep a part of the information secret, which makes the spectator question about what is not shown yet ; it creates suspense and tension (the main principle of thriller films). • TRACKING : Used to follow the action and get the spectator involve in the scene. It also reveal the information, little by little to keep the suspense and make the audience guess what is going to happen. Tracking, pannig and tilting shots in the opening title sequence of The Usual Suspects https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6msq8mgdnE

16. Editing • Non-continuity editing : Used in experimental, independent cinema. It can be used to imply something in the narravtive, or to make the audience notice it for a reason. This is an active way of watching a film and this kind of editing creates uncomfort, weird feeling for us. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFnmq5PPScA • Continuity editing : Used in the most of the films in mainstream cinema. It is seamless, conventional and non obtrusive. For the spectator, it is a passive way to watch a film. It absorbs the audience in the action. The editing is often fast paced, with quick cuts which reflects the drama and the intensity within the narrative and action. Example of continuity editing : The Bourne Identity

17. Continuity editing techniques • Match on action : When the cut is made on a action, so we can see it from many points of view. Often used in thrillers to make the action scenes look real, with a lot of rhythm and things going on. E.G. : The hero jumps from the window; the next shot, taken from the bottom shows him landing on the ground • - Eye line match : We see the character reacting to what he sees, the next shot shows the object/subject he is looking at. E.G. : Car trunk scene in Reservoir Dogs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_whQnqwEYk

18. Shot Reverse Shot : Used in a conversations between two people. It can be an over the shoulder shot. E.G. Prisoners https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOBzBMiSY2U • Graphic Match : Continuity of the action shape or movement in two following shots. E.G. : Emily’s arm in Brick. • Graphic Contrast : Obvious sharp contrast between two shots to create and impact. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre dinner scene https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-B2VH7SIhk4

19. Parallel Editing: When events in two different location are cut together to create a connection between them. Often used in thrillers to create suspense and tension in a chase scene for example. E.G. : The silence of the Lambs. https://www.youtube.com/watchv=Ts1x6uADFtM&feature=related • Jump cuts : Noticable cuts in a scene. Used to make the spectator feel weird and confused when wtching the scene. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ov4mQJIHhc

20. Sound • DIEGETIC - Ambient sounds: They are present to make the film more realistic. In thrillers, because the location is often a city, the sound is urban background noises (like cars, conversations, phones ringing...). It can also be quieter sounds to create a special atmosphere (wind, rustilng of leaves, weather). E.G. : Opening title sequence of Enduring Love. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dz5yu3qqGTQ - Dialogues : Dialogues are used to set the scene and give information about the progression of the narrative → which is important in thrillers because of the complexity of the structure, twists and turns. It also help us discovering and understandig characters' identity and personality. E.G. : Phone booth scene in Brick https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KrnDZ8DDL9o

21. NON DIEGETIC -Music : The soundtrack varies depending on the scene shown on the screen : * If it is a moment full of intensity and action, the music will be tense, dramatic and fast. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JmxK_pBaG4E E.G. : Evacuation plan in Bourne Identity. * If the characters are in danger, we are in suspense, and it will be a low pitched sound. E.G. : When the shark is coming in Jaws. In both cases, the music builds towards a climax to keep the spectator immersed in the scene and full of apprenhension. - Voiceover : It provides th background information. We are carried into the characters' mind and can hear their thoughts. E.G. : The main character narrates the story. No country for old men : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_6mFcTGXh0 - Sound effects (SFX): They are used to add intensity to the action. For example : Added sound in a stabbing scene.

22. - Pleonastic sound : Used to reinforce the action, to make the scene tenser and more powerful. E.G.: Murder in the shower in Psycho. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WtDmbr9xyY - Contrapuntal sound : It contradicts with the image, is in opposition to the action we see to create uncomfort and disharmony. E.G. : The opening of Funny Games. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3t5ho0eifo

23. Bibliography • IMBD.com, Wikipedia.org, TheScriptLab.com, Filmsite.org • Film images I used : Slide 1: Shutter Island (Martin Scorsese, 2010)- The Bourne Identity (Doug Liman, 2002). Slide 4: Se7en (David fincher, 1995)- Fatal Attraction (Adrian Lyne, 1987)- The Day After Tomorrow (Roland Emmerich, 2004)- Black Swan (Darren Aronofsky, 2010)- Prisoners (Denis Villeneuve, 2013)- The Firm (Sidney Pollack, 1993)- Déjà Vu (Tony Scott, 2006)- Coma (Michael Crichton, 1978)- The Bourne Identity. Slide 5: Phone Booth (Joel Schumacher, 2002) Slide 6: The Dark Knight (Christopher Nolan, 2008)- Collateral (Michael Mann, 2004). Slide 7: Brick (Rian Johnson, 2005)- The Place Beyond The Pines (Derek Cianfrance, 2013)- Drive (Nicolas Winding Refn, 2011). Slide 8: The Usual Suspects(Bryan Singer, 1995)- Brick- Shutter Island- Collateral. Slide 9: The Departed (Martin Scorsese, 2006).

24. Slide 10 : Zodiac (David Fincher, 2007) – Funny Games (Michael Haneke, 2007) Slide 11 : The Sixth Sense (M. Night Shamalan, 1999) – Buried (Rodrigo Cortes, 2010) Slide 12 : Goodfellas (Martin Scorsese, 1990) Slide 13 : Prisoners – The Town (Ben Affleck, 2010) Slide 14 : Twelve Monkeys (Terry Gilliam, 1995) Slide 16 : Bourne Identity Slide 17 : Reservoir Dogs (Quentin Tarantino, 1992) Slide 18 : Prisoners – Brick – The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (Tobe Hooper, 1974) Slide 19 : The Silence Of The Lambs (Jonathan, Demme, 1991) – Breathless (Jean-Luc Godard, 1960) Slide 20 : Enduring Love (Roger Michel, 2004) – Brick Slide 21 : The Bourne Identity Slide 22 : Psycho (Alfred Hitchcock, 1960) – Funny Games