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Genre analysis
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- 2. . Psychological thrillersare a sub-genre of thriller films. Psychological thrillers usually focus more on mental and psychological part of the thriller genre rather than the action in other sub-genres. Psychological thrillers also use elements that are also used in mystery and drama genre films and sometimes psychological thrillers border on using some elements used in horror films. Psychological films usually feature conflicts between two main characters that focus more on mental aspects than physical or conflict.
- 3. . Psychological thrilleris a thriller story which emphasizes the psychology of its characters and their unstable emotional states. In terms of classification, the category is a subgenre of the broader ranging thriller category, with similarities to Gothic and detective fiction in the sense of sometimes having a "dissolving sense of reality", moral ambiguity, and complex and tortured relationships between obsessive and pathological characters. Psychological thrillers often incorporate elements of mystery, drama, action, and horror, particularly psychological horror. They are usually books or films.
- 4. . Peter Hutchingsstates that varied films have been labeled psychological thrillers, but that it usually refers to "narratives with domesticated settings in which action is suppressed and where thrills are provided instead via investigations of the psychologies of the principal characters. A distinguishing characteristic of a psychological thriller is a marked emphasis on the mental states of its characters: their perceptions,thoughts,distortions and general struggle to grasp reality.
- 5. .Films can alsocause discomfort in audiences by privileging them with information that they wish to share with the characters; guilty characters may suffer similar distress by virtue of their knowledge. James N. Frey instead defines psychological thrillers as a style, rather than a subgenre; Frey states that good thrillers focus on the psychology of their antagonists and build suspense slowly through ambiguity. . According to director John Madden, psychological thrillers focus on story, character development, choice, and moral conflict; fear and anxiety drive the psychological tension in unpredictable ways. Psychological thrillers are suspenseful by exploiting uncertainty over characters' motives, honesty, and how they see the world.
- 6. .unreliable narrator-Andrew Tayloridentifies 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. .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.
- 7. themes . Many psychologicalthrillers 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
- 8. . In psychologicalthrillers, characters often battle their own minds: they attempt to determine what is real, who they are, and what life's purpose is. 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. Psychological thrillers may not always be concerned with plausibility. Enigma is used frequently in psychological thrillers in order to captive the audiences Attention. A dilemma that the target audience can relate to is introduced and then played around with and resolved or left unresolved.
- 9. Examples of psychologicalthrillers
- 10. Titles and credits .Most of the psychological thrillers have their credits done over a black screen. It is also common for some films to start with a particular event before titles start to show. Another convention of titles is that usually the most important film companies or actors in the film are shown first in the credits.
- 11. Character representation . Inpsychological thrillers the characters are often very vulnerable and isolated and have either got a lot to lose or already lost what matters most to them making them vulnerable. Often men with wives and children are used because when exposed they are much more vulnerable than just the everyday person.
- 12. Typical characters ofa psychological thriller film include: -convicts E.g.: -criminals -stalkers -assassins -down-on-their-luck losers -innocent victims -prison inmates -menaced women -characters with dark pasts -psychotic individuals -terrorists -cops or police -escaped convicts -fugitives -private eyes -drifters -people involved in twisted relationships
- 13. Mis-en-scene .location- in psychologicalthrillers, typical settings can be old, abandoned houses such as Victorian buildings because this gives the idea that it may involve spirits in the house. But, with a few of the short films that we have watched, the opening are set in either a modern or urban setting, this sets the tone for the whole film as being a psychological thriller. If it was set to start within the country side, then it maybe confused for a different genre, such as perhaps drama or comedy. .shadows & low key lighting-this is a typical convention of a psychological thriller. The reason why these are used is to add tension to the scene and in a few cases they can represent the inner darkness of a character or portray what will happen in the film. They are also used for creating a sense of mystery.
- 14. sound.props-mirrors are commonlyused in the psychological thriller genre of films as they can show the characters ‘inner self’. It could also represent a character as having a ‘dark side’. .costumes-in most psychological genre films the ‘villains’ wear casual/smart clothes ,fitting in the theory that psychological thrillers are usually set in urban and modern settings, in a relatively wealthy country. . In most psychological thriller films the music and sounds are eerie and tense. This technique is used to build up tension within a scene or create shock within the spectators, as well as adding to the mystery/ increase the impact for a particular scene adhering to genre codes and conventions.
- 15. camera . Camera movementsare very important within psychological thrillers. Quick camera movements (zip, zip-pan, tilt, or fast tracking) are often used during psychological thrillers to build up tension and panic within the scene, which then makes the audience feel similar emotions as the character (tension, horror, fear, or worry).
- 16. editing . Black &white- this is used in psychological thrillers in order to enhance the effectiveness of shadows, or represent a non-linear narrative such as flashbacks, or even enhance the idea of a bleak and ‘colorless’ outlook. .Obtrusive & montage editing- this is used quite commonly in psychological thrillers to highlight and enhance the feelings and emotions of suspense and tension within important scenes. .flashbacks- this is typically used in psychological thrillers because it shows thing that have happened prior to the storyline, to give an insight to the audience of a characters past or to highlight an important message that would not usually fit in to a sequence of the film. This could give the audience a bigger clue as to why a character may be portrayed as they are.
- 17. .presentation by: wajeehayasin a2-f
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