Thursday, 9 December 2010
Section 8 - Production Material
Shooting Script
1. A black screen, can hear both heavy footsteps and heavy breathing; conveys a sense of panic.
2. Fades into shot, low angled camera, man runs towards and past the camera, continues diegetic sound of footsteps and breathing, fast paced music begins.
3. Cuts to wide shot of him running (tracks from behind).
4. Close up of his feet running; implies speed.
5. Close up of his face, panicked/concerned expression.
6. Mid tracking shot as he runs, see him from the side.
7. Camera cuts to a shot of a young girl in a room, high angled and took from the top right corner of the room, no sound, and black and white; in order to imitate CCTV footage.
8. Camera cuts to the shots of a man running, tracking shot from the side shows him running past buildings (transformed city), non-diegetic sound returns.
9. Full length shot of him running towards the camera head on, tracking out.
10. Cuts to a point of view shot of him running.
11. Establishing shot of the high-rise building at a low angle shot, to elongate it further and convey importance.
12. Running up towards the building, from behind.
13. Cut to him reaching for the handle.
14. Matching action, opening the door.
15. A cut to the same CCTV footage style shot of the girl banging on the door of the room she is held hostage in, again no sound.
16. Girl looks straight up at high angled camera.
17. Mid shot, slightly low, of him entering the building. All previous shots (apart from shots of the girl) have been external shots, they are now internal.
18. Pans across to him running to the foot of the stairs.
19. High angle of him running up the stairs.
20. Low angle, tracking shot of him running from behind.
21. CU of his face, looking side to side, displays confusion.
22. Point of view shot, camera pans from side to side.
23. Walks into shot.
24. CU of him walking to the door.
25. High angled shot of a girl in room, see her banging on the door, no sound.
26. Point of view shot, girl’s view of the door (inside the room).
27. Mid shot of him walking towards the door (outside the room).
28. Mid shot of her trying to open the door (inside the room).
29. Close up of his hands on the door (outside of the room).
30. Close up of her face.
31. Point of view shot as he opens the door.
32. Close up of his face, see confusion.
33. Point of view shot of the empty room (apart from table, timer and note).
34. Medium-wide shot from behind table of him walking towards table.
35. Close up of him picking up the note and unfolding it.
36. Close up of the shocked expression on his face, he turns.
37. Mid shot of him from behind as he drops the note and runs out of the room.
38. High angled shot of note falling, sees writing on note (slow motion), tracks out and becomes CCTV footage.
39. Camera tracks out to see screen showing the empty room. Can see a man’s shoulder, appears to be watching the screen.
40. Fades to black screen, see title of film ‘Justice’.
1. A black screen, can hear both heavy footsteps and heavy breathing; conveys a sense of panic.
2. Fades into shot, low angled camera, man runs towards and past the camera, continues diegetic sound of footsteps and breathing, fast paced music begins.
3. Cuts to wide shot of him running (tracks from behind).
4. Close up of his feet running; implies speed.
5. Close up of his face, panicked/concerned expression.
6. Mid tracking shot as he runs, see him from the side.
7. Camera cuts to a shot of a young girl in a room, high angled and took from the top right corner of the room, no sound, and black and white; in order to imitate CCTV footage.
8. Camera cuts to the shots of a man running, tracking shot from the side shows him running past buildings (transformed city), non-diegetic sound returns.
9. Full length shot of him running towards the camera head on, tracking out.
10. Cuts to a point of view shot of him running.
11. Establishing shot of the high-rise building at a low angle shot, to elongate it further and convey importance.
12. Running up towards the building, from behind.
13. Cut to him reaching for the handle.
14. Matching action, opening the door.
15. A cut to the same CCTV footage style shot of the girl banging on the door of the room she is held hostage in, again no sound.
16. Girl looks straight up at high angled camera.
17. Mid shot, slightly low, of him entering the building. All previous shots (apart from shots of the girl) have been external shots, they are now internal.
18. Pans across to him running to the foot of the stairs.
19. High angle of him running up the stairs.
20. Low angle, tracking shot of him running from behind.
21. CU of his face, looking side to side, displays confusion.
22. Point of view shot, camera pans from side to side.
23. Walks into shot.
24. CU of him walking to the door.
25. High angled shot of a girl in room, see her banging on the door, no sound.
26. Point of view shot, girl’s view of the door (inside the room).
27. Mid shot of him walking towards the door (outside the room).
28. Mid shot of her trying to open the door (inside the room).
29. Close up of his hands on the door (outside of the room).
30. Close up of her face.
31. Point of view shot as he opens the door.
32. Close up of his face, see confusion.
33. Point of view shot of the empty room (apart from table, timer and note).
34. Medium-wide shot from behind table of him walking towards table.
35. Close up of him picking up the note and unfolding it.
36. Close up of the shocked expression on his face, he turns.
37. Mid shot of him from behind as he drops the note and runs out of the room.
38. High angled shot of note falling, sees writing on note (slow motion), tracks out and becomes CCTV footage.
39. Camera tracks out to see screen showing the empty room. Can see a man’s shoulder, appears to be watching the screen.
40. Fades to black screen, see title of film ‘Justice’.
Section 6 - Character Outlines and Shooting Script
Shooting Script for the opening of ‘Justice’
1. A black screen, can hear both heavy footsteps and heavy breathing; conveys a sense of panic.
2. Fades into shot, low angled camera, man runs towards and past the camera, continues diegetic sound of footsteps and breathing, fast paced music begins.
3. Cuts to wide shot of him running (tracks from behind).
4. Close up of his feet running; implies speed.
5. Close up of his face, panicked/concerned expression.
6. Mid tracking shot as he runs, see him from the side.
7. Camera cuts to a shot of a young girl in a room, high angled and took from the top right corner of the room, no sound, and black and white; in order to imitate CCTV footage.
8. Camera cuts to the shots of a man running, tracking shot from the side shows him running past buildings (transformed city), non diegetic sound returns.
9. Full length shot of him running towards the camera head on, tracking out.
10. Cuts to a point of view shot of him running.
11. Establishing shot of the high-rise building at a low angle shot, to elongate it further and convey importance.
12. Running up towards the building, from behind.
13. Cut to him reaching for the handle.
14. Matching action, opening the door.
15. A cut to the same CCTV footage style shot of the girl banging on the door of the room she is held hostage in, again no sound.
16. Girl looks straight up at high angled camera.
17. Mid shot, slightly low, of him entering the building. All previous shots (apart from shots of the girl) have been external shots, they are now internal.
18. Pans across to him running to the foot of the stairs.
19. High angle of him running up the stairs.
20. Low angle, tracking shot of him running from behind.
21. CU of his face, looking side to side, displays confusion.
22. Point of view shot, camera pans from side to side.
23. Walks into shot.
24. CU of him walking to the door.
25. High angled shot of a girl in room, see her banging on the door, no sound.
26. Point of view shot, girl’s view of the door (inside the room).
27. Mid shot of him walking towards the door (outside the room).
28. Mid shot of her trying to open the door (inside the room).
29. Close up of his hands on the door (outside of the room).
30. Close up of her face.
31. Point of view shot as he opens the door.
32. Close up of his face, see confusion.
33. Point of view shot of the empty room (apart from table, timer and note).
34. Medium-wide shot from behind table of him walking towards table.
35. Close up of him picking up the note and unfolding it.
36. Close up of the shocked expression on his face, he turns.
37. Mid shot of him from behind as he drops the note and runs out of the room.
38. High angled shot of note falling, sees writing on note (slow motion), tracks out and becomes CCTV footage.
39. Camera tracks out to see screen showing the empty room. Can see a man’s shoulder, appears to be watching the screen.
40. Fades to black screen, see title of film ‘Justice’.
1. A black screen, can hear both heavy footsteps and heavy breathing; conveys a sense of panic.
2. Fades into shot, low angled camera, man runs towards and past the camera, continues diegetic sound of footsteps and breathing, fast paced music begins.
3. Cuts to wide shot of him running (tracks from behind).
4. Close up of his feet running; implies speed.
5. Close up of his face, panicked/concerned expression.
6. Mid tracking shot as he runs, see him from the side.
7. Camera cuts to a shot of a young girl in a room, high angled and took from the top right corner of the room, no sound, and black and white; in order to imitate CCTV footage.
8. Camera cuts to the shots of a man running, tracking shot from the side shows him running past buildings (transformed city), non diegetic sound returns.
9. Full length shot of him running towards the camera head on, tracking out.
10. Cuts to a point of view shot of him running.
11. Establishing shot of the high-rise building at a low angle shot, to elongate it further and convey importance.
12. Running up towards the building, from behind.
13. Cut to him reaching for the handle.
14. Matching action, opening the door.
15. A cut to the same CCTV footage style shot of the girl banging on the door of the room she is held hostage in, again no sound.
16. Girl looks straight up at high angled camera.
17. Mid shot, slightly low, of him entering the building. All previous shots (apart from shots of the girl) have been external shots, they are now internal.
18. Pans across to him running to the foot of the stairs.
19. High angle of him running up the stairs.
20. Low angle, tracking shot of him running from behind.
21. CU of his face, looking side to side, displays confusion.
22. Point of view shot, camera pans from side to side.
23. Walks into shot.
24. CU of him walking to the door.
25. High angled shot of a girl in room, see her banging on the door, no sound.
26. Point of view shot, girl’s view of the door (inside the room).
27. Mid shot of him walking towards the door (outside the room).
28. Mid shot of her trying to open the door (inside the room).
29. Close up of his hands on the door (outside of the room).
30. Close up of her face.
31. Point of view shot as he opens the door.
32. Close up of his face, see confusion.
33. Point of view shot of the empty room (apart from table, timer and note).
34. Medium-wide shot from behind table of him walking towards table.
35. Close up of him picking up the note and unfolding it.
36. Close up of the shocked expression on his face, he turns.
37. Mid shot of him from behind as he drops the note and runs out of the room.
38. High angled shot of note falling, sees writing on note (slow motion), tracks out and becomes CCTV footage.
39. Camera tracks out to see screen showing the empty room. Can see a man’s shoulder, appears to be watching the screen.
40. Fades to black screen, see title of film ‘Justice’.
Section 5 - Treatment
Synopsis:
He went into the police force to ensure that justice prevailed and now he’s taking justice into his own hands.
She was just an ordinary girl who was in the wrong place at the wrong time.
He has a secret and a countdown to save a life…
Treatment:
The first screen the audience see is just black, and they can hear diegetic sounds of heavy breathing and running footsteps. The black screen fades showing us a road, and in the distance can be seen a man (Kyle Baldwin) running. He runs towards and past the camera; as he does the non-diegetic soundtrack begins. The music is fast-paced and dramatic, giving a sense that something is wrong or that something important is/has happened. Close-ups of his feet and of his face as he runs are used to show his speed and his panic. He continues to run down the street. In his hand is a crumpled piece of paper.
The scene changes and both the diegetic and non-diegetic sounds stop as the camera cuts to a shot of a girl (Lucy Baldwin) in a room. The room is empty and she is banging against what we assume is a door and appears to be screaming, although we cannot hear her. She paces a little, before returning to the door, and continuing to try and escape.
The scene changes again, and returns to shots of Baldwin running. Both the diegetic and non-diegetic soundtracks begin. We see him running past buildings and past cars, so we assume that he is in either a town or a city. He runs towards one particular building, at the end of the street, opens the door and runs inside.
The camera then cuts back to a shot of the girl in the room, still using a high-angled shot but this time from an opposite corner of the room. No sound can be heard, but we can see her from behind, still trying to open the door. She stops again, glances around the room as if she is looking for something to help her open the door, but the room is empty. She continues to try to open the door. Then she stops and looks straight up at the camera.
The camera cuts to a shot of Baldwin running up some stairs inside the building he has just entered. The music/sound comes back as he runs. He reaches the top of the stairs and stops. He looks around slowly, as if he isn’t sure which way to go. He keeps focusing on the door straight in front of him. Taking a deep breath, he walks towards the door in front of him.
There is one very quick shot of the girl inside the room (sound cuts out). She is trying to open the door.
The next shot is of Baldwin (sound comes back in, now including diegetic sound of a ticking clock); he opens the door, and walks into the room. He stops and looks from side to side looking confused. The room is empty apart from a table, which has a clock on top of it and another piece of paper, but it is folded over, so we cannot see what it says. The next shot is high-angled and taken from the corner of the room (similar to the shots of the girl – both types of sound stop).
The camera tracks out (diegetic sound returns – normal breathing etc), and we can see two images on television/computer screens: one image is of Kyle Baldwin in the room with the clock on the table; the other image is of Lucy Baldwin in the other room, still trying to escape. The camera continues to track out and we see part of a silhouette of a man, who is watching the two screens.
As the film continues, we see Baldwin return to a police station, staggering in as he is very tired. He walks straight through the station into an office, where a detective comes out to meet him. Detective Ian Randall begins speaking to Baldwin, and we realise that Baldwin is a police officer as well. Baldwin shows Randall the piece of paper he is still holding in his hand. On the paper is an address, which has been handwritten.
Baldwin explains to Randall that he found the note in his home, and that his daughter Lucy is missing. He explains how he found the address but that when he reached the building, there was nothing and nobody there. He also tells Randall about the room with the clock on the table and from his pocket he pulls out the piece of paper he found on the table. Unfolding it, we see the words ‘where we last talked’ have been written on the paper.
Randall begins an investigation into the disappearance of Lucy, and asks Baldwin to try to think of someone who would kidnap her. He tells Randall that he cannot remember anyone who would have a grudge against him, but as the narrative progresses, we realise that he is lying. He spends his time looking through old files about a drugs scandal, and Randall becomes suspicious. He begins to follow Baldwin, as he suspects that he knows more about the person who has kidnapped Lucy than he is saying.
Randall follows Baldwin to another building and watches as he enters the building. When he doesn’t come back out, Randall also enters the building and finds Baldwin kneeling on the floor in a room which is empty except from a table with a clock and another piece of paper on top of it.
(As the narrative is unfolding, we repeatedly are shown shots of Lucy in the room, and we see her from the perspective of the kidnapper. She is always in the same room, which implies that the kidnapper is playing a game with Randall and Baldwin as he begins to leave notes which only lead to another empty room, and never to the room where Lucy is being kept.)
Baldwin confesses that he believes the kidnapper to be Matthew Drake, an ex-police officer whom he was the partner of 10 years ago. He tells Randall that he got involved in a drugs scandal, but blamed it on Drake, who was then thrown out of the police force and sent to prison. He believes that Drake is holding a grudge against him and wants to punish him by harming Lucy. Baldwin shows Randall the piece of paper that is on table, which has the words ‘only 3 days left’ written on it. He tells him that Drake’s trial for the drugs scandal lasted for six days, and that three days had already passed since Lucy had been taken. The two return to the police station, planning to discover more about Drake, as they believe they might be able to discover something which will help them find where he is keeping Lucy.
On the sixth day since Lucy was taken, a letter arrives at the police station, giving instructions as to where the two detectives can find Lucy. They follow the instructions and are led to a third building, inside of which is a room set out like the other rooms Baldwin had been led to. There is another piece of paper there, and following the instructions on here leads them to another room, and so on, until eventually, when it is almost the end of the day the two detectives are lead to a courtroom. Baldwin identifies the courtroom as the one where Drake was sentenced to prison.
Inside they can hear Lucy shouting and screaming but all they can find is a television screen which is playing a video of her trying to escape from the room she is in. They hear a voice, which Baldwin recognises as Drake’s voice, and turning around they see him sat in the judge’s chair. Both detectives raise their guns, but Drake threatens that if they shoot him, they will never find Lucy.
Drake forces the two detectives to ‘attend’ a fake trial, all the time threatening to hurt Lucy if they don’t do what he asks. He forces Baldwin to confess that he was the one who was involved in the drugs scandal and that he was wrong in blaming Drake for it. He tells them how he felt about being thrown off the force and about his time in prison, and then why he kidnapped Lucy. This was because his career was the most important thing in his life, and Baldwin took it away, so he wanted to punish Baldwin in the same way. Drake feels that justice failed him, so he wanted to take justice into his own hands.
He tells the two that he has removed all traces of his existence from their computer systems and that they will never be able to track him down; he compromises with them that if they let him go, he will tell them where Lucy is. They agree, as they cannot think of another way to get Lucy back. Drake gives them instructions as to where to find her, and then leaves. Neither of the detectives see where he is going.
They follow the instructions Drake gave them, and find Lucy in a room, surrounded by drugs. They realise that Drake has murdered her with a drugs overdose. Behind her on the wall is written the word ‘JUSTICE’.
Section 4 - Audience Research
In order to fully understand what kind of thrillers people like, my media group developed a questionnaire directed towards anyone. The limit was 30 people of any age group. We collected these because we were then going to use these study answeres to create our own thriller intro and having results about what kind of thriller people like was going to help us decide what kind of thriller we should make.
Question 6 - What kind of thriller do you prefer?
Out of the 30 people we asked, 9 answered that the plot line was the reason they chose their answer to Question 8. This means that the plot line we choose for our thriller film is very important, as it has to attract our target audience. 10 people chose 'other' to answer this question; however as the answers they gave were very specific to the film they had choosen in Question 8, we decided that the more generalised answer 'plot' gave us more information about what our target audience looks for in a thriller film.
Out of the 30 people we asked, 18 people answered that they prefer to see ‘both’ younger and older characters in a thriller film. This showed us that we should use characters with a range of ages in our thriller film. We decided that we would use three characters in the opening of our thriller; one younger character and two older characters.
Out of the 30 people we asked, 16 people answered that they would prefer to see ‘both’ male and female characters in a thriller film. This showed us that when we make our thriller, we should use characters from both genders. We decided that out of the three characters we will use, the younger character will be female and the two older characters will be male.
Out of the 30 people we asked, 14 people answered that they would most expect to hear ‘fast-paced’ music in a thriller film. This showed us the kind of music we should be using when we make our own thriller. We decided that we will definitely use fast-paced music in our thriller, as this also fits with our plot as we were planning to have our protagonist running to a location, so fast-paced music will work well.
Out of the 30 people we asked, 21 people answered that they preferred ‘realistic’ thrillers. This showed us that our target audience would prefer to watch a realistic thriller than a supernatural thriller. We decided originally that we would make a realistic thriller, so we know that we are definitely right in making this decision.
Thriller Questionnaire
Please circle answers to multiple choice questions.
1. Are you male or female?
male female
2. How old are you?
______________
3. What is your favourite colour?
______________
4. What is your favourite genre of film?
______________
5. Are you a fan of the thriller genre?
yes no
6. What kind of thriller do you prefer?
psychological action crime supernatural
7. What is your favourite thriller from this list?
Seven Jaws The Silence Saw Other ____________
of the Lambs
8. Why did you choose this film?
__________________________________________________________
9. What scares you?
__________________________________________________________
10. What do you expect to see in the opening of a thriller film?
concealment action tension other ____________
11. Do you like to be able to relate to characters in films?
yes no
12. Would you prefer to see younger or older characters in a thriller film?
younger older both
13. Do you prefer to see male or female characters in a thriller film?
male female both
14. What kind of music do you expect from a thriller film?
fast-paced mysterious scary other ___________
15. Do you prefer realistic or supernatural thrillers?
realistic supernatural
16. Would you prefer to see simple or complex text in the credits sequence in a thriller film?
simple complex other __________
17. Do you find that the lighting used affects the mood of the film? Eg. dark/dim lighting
yes no
18. Do you like to be introduced to the main character in the opening sequence of a thriller?
19. Which sound do you find builds the most tension in a thriller?
a ticking clock heavy breathing footsteps other ___________
20. What kind of location do you prefer for a thriller film?
claustrophobic open other ___________
After collecting all the results from the 30 people, we then turned all the results into tally charts and then into graphs in order to better understand the results. Each question gave us better information into specific aspects on peoples liking of thrillers.Question 6 - What kind of thriller do you prefer?
Out of the 30 people we asked, 16 replied that they prefer psychological thrillers above the others. This shows us that our target audience would prefer to watch a psychological thriller, and therefore we should create a thriller from this sub-genre. As we had already chosen to create a psychological thriller, we know we are following what our target audience wants.
Question 7 - What is your favorite thriller from this list?
Out of the 30 people we asked, 8 chose The Silence of the Lambs as their favourite thriller. As The Silence of the Lambs is a psychological thriller, this shows us that we are definitely right in choosing to create a psychological thriller for our coursework. However, as 22 people chose other thriller films as their favourite, we need to ensure that we do not isolate these people when we create our thriller. This has shown us that we need to include elements in our thriller which may not necessarily be traditional to the psychological sub-genre.
Question 8 - Why did you chose this film?
Out of the 30 people we asked, 9 answered that the plot line was the reason they chose their answer to Question 8. This means that the plot line we choose for our thriller film is very important, as it has to attract our target audience. 10 people chose 'other' to answer this question; however as the answers they gave were very specific to the film they had choosen in Question 8, we decided that the more generalised answer 'plot' gave us more information about what our target audience looks for in a thriller film.
Question 9 - What scares you?
Out of the 30 people we asked, 8 replied that what scares them most about thriller films is the killer. This means that in creating our thriller, we need to ensure that we create the character of the killer so it lives up to the expectations of our target audience. Again, 13 people chose 'other' to answer this question, but as their answers were also specific to a particular thriller, we decided that the more generalized answer 'the killer' told us more about what our target audience expect from a thriller film.
Question 10 - What do you expect to see in the opening of a thriller?
Out of the 30 people we asked, 12 answered that they expect to see tension in the opening of a thriller film. This shows us that when creating our thriller, we need to ensure that we create tension in the opening sequence, as this is what our target audience expect. We are going to create tension in a range of camera angles and the music we played over the sequence.
Question 11 – Do you like to be able to relate to characters in a thriller film?
Out of the 30 people we asked, 28 answered ‘yes’ that they do like to be able to relate to characters in a thriller film. This showed us that when we create our characters, we need to create a character who the audience can relate to. We decided that the protagonist in our thriller will be a regular person who becomes a victim, as this will help the audience to be able to imagine themselves in the same position.
Question 12 - Would you prefer to see younger or older characters in a thriller?
Out of the 30 people we asked, 18 people answered that they prefer to see ‘both’ younger and older characters in a thriller film. This showed us that we should use characters with a range of ages in our thriller film. We decided that we would use three characters in the opening of our thriller; one younger character and two older characters.
Question 13 - Do you prefer to see male or female characters in a thriller film?
Out of the 30 people we asked, 16 people answered that they would prefer to see ‘both’ male and female characters in a thriller film. This showed us that when we make our thriller, we should use characters from both genders. We decided that out of the three characters we will use, the younger character will be female and the two older characters will be male.
Question 14 - What kind of music do you expect from a thriller film?
Out of the 30 people we asked, 14 people answered that they would most expect to hear ‘fast-paced’ music in a thriller film. This showed us the kind of music we should be using when we make our own thriller. We decided that we will definitely use fast-paced music in our thriller, as this also fits with our plot as we were planning to have our protagonist running to a location, so fast-paced music will work well.
Question 15 - Do you prefer realistic or supernatural thrillers?
Out of the 30 people we asked, 21 people answered that they preferred ‘realistic’ thrillers. This showed us that our target audience would prefer to watch a realistic thriller than a supernatural thriller. We decided originally that we would make a realistic thriller, so we know that we are definitely right in making this decision.
Monday, 8 November 2010
Section 1 - The Thriller Genre
I would define a thriller as a genre with a plot which has plenty of suspense and is frightening in order to excite the audience. Thriller genre-involved media ofter have plot twists and are ofter orientated around murders or killings/killers.
Each genre goes with any other sub-genre but the best fitted sub-genres for thrillers are along the lines of 'psychological thrillers' or 'horror thrillers'. This is because with these sub-genre's the thriller-esq is kept intact and the story can be upheld.
There are certain 'ingredients' that make a thriller. This are certain theories that have been theorised by authors. These particular 'ingredients' are found in each and every thriller and they are needed in order to keep the thriller a 'thriller'.
These are:
Each genre goes with any other sub-genre but the best fitted sub-genres for thrillers are along the lines of 'psychological thrillers' or 'horror thrillers'. This is because with these sub-genre's the thriller-esq is kept intact and the story can be upheld.
There are certain 'ingredients' that make a thriller. This are certain theories that have been theorised by authors. These particular 'ingredients' are found in each and every thriller and they are needed in order to keep the thriller a 'thriller'.
These are:
- Transformed City - This was thought up by a British author: G.K. Chesterton. He basically said that while the characters were in ordinary areas, being in them made them 'extra'ordinary due to the fact that they are there. These areas tended to be modern, urban environments. He explains how this is like the "Poetry of Modern Life".
- Heroic Romance - This theory was brought up by Northrop Frye. This explains that the main hero is the particular stories are ordinary people 'just like us' who are put into situations which they are forced to proceed. It is also explained that for these particular hero's the laws of nature are slightly suspended, otherwise the realism will eventually kill them off for over-realism.
- The Exotic - This was brought to attention by John G. Cawelti explaining that for there to be a good thriller, there needs to be something out of place but still relevance to the plot. An object, place, person or artifact that is of alien origin: misplaced in an unfitting world; Introduced into the unfamiliar. He also explains that this helps turn the moder city into an enchanted and a place of mystery.
- Mazes and Labyrinths - Theorised by W.H. Matthews, explains that in order to have a full thriller there needs to be some sort of maze in which one/the hero needs to go through in order to reach their goal, showing they are in a predicament. This can be used in a literal sense or as a metaphor for the narrative. This also origins from Greek mythology.
- Partial Vision - By Pascal Bonitzer. This is a main part of thriller aspects because in order to keep the audience entertained and 'wanting more' the general story will keep something out of complete sight and have 'blind spots' to build suspense. This will be done and either shown towards the end, or not shown at all in order to pull off a mysterious uncertainty in the story. This leads onto the fact that what the audience doesn't see may just be as important as something that's in plain sight.
- Concealment and Protraction - Lars Ole Saurberg shows to the thriller aspects that: Concealment is something that is hidden from the audience in order to keep them guessing. Not entirely unlike 'Partial Vision' but this is what the audience doesn't see completely, not just partially. And Protraction is something that deliberately distracts the audience in order to delay suspense and possibly to fill time.
- The Question-Answer Model - Noel Carroll proved that this is also an important aspect of thrillers. It shows that the audience is presented with questions throughout the story and are then given suspense while leading upto the answer. Having a 'sure thing' sort of story won't provide any sort of suspense or excitment, whereas with unanswered questions throughout the plot of a thriller, the audience will want to see more. Also, a morally right outcome will increase involvement.
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