1. Thriller Films
Timeline!
This PowerPoint is a timeline of
the Thriller film’s that have been
made from the 1920’s to 2014.
2. 1926 – The Lodger
The Lodger. This is an Alfred
Hitchcock film. It was Hitchcock’s 3rd
silent film he had made but his first
Thriller film which is what he is
commonly known for. The Lodger is
a suspenseful Jack Ripper film as a
type of serial killer. Starring Marie
Ault, Arthur Chesney, June Tripp,
Malcolm Keen and Ivor Novello.
3. 1928 – Spies
Spies was on the of the first spy
films in the Thriller genre to be
released. It is a Fritz Lang film,
this was his first independent
production. The criminal spy
character is played by Rudolf
Klein-Rogge who in the film was
pursued by the good-guy Willy
Fritsch. This film anticipated the
James Bond films of the future.
4. 1934 – The Man Who Knew
Too Much
This is again an Alfred Hitchcock
production. It is a suspense-thriller
movie. It features Peter Lorre. It was
one of the most successful films of
Hitchcock’s period.
5. 1946 – The Spiritual Staircase
The Spiritual Staircase is a
psychological thriller film
directed by Robert Siodmak. It
was adapted from a novel
called Some Must Watch. A
mute domestic servant,
Dorothy McGuire, was
terrorized by a serial murder.
6. 1953 – Niagara
Niagara is a film produced and
directed by Henry Hathaway. It
stars Joseph Cotten, Jean
Peters, Casey Adams and
Marilyn Monroe. The films was
one of Century-Fox’s biggest hits
of the year. Marilyn Monroe as a
trashy femme fatale who
schemes to kill her unstable
husband (Cotten).
7. 1958 – Touch of Evil
Touch of Evil is directed and
produced by Orson Welles. It is
a unique crime thriller. A pre-
Psycho Janet Leigh as a
terrorized wife, Charlton Heston
as a Mexican narcotics agent.
The director himself Orson
Welles is the evil border-town
cop in the thriller film.
8. 1960 - Psycho
Psycho is an American horror-thriller
film directed by Alfred
Hitchcock. It is based on the
novel Psycho (1959). This film is
considered one of the best
Hitchcock’s and is praised as
work by international film critics
and film scholars. It set a new
level of acceptability for
violence and sexuality in
American Films. After Hitchcock
dies in 1980 Universal Studios
began to produce follow ups:
three sequels, a remake, a
television spin off and a TV
series.
9. 1978 – The Eyes of Laura Mars
This film was directed by Irvin
Kershner. It was a stalker
themed thriller. It starred Faye
Dunaway as the main
character who had the title of
a stalked photographer. The
film is noted for its use of red
herrings and plot twists.
10. 1990 - Miser
Misery is a psychological
thriller film based on Stephen
King’s novel. It stars James
Caan, Kathy Bates and
Lauren Bacall. Bates won the
1990 Academy Award for
best actress for her role. The
film was ranked #12 on
Bravo’s 100 scariest movie
moments.
11. 1999 – The Talented Mr. Ripley
The Talented Mr. Ripley is an
American psychological
thriller written and directed
by Anthony Minghella. It is
an adaption from the novel
The Talented Mr. Ripley
(1955). The film stars Jude
Law and Gwyneth Paltrow.
12. 2006 – Casino Royale
Casino Royale is the 21st film
in the James Bond series and
is the first one to star Daniel
Craig. It is directed by Martin
Campbell. It is themed with
spies and fictional MI6
characters (Daniel Craig). It is
followed by Quantum of
Solace (2008) and Skyfall
(2012).
13. 2008 - Taken
Taken is a 2008 action-thriller film
directed by Pierre Morel. Its stars
Liam Neeson and is the first film in
the Taken series, it is followed by
Taken 2. it is the story of Neeson’s
daughter, Maggie Grace, being
kidnapped for sexual slavery. He
is a CIA agent and has to find
her. The film is said to of made
Neeson an action film star.
14. 2014 – The Purge: Anarchy
This is an action-thriller film
directed and written by
James DeMonaco. It is a
sequel to The Purge (2013).
The film was met with
generally mixed views but
was agreed to be an
improvement of the first
film.
15. Change throughout the years
Firstly, the posters from all the films
have changed throughout those
years. At the beginning of the thriller
film stage the posters are quite bright
and they don’t symbolise the thriller
genre as well as dark and dull
colours do.
The older films were mostly
based on novels or plays
where as the more recent
thrillers weren’t based on
these, they were
specifically written for these
films.
Lastly, the more recent
films mostly have sequels,
a follow on film etc.
However the older thrillers
do not have this.
