Evaluation task 6

Evaluation task 7

Throughout the process of our filming ad editing we have gained a vast amount of skills in which we did not poses before we began our filming process

For example the fact we all had to by ourselves edit a produce and opening of a thriller this was a new experience to all of us. As well as this, this is only the second time in which we had used pinnacle studios for editing a video in which we produce (the first time was our preliminary task).

One skill which we had learnt was how to create numerous title pages on pinnacle which was a new editing skill we had learnt for example our production company logo.

                                              

Also we learnt how to add and take out sound effects as we used pinnacle in which to add the gun shot noise that we wanted. The beneficial part of this was the gunshot noise on pinnacle fit the scene perfectly. We also added in a lot of fades and dissolve which we had not done much in the past so it was a good and enjoyable skill in which we had learnt and it also made our final production a lot better.

Lastly we learnt how to add a sound track to our production which was a new experience for us all. We had to save the soundtrack and upload it on the video, but the tricky part was to verify the sound of the music in which we wanted to hear the talking between the Hitman and the detective.

Over all we had learnt a new selection of skills which were important in completing our video. I believe we all had an important part to play in the production and we managed to pick up the new editing skill very easily and our production may not be perfect however it was a pleasing outcome considering the time in which we had learnt all the new skills.  

Evaluation Task 4 part 3

Adressing the Audience

When it came to addressing our target audience, we felt that it would be vital for us to include certain aspects or qualities that would appeal directly to our target audience. For example, we included a murder scene early on to create a sense of mystery as no reasons are given as to why the murder has occurred. We felt that this would appeal to some of the more mature viewers in the sense that the film does not go directly into a bug action film.

Also, one thing that is typical of murder scenes is a high action, fast paced scene which involves shooting and high tempo music. However, for the murder scene that we used, we used low tempo music with film titles occurring in between shots. We felt that this would add a sense of uniqueness to our production and felt that this would be something new or at least different for the viewers.

This slow paced murder scene, when accompanied with the slow tempo music and fade transitions had an eerie feel to it with the music changing and becoming distorted after the gun had been fired. We felt that this could also add a distinctive feature to this production and would have a greater appeal to the audience.

Evaluation Task 4 part 2

When we decided that our target age range would be around eighteen, we then researched into the tastes and fashions of the people within this category.

First of all, we felt that this production would not be gender specific due to the fact that there is a low level of violence, swearing or nudity which could be linked heavily to a male audience. As the theme of our production would be a psychological thriller, we felt that there would be no need to have large fighting or murder scenes

As our age range would be aimed at around eighteen, we researched into other films or genres that may appeal to this audience and found that many people in this age variety would choose to see films with more complex story lines rather than high action films with large fight scenes and not too much depth within the story.

Evaluation Task 4 part 1

When we were first thinking up the idea of our production, one of the main matters that we had to decide on was our target audience. This way, we were able to base our ideas and genre around this certain age group in order for it to appeal to them.

As our production was largely based on murder and revenge, we thought it would be suitable for a more mature age range rather than younger children. For example, this scene below involved the victim being shot which as a group, we did not think that this would be suitable for a younger audience.

Although there is no bad language, nudity or explicit violence, the theme of murder is still present which would help steer the target to an older audience.

In the end, we thought it best to have a target audience of late teens of around fifteen or older. Due to the lack of swearing or violence we felt that there would be no need to aim this specifically at people aged eighteen or over so we felt an age rating of fifteen would be ideal. However, we felt that the age rating would not necessarily be our target audience and felt that the age of our audience wold be eighteen.

Evaluation Activity 3

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

The type of media production in which would produce our video would be Production Company such as Hammer Films which is a film production company based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1934, the company is best known for a series of Gothic "Hammer Horror" films made from the mid-1950s until the 1970s. Hammer also produced science fiction, thrillers, film noir and comedies – and in later years, television series. During its most successful years, Hammer dominated the horror film market, enjoying worldwide distribution and considerable financial success. This success was due, in part, to distribution partnerships with major United States studios, such as Warner Bros.

The reason in this being made by a production company such as hammer production/films is the fact that this is a relatively new production who would want to make a good up and coming thriller production. A major Hollywood producer such as warner brothers would not want to produce our film due to the fact that it is created by a mediocre director and has no celebrity icon in the film to already create easy sales.

Evaluation Activity 2

Evaluation activity

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Our media project does not act together as part of a social group or represents a social group as our characters are very much individuals.

Hitman

The Hitman (Saqib Younis) is a lone contracted killer who has no ties to a social group so this does not represent any social groups.

Detective

The detective (Jacob Buick) is also a lone character in which he is a detective and they tend to work alone or with a partner in this case he does not have a partner. Also his office is very big a spacious therefore indicating he is a lone worker.

Victim

The victim (Tom Ryan) is clearly a lone character as he is found alone and killed as well as this during the scene no one goes on to look for in the toilets therefore indicating he is not part of no social group

Evaluation activity 1

Our media product follows many conventions of thriller films.  For example, use of Strauss’s binary oppositions is common practice in the genre and we make use of this through the cast’s dress codes.  The opposition of light and dark, connoting good and evil, is portrayed with the detective (the protagonist) being dressed in a light shirt and the murderer (antagonist) dressing in darker clothes.  Use of oppositions in the opening of our film means that the viewer can instantly easily identify what kind of a role each character will play in the story.  With respect to the murderer, the dark clothes serve another purpose, which is that of giving a more incognito appearance, and giving the impression of the character being a “silent killer”. 

It can be said that one of the more unusual aspects of our production, which goes against the grain of thrillers, is the soundtrack we chose for the opening of our production.  Instead of a loud, fast-paced or tense piece of music, which is the norm, we decided to make use of a slower, more enigmatic soundtrack.  This allowed us to build on the mysterious mood created by the murder scene, and also portray the film as more of a challenge to the expected conventions of thrillers.

The title of the film was chosen because we felt it had two direct meanings within the film.  Firstly, it describes effectively the situation that the protagonist, the detective is in.  This was defined in our plot as being to identify and track down a killer.  It could be said that his goal is “untraceable”.  Similarly, the second way the single-word title bears relevance to the film is that it is a clear description of the antagonist, and reinforces the idea of the antagonist, the killer, fulfilling a common villain role of the “silent killer” or assassin. 

The opening of untraceable follows a fairly common convention of thrillers, which is to immediately follow Todorov’s idea of equilibriums.  We achieve this by showing a murder in the very first scene, and therefore alerting the viewer to a disruption in the film’s plot, and also to who the disruptor is. 

In terms of introducing characters, we thought the best way to introduce Saqib’s character of the assassin was to have him commit a murder in his very first appearance, or scene.  This was to ensure the audience would be in no doubt as to whether or not the character is a villain, as they only have a single experience with him.  He is repeatedly filmed in non-personal methods in order to stop the audience building any kind of sympathy or relationship with him, and to keep the interaction impersonal.  Such methods include showing only showing Saqib’s character from a medium shot while he is committing the murder, and only showing an extreme close-up of his mouth while he making the phone-call. 

Final production of the thriller opening

untraceable for web from Tom Ryan on Vimeo.

Filming and editing process

The filming and editing process was not quitter guided by the shot list in our case however in was guided by the script more than anything else.

We realised that the shot list in which we created did come handy when started of our thriller opening as it gave us a base in which to start from.

However the script self-guided our video. It did this by helping us decide whether which scenes where to edited first or which scenes where to be edited second as for example the conversation scene between the Hitman and the Detective. This scene was guided by the script as it helped us shoot the scenes in which we needed and not extra or less footage.

During our editing process we entitled a problem with the situation that when the Hitman ( Saqib Younis) entered the bathroom the shot was shown through the reflection and made it look like an editing error which could easily confuse the viewer  so with this we ended up cutting the scene and leaving it with only one shot of the Hitman entering the room therefore less confusion for the viewer.

In conclusion we tried avoiding all possible mistakes and with this we were able to create a fluent video which there was minor issues and where easy to resolve.

Problems that could have occured with shooting

There weren’t many problems with shooting our production as it was very simple in terms a shooting location.

One problem which could of occurs was the problem that one of our scenes which were filmed in the toilets and the problem which could have occurred is that people could interrupt however we sorted this by placing an out of order sign outside the bathroom.

Another problem which could have occurred was the fact that Mr Clarke may not have allowed us to use his however we were allowed so the problem was averted.

In addition to this the weather and lighting could have been a big problem as the lighting in the bathroom could have been too dark to shoot the video therefore causing problems with the shot however beneficial to us the weather was quite sunny and did not affect our filming.

Lastly there could have been numerous problems however our timing was good and we ended up producing the thriller opening very easily

Plan of our thriller production

The opening follows two characters. An unidentified killer and a detective who is tasked with catching him. The killer is highly skilled, and frustrates the detective, revealing a “flaw” in the hero not only by covering his tracks well, but with phone calls which taunt him. The opening of the film centres around one of these calls. The film follows a common convention of the killer and detective playing cat and mouse for the duration, with continued taunting on the killer’s part and the detective hitting more and more dead ends in his investigation, in a detective’s office where no one else seems willing to help with the case, and a rival detective who envies our hero’s abilities and does his best to be unhelpful in the case. Eventually the detective’s brilliance and persistence leads to him to discover that his chief detective, who has been discouraging him from pursuing the investigation has been contracting the murders for financial and political gains and has recruited almost his entire police force into the corruption. He is unaware of the phone calls. The hero is forced after a manhunt to confront the chief and eventually apprehends him and a number of other rogue detectives who he thought to be colleagues, including the rival detective whose house, when searched after being arrested, reveals him being responsible for phone calls attempting to throw the detective off the trail. A closing scene reveals the hero acting the new chief of the detective’s office, with a new workforce. Equilibrium has been restored. Shot list 1. Begins with close up of the dead body 2. This is followed by a slow zoom out of the body, revealing a man stood cleaning his hands with the body now in the background. 3. We then cut to a medium shot of the hit man and the body in the background. 4. A close up of the gun used in his pocket is used. 5. There is then an extreme close up shot of the hit man getting out his phone and dialling a number. 6. There is then a tracking shot of the man lifting the phone to his ear. 7. We then cut to an establishing long shot of the police station. 8. There is then a slow zoom into the window of the police station. 9. We are then shows to the inside of the police station and a long shot is used of the detective sitting at his office desk. 10. Then there is a show reverse shot as another detective comes and gives the phone to him. 11. There is then an extreme close up of the mouth of the hit man as the conversation begins. 12. As the conversation continues, there is a variety of shots used for both the murderer and the detective. Script Saqib-Hello there detective Jacob-Who’s this? S-You’ve forgotten me already? J- ……. S- I’m disappointed, Detective. Two years and you’re still no closer to finding me. J- It’s a matter of time S- Good luck. Time isn’t something you have. I’ve done it again. J- Who are you? Phone cuts off. Props BB gun Briefcase Blood capsules Police badge Detective certificates Character Costumes Detective-Shirt and tie Hit man-black shirt Dead body-shirt tie

Final shot list

1.      Prestige Productions Logo

2.      New Line Cinema

3.      Low angle medium shot of Tom leaving bathroom cubicle

4.      Full screen title credit of Tom Ryan fading in and out

5.      Medium below the neck shot of Saqib entering the bathroom

6.      Over the shoulder medium close up of Toms  reflection washing hands

7.      Medium shot of sinks and Saqib’s reflection with gun outstretched

8.      Medium close up tracking shot of Saqib walking towards Tom

9.      Over the shoulder close up of Tom’s reflection showing Saqib pointing the gun

10.  Low angle long shot of Tom collapsing after the gun shot

11.  High angle medium shot of Saqib stepping over the body

12.  Close up of Saqib cleaning the gun

13.  Dissolve to long shot of Saqib leaning on the sink

14.  Full screen title credit of Saqib Younis fading in and out

15.  Medium shot of Saqib dialling a number

16.  Medium shot of Jacob sat at desk

17.  Full screen title credit of Jacob Buick

18.  Over the shoulder shot of Jacob holding certificate followed by slow zoom into an extreme close up

19.  Return to medium shot of Jacob standing up

20.  Close up of the back of Saqib’s head on the phone

21.  Close up of Jacobs phone ringing in his hand followed by him answering the phone

22.  Low angle of Jacob speaking on the phone

23.  Extreme close of Saqib’s mouth talking on the phone accompanies by an overlay credit

24.  Medium low angle shot of Jacob on the phone

25.  Return to Saqib’s mouth still on the phone

26.  Close up of Jacob still on the phone

27.  Return to close up of Saqib’s mouth

28.  Close up of Jacob speaking on the phone accompanied by another overlay credit

29.  Another close up of Saqib’s mouth talking on the phone

30.  Low angle medium shot of Jacob still on the phone

31.  Long shot of Jacob hanging up and putting his phone away

32.  Zoom out and tracking long shot of Jacob walking towards the desk

33.  Medium shot of Jacob picking up the gun accompanied by another overlay credit

34.  Cut out of Jacob loading the gun and putting it in his waistband

35.  Medium long shot of Jacob walking to and opening the door

36.  Match on action of Jacob walking through the door

37.  Full screen title of Untraceable

AS opening of a student thriller analysis

In this essay I am going to analyse the opening of the student thriller called Nocturnal Windows.

The student thriller begins with the logo of the production in which these students have decided to do go with “the new line in cinema” the logo fades in and then fades out. 

There is then an ellipsis edit which goes on to the opening scene. There is a montage edit of clips and different views of the house. The setting of the first scene is very dark and gloomy and the lighting is chiaroscuro which sets an eerie and mysterious atmosphere. There is then a dissolve edit of to the first scene which contains actors. There is during the characters walk to the house there is a match of action as when the male character walks through the gate leading toward the house. As they enter the house the lighting seems to be very bright and high key this may show signs of optimism.

Then on to the next scene there is an unusual shot which shows the male character switching the light of then it goes onto an ellipsis edit of the couple in bed together.

In the bed scene the lighting is very they use a night vision camera which shows and creates a more dramatic and serious atmosphere. When she puts the lamp on the room lights up a scary effect of the scene kind of shimmers down however there is some mystery. As the room is not fully light as there is only one lamp on. There is then a slow zoom out of the bed from the close up two shot of the couple as the man leaves the bed. It then goes to a number of shots of the male leaving the bed and heading up stairs. It then cuts to a shot of the women alone in bed indicating and connoting a sense of vulnerability and loneliness.

There is then a close up of the woman who grabs a torch out of the draw. After this there is an unusual ellipsis dissolve edit into the woman walking in the very low keypart of the house. There is then a medium shot of her walking up the stairs the same place where her partner went.

After this there is a tracking shot of the camera following her movements coming up the starts however the camera is not on a tripod but is being recorded by hand. I believe they did this due to the fact that it gives the audience a feel of being there almost like a point of view shot. After this there are a number of shot reverse shots of the woman walking up the stairs. The director would do this for the face.

A short while after this there is a point of view shot of the woman opening the door they did this so that the viewer would see the same in which the actors are seeing this is mainly done in thrillers to focus the attention of the viewer so therefore they are more often caught in surprise. There Is then another match on action shot as when the women walks through the door. The opening then goes into slow motion to show the dropping of her torch, her light to indicate darkness is only in her sight.

There is then an unusually long scene of her running away. The camera then goes to a close up of her face and the camera is moving in quick short movements this is done to show the quickness of this chase. Through the chase scene there are numerous cuts from the victim and killer. There is then an extreme close up of the knife of the killer who’s dress codes is very rugged as he’s wearing a hoody a hiking boots. Lastly it cuts to the title which is written in serif writing. In addition to this the titles scenes are in the corner of the video like in the thriller face off. This is done to take keep the focus on the film also if there were full title sequins the reader may lose interest as they take majority of the page.

character costumes

Character Costumes

Detective-Shirt and tie

Hit man-black shirt

Dead body-shirt formal clothing

Prop list

 Props –

 Saqib: Gun, phone

Jacob: Gun, phone, certificate showing character is a detective, detective attire (braces, smart clothes)

 

 Costumes –

Tom’s character: Purposely dressed in clothes which don’t identify him as part of any particular group.  This means his character can remain fairly unimportant to the audience, but also shows that he is likely to be innocent

Saqib’s character: Dark clothes, purposely quite non-descript to enforce the idea of the character’s identity being a mystery, and of him being almost faceless.  Dark colours also have connotations of being villainous, or evil.

Jacob’s character: Formal trousers and shirt with braces, to give connotations of professionalism.  Heavily influenced by the character of detective Mills in the thriller Se7en.

Justifications for props and costumes –

The gun in both cases is a small black handgun.  In Saqib’s case, this is to display secrecy and to uphold the idea of the character being a “silent killer”, giving the idea of discretion.  For Jacob’s character, the gun was used to finalise the image of the detective being in law enforcement, after the detectives costume and the detective’s certificate of appreciation which is being read by the detective at the beginning of the office scene.

Phones used in the conversation between Saqib and Jacob were in both cases mobile phones.  The killer uses a mobile to call the detective, rather than a landline.  This is to show that the killer isn’t restricted, or necessarily in a certain place.  This ties in with the idea of him being “untraceable”.  At first, we intended to have the detective receive the call on his office’s landline, to show his closeness to the police department.  However, we decided that if we showed the detective to be talking on a mobile we could create the impression that the relationship between the detective and the murderer was a more personal one.  Secondly, it suggest that the detective, who is the hero in the story, is not necessarily a part of the police force all of the time when it comes to dealing with criminals.

               

FINAL SCRIPT

INT. BATHROOM – DAY

It shows Tom exiting the cubicle, as he washes his hand in the sink. Saqib walks in holding a good, he lifts his arm and shoots Tom. Tom falls after being shot and then lies there dead. Saqib then goes toward the sink, gets out a tissue and begins to wipe his gun. He then leans on the counter and gets out his phone.

INT. DETECTIVE’S OFFICE-DAY

Jacob’s sitting down reading up on a case. He then picks up his old certificate which he received and begins to reminisce. 

INT. BATHROOM – DAY

He then leans on the counter and gets out his phone.

INT. DETECTIVE’S OFFICE-DAY

His phone then rings he gets up and answers the call.

SAQIB

Hello there detective

JACOB

Who’s this?

SAQIB

You’ve forgotten me already?

JACOB

…….

SAQIB

I’m disappointed, Detective.  Two years and you’re still no closer to finding me.

JACOB

It’s a matter of time

SAQIB

Good luck.  Time isn’t something you have.  I’ve done it again.

JACOB

Who are you?

Phone cuts off.

INT. DETECTIVE’S OFFICE-DAY

Jacob then puts the phone in his pocket. Picks up his gun and cocks it and places it behind his back. He then walks out of the office in search for Saqib.

Synopsis

Synopsis

The opening follows two characters.  An unidentified killer and a detective who is tasked with catching him.           

The killer is highly skilled, and frustrates the detective, revealing a “flaw” in the hero not only by covering his tracks well, but with phone calls which taunt him.  The opening of the film centres around one of these calls.                                                   

The film follows a common convention of the killer and detective playing cat and mouse for the duration, with continued taunting on the killer’s part and the detective hitting more and more dead ends in his investigation, in a detective’s office where no one else seems willing to help with the case, and a rival detective who envies our hero’s abilities and does his best to be unhelpful in the case.                               

Eventually the detective’s brilliance and persistence leads to him to discover that his chief detective, who has been discouraging him from pursuing the investigation has been contracting the murders for financial and political gains and has recruited almost his entire police force into the corruption.  He is unaware of the phone calls.  The hero is forced after a manhunt to confront the chief and eventually apprehends him and a number of other rogue detectives who he thought to be colleagues, including the rival detective whose house, when searched after being arrested, reveals him being responsible for phone calls attempting to throw the detective off the trail.                 

A closing scene reveals the hero acting the new chief of the detective’s office, with a new workforce.  Equilibrium has been restored.

 

Seven opening analysis

Open Seven from Stephen Adams on Vimeo.

In this essay I am going to analyse the opening of the thriller Se7en.

The setting and iconography of the thriller Se7en, the first scene is set in the morning this is to denote that it is the beginning of a normal day in the life of our “hero”. It shows Detective Somerset (Morgan Freeman) in his home. The room is coloured with a soft blue, which connotes calmness and implies Somerset’s character to be a calm, collected one. The scene entails Somerset preparing for a day at work, and has a medium shot of his table with some of his possessions neatly laid out on it. The first piece of equipment he has is a badge, which shows imply that he is a member of law enforcement.  In addition to this he has a pen which suggests that unlike a usual or stereotypical policeman or detective he is more likely to use his knowledge and intellect as opposed to force or violence.  Lastly, he has a pen knife which shows that he is likely to take a more light-fingered approach to situations, but also perhaps an old-fashioned one as use of pen knives is not as widespread as it was in the past.  Other aspects of Somerset’s house seem to connote a more old-fashioned style of life.  For example, the technology we see in the house is very limited, even for 1995.  We see lamps and lights, but we don’t see televisions, radios, or other luxuries which were common in 90’s American households.  This suggests that Somerset is not a man of amenities, or leads a particularly luxurious or wealthy life.  It also suggests that he may not have much of a life outside of his job, as the metronome is the only item we see in his house that isn’t part of his work. The sound in this scene reinforces these ideas.  Particularly the sound of sirens in the distance, this signifies crime.

In the next scene the lighting is low key high contrast chiaroscuro, and is set in a dark, squalid house.  We are also shown and told about blood being splattered “up the walls”, informing the viewer immediately that the dead man they saw in a medium-long shot was murdered.   When both detectives leave the crime scene the viewer immediately notices the extremely rainy weather, which is a use of pathetic fallacy to give the conversation and the situation a negative and gloomy feeling. The streets seem to be in a poorer area of a city, and a lot of the windows have bars on them.  Not only does this again show that the area where the detectives are working is not a pleasant place and has high crime, but the bars could also be a metaphor for the situation the pair of detectives are about to be trapped in as the film goes on.  The idea of the city being a generally unpleasant place is reinforced by Somerset’s dialogue in this scene, where he dismisses detective Mills saying he has worked in homicide by saying that he “hasn’t worked here” and therefore may not necessarily be qualified.

In the final scene we are again shown detective Somerset’s home where he begins to get ready for bed. As he does this the room itself is peaceful, however in the background diegetic noises such as dogs barking and sirens are heard, showing that although he has done his best to make his surroundings tranquil, he cannot change the fact that he is close to the unpleasant area where he lives.

The opening of Se7en represents the two characters as not only being in law enforcement, but as being committed to their jobs.  For example with Somerset’s home being so work-oriented, and the fact that Mills moved to the city with worse crime of his own volition.  However, we see differences between the two characters, particularly in their approaches.  Detective Somerset is a man who is shown to have a more careful approach to investigations, asking questions which seem to his colleagues as being irrelevant.   This idea is also given with the view of his tools in his house, where we are shown his pen instead of say, a gun.  Detective Mills is represented in a much more eager and energetic way.  In the conversation he is also very eager and the fact that he chose to move to a harder place to work represents him as a character willing to challenge him.    For example, when he enters the crime scene he jogs up the stairs and walks quickly into the apartment.  This contrasts to Somerset’s measured and cautious approach.  The dress codes of the characters are also contrasted.  Mills is wearing a leather jacket over his traditional white shirt and tie, which is a change from the suit which you would expect a detective to wear. However, this is a convention Somerset follows; giving the impression that Somerset is likely to be a more experienced and perhaps aged character.  The other characters in the opening have are not named, largely showing their irrelevance to the story as a whole; however the interaction between Somerset and the unnamed detective is an important one as it demonstrates Somerset’s methods being different to his colleagues.  The other character we are shown, besides the dead body, is the murderer during the opening credits.  We are shown only his hands, which are bandaged on the fingertips.  This is a result of him cutting his fingertips off to stop himself being traced, immediately portraying him as a character with something to hide.  He is also portrayed as a mysterious man with some kind of interest in religion, as we see him cutting various pieces of paper, including the word “God” out of a piece of American money.  The non-diegetic soundtrack to accompany this scene is “Closer” by Nine-inch Nails, a song with screeching, industrial sounds which also mentions God, finalising with the viewer the knowledge that religious ideas will play a part in the film.

Research into Thriller Conventions

1a. Make a list of the Proppian character types commonly found in thriller openings and give specific, named examples for each of these types. Do they have any common features?

-Hero, for example in the thriller Seven the hero is Morgan Freemans character who is called Detective Somerset.in all thrillers the hero will usually have a unique thing about them. This tends to be their flaw and their strength.

-Villains in thriller conventions are more often an equal match for the hero for example in the thriller Face/Off the villain Castor Troy played by Nicholas Cage. In other thriller the villain is more ruthless and mentally not stable and also would do unthinkable things.

-Dispatcher, for example in Star Wars the dispatcher is obi wan Kenobi who sends Luke on his way to commence the journey that he goes on. In other thriller the dispatcher is normally someone who is higher in power for example he police chief.

-Helper, in thriller conventions the helper normally tends to be someone who is highly skilled however does not have and emotional attachment to the villain. For example in the thriller Seven the helper is Brad Pitt. In other thrillers the helper is usually an awkward character who has a unique quality in which the hero needs.

-Princess or prize, in thrillers the princess is usually helpless and normally the main person who needs rescuing and the story revolves around her. For example in the Dark Knight Maggie Gyllenhaal plays Rachel Dawes who is in the princess who needs saving however is not saved for the greater good.

-The donor, in thrillers is normally an elder person who gives something that others cannot give. For example in James Bond Skyfall Agent M is the dispatcher as she sends Bond on his journey

-False hero, in thrillers the false hero normally tends to be someone who has a close relationship with the hero however eventually betrays them. For example in the thriller S.W.A.T the false hero is Brain Gamble played by Jeremy Renner, who at the start is partners with the hero but then becomes a villain.

 Binary opposition

Types: Good and Evil

Night and Day

Strong Weak

Dominant Submissive

Active Passive

Truth Lies

Calm Moody

Tough Gentle

Logical Emotional

Peaceful Aggressive

Narrative structure in thrillers

Todorov's narrative structure theory outlines the chain of events found in the storyline of conventional films

In the opening of the thriller Se7en the equilibrium is that detective Summerset is living peacefully in his home all by himself. There is a murder that he has to investigate but the bigger disruption that there is a murder and as he is a detective he has to investigate it.In the montage scene there is a new character introduced in the title montage indicating that he is the killer due to images of disturbing scenes .The new equilibrium is that he has to find the murderer along with a new detective who has just arrived called detective Mills.

In the thriller Face/Off the equilibrium is that john Travolta’s character is happy with his child at a carnival.

The disruption is that Castor Troy a trained killer kills his son whilst trying to shoot John Travolta. The new equilibrium is that Travolta’s character after 6 years is trying to find Troy as he has still not got over the death.

  Titles in the opening of thriller

The tiles in the opening of the French thriller “Ils” starts off with full screen titles. However the last title is an overlay of the first shot this is done to introduce the scene. As well as this the titles in Ils are very dark colour indicating horror.

In the thriller Face/Off the title scenes are full title scenes and the colours are black and white showing the colours of good an evil there for connoting this will be an action thriller. Lastly the title continues throughout the opening therefore showing the unimportance of the names as there are barely noticeable.