Codes and Conventions of Thriller FilmsLauryn Robertson

What are Thriller Films?

Thrillers are characterized and defined by the moods they give, giving viewers heightened feelings of suspense, excitement, surprise, anticipation and anxiety. Thrillers generally keep the audience on the edge of their seats as the plot builds towards a climax. The cover-up of important information from the viewer is a common element. Literary devices such as red herrings, plot twists, and cliff hangers are used extensively. A thriller is usually a villain-driven plot, whereby he or she presents obstacles that the protagonist must overcome

Conventions of thriller films

Thriller must include conventions such as mirrors , low key lighting , high key lighting , shadows , quick/obtrusive editing , quick cuts, different camera angles , high tensions music , flashbacks , photographs so here are some examples used in thriller films and why they are used.

Mirrors

Mirrors in thriller films are used to portray a reflection of an character of a characters inner self it could also foreshadow the darkness and evil within certain characters. It also can show a evil character approaching a victim as they can’t see them but audience can.

Flashbacks

Flashbacks are often used to display what has happened to a character in the past to give the audience an insight in to the protagonists life before an incident, almost like a memory so the audience can connect more with the character

Low Key Lighting

Low key lighting is used in thriller films to create harsh shadows on the antagonist’s face and also to set the scene in the film. The use of low key lighting allows the scene to be represented as more sinister, dark and mysterious, which can bring about the common conventions of thriller films, suspense and tension. The low key lighting can also hinder the sight of detail in the scene, which can bring about the sense and feeling of uneasiness to the audience as the details are kept a mystery till the very end of the film. The colours that are typically used in thriller films can also link together with the antagonist’s actions and personality as the colours are typical dark, for example black, grey and red.

Types of characters in Thrillers

▪ Convicts▪ Criminals▪ Stalkers▪ Assassins'▪ Losers▪ Innocent Victims▪ Prison Inmates▪ Characters with a dark past▪ Psychotic people

▪ Terrorists▪ Police▪ Escaped Convicts▪ Private Eyes▪ Drifters

▪ People in a Twisted Relationships▪ Murderer

▪ Main Character

Main Character trying solve or get away from situation

This is an example of a stalker in a thriller film called ‘The Boy Next

Door’

This is an example of a murderer in a thriller film called ‘The Perfect Guy’

Narrative

Thriller films are very similar to horrors but thrillers are more psychological and requires more though and explaining as to what is going to happen throughout the film. Thrillers aim to scare the audience in different ways an example of a psychological thriller which makes the audience mentally question certain things about the film. Also in a thriller narrative they tend to hold interest , adventure and suspense.

Krugs – a scene where a couple of teens entering a dark forest which looks scary which then suspense is created, which is part of thriller narrative

In this thriller film poster called ‘Regresion’ you can tell the narrative of the film as it leaves the audience interested in to watching it to wonder why her face is like that , also the location

Iconography

In most thrillers and other genres of films they use iconography to allow the audience to identify which genre the film is. In thrillers the iconography used is by having a hero protagonist, a villain, and victims they also use low key lighting which is used to depict a sense of danger and uncertainty ,it also makes a scene disturbing , hiding an identity of a character which makes the audience questioning.In thriller iconography they use weapons such as guns, knives which suggest and idea of danger ,murder and violence to the audience this is the biggest in thriller iconography and lastly they use confined spaces to scare the audience as they know that then something is going to happen.

Sound

The use of sound in thrillers is that when the storyline is reaching a climax or a tense part of the film it will be non diegetic so the characters cannot hear it but the audience can and the pace and how the music and sound effects sound will effect the audiences view and build up tension which creates the mood.

Setting

The typical setting for a thriller film is in a urban city. Usually the main colours used in thriller films are grey, black and white which emphasises the helplessness of the first character we see. They can also be set in quiet villages. Sometimes the antagonist usually stays in a hotel , motel are usually a low life before committing the act of crime. Abandoned, derelict towns. Murders usually happen in bathrooms and houses even on the street in some thrillers, barns also.