Survey Results

Focus Group Video

Preliminary Task

Preliminary Task

In our preliminary task we had to contain certain cinematography techniques to fulfil the pass criteria. These were:

• Eye line match
• 180 degrees
• Shot/reverse shot
• Match on action

We added a bit of a storyline/plot for theatrical reasons.

Title Sequences

In commerical and indie films, they all follow the same sort of pattern in title sequences.

Title sequences should contain the :

Production Logo

A (Productions Company) film

A (producers name) production

A (directors name) film

Names of main actors

Casting by...

Supporting actors

Music Composed

Director of photography

Edited by...

Screenplay

Produced by...

Directed by...

Title

Types of Thrillers.

Types of Thrillers

There are various kinds of thriller sub-genres, each bring a different element into the world of 'thriller films'.

Psychological - thrillers which are based around the idea of the mind. The plot is almost definitely based around one of the main characters, albeit bad, mental state.

An example of this is the film 'The Machinist' in which the entire film is based around the main character trying to come to turns with his insomnia. However, the film reveals his mental state is in shatters as his entire social life is basically a hallucination created from guilt.

Crime - thrillers which are based around the idea of criminal behaviour. The majority of the films follow street-gangs, mafias etc. 

An example of this is the film 'The Departed', set in Boston. It revolves around an undercover cop in the Irish Mafia, and a member of the same Mafia undercover in the police force. The plot is based on both of the characters trying to discover who the other is, before they, them self, gets caught.

Spy - thrillers which are based around the concept of government agents, spies etc. There is a broad spectrum of plot ideas for a spy thriller, although commonly they involve: Double-crossing, identity crises etc.

An example of this is the Bourne Trilogy, a series of films based around a man who has forgotten his identity, through out the series, he uses a variety of spy tactics to overcome his enemies and find out his true identity.

Political - thrillers which are based around the government, or political parties. Commonly, these films revolve around terrorism, rogue government agents etc. 

An example of this is the film the Manchurian Candidate . Which is based around a brainwashed political candidate, and terrorism.

Sci-Fi - thrillers which are based around science fiction. Due to the wide range of different Sci-Fi elements, the plot ideas are very wide-ranged as well, however, there is a very thin line as to when a Sci-Fi Thriller becomes just a Sci-Fi film. Sci-Fi Thrillers tend to have a more down to earth and realistic approach than Sci-Fi films.

An example of this is the film Limitless, in which a man digests a pill, thinking it will be just be a drug, such as ecstasy for example, however, it completely improves him as a person, it makes him smarter, more charismatic etc.

There are a variety of other Sub-Genres as well.

No Country For Old Men

No Country For Old Men

No Country For Old Men (2007) is a thriller written and directed by the Coen Brothers (Ethan and Joel Coen). It stars Josh Brolin, Tommy Lee Jones and Javier Bardem. The film is based on the novel by the same name, written by Cormac McArthy.

The plot revolves around a fairly normal, and innocent man called Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin), stumbles upon $2.4 million from a drug-deal gone wrong, and he ends up in a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse with a 'psycopathic killer' hired to track him down, Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem) whilst Sheriff Ed Tom Bell (Tommy Lee Jones) tries to get to the bottom of everything. 

One moment of suspense in this film is when Moss is in his hotel room, and he finds the transponder. As it starts beeping; us, the audience, know that Chigurh is close. It leaves the audience on the edge of their seats, anticipating the outcome of the situation: Is Chigurh going to kill Moss?

Another thriller element in this film is the frequent action, albeit sometimes quite short. There are various moments of action, from start to finish, from Moss running away from the cartel, and various moments of Chigurh killing people. 

An interesting fact about this film is the majority of 'signifcant' deaths in this film appear off-screen, such as the Cartel members near the start of the film, Moss in the hotel, Carson Wells when confronted by Chigurh (although we can just about see him), and possibly Moss' wife (although it is up to interpretation whether she died, although in the book she definitely did).

My Thriller Questionnaire

My Thriller Questionnaire