Genre Research - Thriller

Genre Research

Thriller

• Known to promote intense excitement, suspense, a high level of anticipation
• Thriller and suspense films have similar characteristics and features.
• Dark colour schemes and low-key lighting to connote mystery and suspense
• Themes of isolation which shows the character as vulnerable in comparison to the antagonist
• Props such as guns which are used to signify terror therefore, creating suspense and tension
• Distressed appearance
• Settings that depict a normal and everyday environment, therefore adding to the suspense as the action is unexpected
• Suspense, fear and tension
• Constant twists in the plot
• Protagonist vs. Antagonist. With the antagonist initially having control over the situation and the power shifting half-way to feature the protagonist in control
• The storyline will be designed so the audience will think that it can happen to them, which will make them feel scared.

Typical character types in Thriller films:

There is almost always a hero type character who is usually a man and they re store the equilibrium. This person is probably just a normal everyday person who is ‘in the wrong place at the wrong time’ or a police officer. Another word for this is a Protagonist

Then there is the antagonist (villain) who creates the narrative disruption and is usually psychotic but extremely clever

There is also the victim who is usually a female who is most threatened by the villain and they’re usually not really involved in the whole crime situation

You also have the donor, the helper, the dispatcher and the false hero

Typical setting in Thriller films:
Typical setting of a thriller is in an urban city, usually the main colours used will be grey, black and white to emphasise the helplessness of the first character we see. Thrillers can also be set in quiet country villages, where everyone leads poor and simple lives; often the villain will come from a small village. Usually only a small range of colours will be used, the main being black or grey if it is set in a city environment, to show how normal and mundane life is. However other strong colours are often used at particular plot points; for example if there is a lot of blue we can assume that someone has or is going to die, and if there is a recurring theme of red (i.e. alarms) then we understand the characters are in danger. 

Examples:
Inception (2010)
Divergent (2014)
The Purge: Anarchy (2014)