The document discusses key elements of an effective psychological thriller storyline. It notes that psychological thrillers are plot-driven with fast pacing and frequent crimes or obstacles to propel the story. More so than regular thrillers, they emphasize character development and exploration of the protagonist's impaired mental state. There are typically opposing sides, such as victims and police versus the protagonist, with characters trying to outwit each other psychologically rather than through brute force. It provides the film Psycho as an example that follows these conventions well.

1. Storylines in
Psychological
Thrillers
Joe Sheldon

2. Pacing and Plot
– Our film will borrow many aspects of the psychological thriller, following a main
character throughout. This trope of the thriller genre is only effective when the film
is fast paced and plot-driven, focusing on action.
– In a typical psychological film, the pacing must be fast to keep the audience engaged
in the movie. The emotions run high and constant obstacles or crimes happen in
order to impede or aid the central character, whether they be villainous or good-
natured.
– The major crimes are committed at various points within the movie, usually with
one side working to prevent the major catastrophe.
– Unlike the more conventional crime thriller, a psychological thriller usually involves
the audience knowing more than the protagonist, through either exposition or the
character’s bad mental state.

3. Character Development
– In a regular thriller, character development is usually sidelined for action.
However, a psychological thriller tends to place greater emphasis on character
development than its counterpart.
– The emotional and mental wellbeing of the primary character is always
impaired in some way. In our premise, the main character is deluded and has a
fixation on killing his two friends from college later in life.
– The evil acts by a character drive the story forward and alter their behavior. The
audience usually knows the history of the character and the identity of them
early on within the film, as it adds more emphasis upon later events.

4. Opposing Sides Structure
– The main character should be someone that the audience can recognise and
their motives should be somewhat understandable, even if the viewers cannot
empathise with them.
– As a result of this, their should always be an opposite side of the story to try
and prevent the protagonist from getting their wish.
– In our idea and in many famous films, the opposite side is the police trying to
stop the murders. However, often the character that is the prospective victim of
a crime is forming the opposing side.
– Characters often try to out-wit each other, winning in a psychological thriller is
rarely done purely by brute force or speed.

5. Examples
– One of the defining psychological thriller/horror films, Psycho (Dir. Hitchcock,
1960), followed and formulated many of the typical aspects of the psychological
storyline.
– The pacing is fast and the crimes happen frequently. The audience has some
information on the identity of the protagonist without the main victims
knowing.
– The fear and neurological state of the central characters are explored in far
greater detail than in a regular thriller.
– The film operates with opposing sides of the victim and murderer, with the
victims and protagonist attempting to escape the murders.