Three thriller film examples are analyzed: The Perfect Guy, Split, and The Boy Next Door. All three films have male antagonists and female protagonists, and were directed by men. The thriller genre revolves around building anticipation and suspense throughout the film until a highly stressful climax. While thrillers come in different sub-genres, the analyzed piece would fit into the psychological thriller sub-genre, as it incorporates elements of drama and mystery like a psychological thriller and presents a mental/psychological threat to the protagonist rather than a physical one.

1. Thriller Genre Analysis
The PerfectGuy
Synopsis:Afterbreakingupwithherboyfriend,aprofessionalwomangetsinvolvedwithaman
whoseemsalmosttoogoodto be true.
Genre:Drama,Thriller
Director: DavidM. Rosenthal
Split
Synopsis:Afterthree girlsare kidnappedbyaman with24 distinctpersonalitiestheymustfind
some of the differentpersonalitiesthatcanhelpthemwhile runningawayandstayingalive from
the others.
Genre:Horror, Thriller
Director: StephenGaghan
The Boy NextDoor
Synopsis:Afterthree girlsare kidnappedbyaman with24 distinctpersonalitiestheymustfind
some of the differentpersonalitiesthatcanhelpthemwhile runningawayandstaying alive from
the others.
Genre:Mystery,Thriller
Director: Rob Cohen
All three filmsare dominatedbyamale antagonist,andfemale protagonist. The three Thrillersalsohave male
directors;this maybe a conventional traitof Thrillerfilmsinthe industry. The Thrillerfilmgenreisagenre that
revolvesaroundanticipationandsuspense. The aimof the genre istobuildtensionaroundthe mainproblemthe
filmisbuiltonand maintainthislevel of tensionthroughoutthe filmuntil finallyfinishingona highlystressfulclimax.
We will needtoinclude thisinourproductiontoensure thataudience isable toinstantlyidentifythe genre of the
piece.
Thrillerisnotjustone blackand white genre;there are manydifferentsub-genresof Thriller.These sub-genresare:
ActionThriller,Crime Thriller,Film-Noir,Psychological Thriller,Science FictionThriller,andReligiousThriller. Iwould
say that the piece we intendtoproduce wouldfitinthe categoryof a Psychological Thriller.Thisisbecause a
Psychological Thrillerincorporateselementsof bothdramaand mysteryfilm(whichourpiece alsodoes).In
Psychological Thrillerthe threatthe protagonistfacesthroughoutthe filmismore mental/psychological than
physical.Thisisthe case in “Tail of Obsession”asthe threatdoesnot intendtoharm our protagonistphysicallybut
as a resultof this,unintentionallyandobliviouslyharmshermentally.