This document compares scenes and shots from the film "Grosse Pointe Blank" to those from the author's own thriller video. It analyzes how the author's video uses and conforms to conventions of real thriller films. Key conventions that the author's video conforms to include establishing shots that show the location and build tension/suspense about what will happen. It also effectively uses close-ups, dark backgrounds, and shots that make the victim seem vulnerable to elicit sympathy and foreshadow sinister events, just as in typical thriller films.

1. In what ways does your media product
use, develop or challenge forms and
conventions of real media product?
{ Evaluation Task 1

2. We’ve taken screenshots from
one of the first scenes from
‘Grosse Pointe Blank’, a film
with a poison scene similar to
ours.
This is similar to ours as
they both have shots of
the victims, innocently in
their beds, unaware of
what is to come. This
conforms to the
conventions of a thriller as
one character is
immediately set up as the
victim.

3. Here is a shot from both our
thriller, and from Grosse Pointe
Blank where there is a close up of
the assassins eyes. This is an
example of how our thriller video
conforms to the conventions of a
normal thriller film – the ‘baddie’
is shown very clearly by the dark
colours displayed in the
background and the interesting
shadows cast on the faces, which
could be used to show the
conflict between good and evil
within.

4. These shots are used to
establish the location of the
event and where the
assassin is. The shot below
from Grosse Pointe Blank
builds up the tension in the
scene and leaves the
audience wondering what
the assassin is doing and
what is about to happen.
We have tried to recreate
this tension with our shot
and, as you can see, our
shot is filled with the same
eerie mise-en-scene that is
typical of assassins.

5. These shots establish to the audience
that the victim is in the room
beneath the assassin which leaves
the audience with a sense of
foreboding as they began to
understand what will happen.
This conforms with the
conventions of a thriller as
it leaves the audience
wondering and increases
the tension and builds
suspense.

6. Both of the shots have a
darkened background
suggesting, not just a
dark room but also a
dark character on a moral
level. They both have
extreme close ups of the
hands, showing they are
professionals as what
they are doing is tricky
and it also tells the
audience that they should
pay attention. This
conforms to the
conventions of a thriller
as it gives the audience
clues as to what is about
to happen, without
telling them directly,
therefore keeping the
suspense.

7. These shots both show the
helpless victim in a vulnerable
position which makes us feel
sympathy for the characters
and therefore we feel attached
to the thriller on an emotional
level. The metaphysical aspect
of this shot induces severe
connotations of deep
spirituality. This conforms to
the conventions of a
stereotypical thriller,
foreshadowing a sinister event
at the heart of our gruelling,
bleak and some would say
harrowing tale of woe.

8. These two shots here are very
similar in that they both show
the beginning of the sinister
event at the heart of the thriller.
The poison slowly making its
way down the string is one of
the most tense moments in the
video and I think that we have
managed to create the same
amount of suspense that was
created in the professionally
made Grosse Point Blank. Both
have dark backgrounds which
represent the nature of the shot
and the characters in the thriller.

9. These closing shots are an
effective crescendo to the
tension that has been
building for a good minute.
The suspense is
immaculately presented
and created for climatic
satisfaction that leaves the
audience in a state of shock
and awe. This definitely
conforms to the thriller
genre.

10. Our shot here conforms to an
archetypal film title shot as you can
see below with a plain black
background and relatively simple
text.