The document discusses conventions and techniques used in psychological thriller films to impact audiences. It analyzes three iconic psychological thrillers from different decades - The Shining (1980), Se7en (1995), and Shutter Island (2010). Common conventions discussed include unreliable narrators, plot twists, exploring themes of reality, identity and death. Literary devices like stream of consciousness and backstories are examined in these films. The document aims to understand how directors achieve lasting psychological effects on audiences through these cinematic techniques and conventions.

1. By Katie Hall
THE PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF FILMS
ON THE AUDIENCE

2. THE FOCUS
The focus of my research is to find out how films have a
lasting effect on the audience, and how directors achieve
this in psychological thrillers. I will be studying
psychological films and secondary texts to see how the
conventions of the genre are achieved and used by the
director.

3. PRIMARY TEXTS
I have chosen 3 famous psychological films as my primary texts. I have a film from the 80’s, 90’s and
2000’s in order to get an overview of the genre and highlight changes over time. I have chosen these
films in particular as they have been some of the most successful of the genre, becoming iconic.

4. THE SHINING - 1980
A quote from Kubrick on the making of The Shining :
“The convention of telling the story primarily through a
series of dialogue scenes. Most films are really little
more than stage plays with more atmosphere and action.
I think that the scope and flexibility of movie stories
would be greatly enhanced by borrowing something from
the structure of silent movies where points that didn't
require dialog could be presented by a shot and a title
card. Something like: Title: Billy's uncle. Picture: Uncle
giving Billy ice cream. In a few seconds, you could
introduce Billy's uncle and say something about him
without being burdened with a scene. This economy of
statement gives silent movies a much greater narrative
scope and flexibility than we have today. In my view,
there are very few sound films, including those regarded
as masterpieces, which could not be presented almost
as effectively on the stage, assuming a good set, the
same cast and quality of performances. You couldn't do
that with a great silent movie.”

5. CONVENTIONS OF PSYCHOLOGICAL
THRILLER
Characters have to rely on their mind rather than their physical strength. The
suspense created by psychological thrillers often comes from two or more
characters preying upon one another's minds, either by playing deceptive
games with the other or by merely trying to demolish the other's mental
state.
Stream of Consciousness – Written equivalent of the character's thought
processes. In psychological thrillers, through word usage, descriptions, or
visuals we are invited into the characters mind.
First Person Narrative – In the opinion of the character and thus able to
understand the mechanics of the characters' minds.

6. EXAMPLES – FIRST PERSON NARRATIVE
Shutter island
Although there is no non-diegetic narration or voice over, the main
character spends a lot of time talking to himself. This can be seen
all the way from the beginning of the film, and helps to give the
audience an insight into what is going on in the character's mind,
showing the story from their perspective and showcasing their
inner turmoil.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-F1-sTyGvwA

7. THE BACK STORY
• Back Story – what has happened before hand. This deepens the
psychological aspect of the story since the audience is able to
more fully understand the character; more specifically, what the
character's motivations are and how his/her past has shaped their
current way of thinking.
• Gaining a good understanding of these characteristics we allow us
to be able to use some of these features in our film and narrative,
for example for a first person narrative we could have a one of our
characters doing a voice over, a stream of consciousness could
also be done in this way.

8. EXAMPLES
Shutter Island
The backstory here is slowly explained throughout the film as the
main character experiences flashbacks to his wife’s death and his
time in the military. However, his past is eventually explained fully
at the end of the film, where we find out that it has been influencing
his behavior all along.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eveUzWmTxl4

9. LITERARY DEVICES/TECHNIQUES
Plot twist – Films such as Psycho and The Skeleton Key have advertised the fact that they
contain plot twists and asked audiences to refrain from revealing spoilers. Psychological thrillers
with poorly received plot twists, such as The Village, have suffered in the box office.
Unreliable narrator – Andrew Taylor identifies the unreliable narrator as a common literary
device used in psychological thrillers and traces it back to Edgar Allan Poe's influence on the
genre. Criminal insanity may be explored as a theme.
Macguffin – Alfred Hitchcock pioneered the concept of the MacGuffin, a goal or item that helps
to move the plot. The MacGuffin is frequently only vaguely defined, and it can be used to
increase suspense.

10. EXAMPLES
The Shining
This film is a good example of a plot twist, where the normal family unit is torn apart
by the father’s insanity. It is typical of a psychological film to take something which
is associated with safety, such as the family, and make it into something twisted and
dangerous. The plot twist here is when the father who was working hard to protect
and provide for his family is now doing the opposite trying to kill them. There is also
another twist as the end of the story which leaves unanswered questions, as there
is an old photo showing the father in 1921, begging the question was he ever even
real?

11. EXAMPLES
Shutter Island
This film also has a plot twist with a cliff-hanger ending, where the
audience is left not knowing the true outcome. This is one of the
techniques used to have an effect on the audience, even after the
film is over, as the audience does not feel a sense of ending over
the film, and is left only to guess at what might have actually been.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvQXi6duxRs

12. THEMES
Many psychological thrillers have emerged over the past years, all in various media (film, literature,
radio, etc.). Despite these very different forms of representation, general trends have appeared
throughout the narratives. Some of these consistent themes include:
Reality
Perception
Mind
Existence/Purpose
Identity
Death
In psychological thrillers, characters often battle their own minds: they attempt to determine what is
real, who they are, and what life's purpose is. Amnesia is a common plot device used to explore
these questions. Character may be threatened with death, be forced to deal with the deaths of
others, or fake their own deaths. Psychological thrillers can be complex, and reviewers may
recommend a second or third viewing to "decipher its secrets.” Common elements may include stock
characters, such as a hardboiled detective and serial killer, involved in a cat and mouse game.

13. EXAMPLES
Se7en
In Se7en, the protagonist (detective) battles against the antagonist (serial killer)
who’s crimes question existence and the modern society that he inhabits. Rather
than being violent as you would see in a crime film, the killer here has a reason
behind what he is doing, and sees it as a positive thing, hoping to be remembered
for what he did. It is typical of psychological films to include a killer who murders for
a deeper reason, rather than out of passion like you would see in a typical crime
film. The killer in Se7en also has a lasting effect on the protagonist, who spends all
of his time trying to figure out the madness behind the crimes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rS4EJGh9mIg

14. MY FILM
The research I have found will help me in my own creative product as
I can use the techniques, styles and conventions of the genre to
create a film which has the desired effect on the audience. I will use
micro and macro features to achieve this and hopefully, with a range
of influences from my sources, make a successful product.

15. FILMOGRAPHY
10/Kubrik, Stanley, 1980. The Shining, Warner Bros.
11/Fincher, David, 1995. Se7en, New Line Cinema
12/Scorsese, Martin, 2010. Shutter Island, Paramount
Pictures

16. BIBLIOGRAPHY
• http://www.slideshare.net/MediaBlog/psychological-horror-pp?related=1
• http://www.slideshare.net/tiffanyymchan/conventions-of-a-psychological-thriller-
12728719
• http://www.galyakay.com/filmnarrative.html
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_thriller
• http://www.visual-memory.co.uk/amk/doc/interview.ts.html