Thriller genre & convention

THRILLER GENRE FORMS &
CONVENTIONS
By Mansib Rahman

JURASSIC WORLD
The film “Jurassic World” is an adventure thriller that was revealed in
summer 2015, the film included typical elements of the thriller genre.
The film consists of typical characters such as rich dictators, antagonist,
protagonist, innocent good citizens and helpers
The film “Jurassic World” also included different themes that had a
thriller aspects, which will be Blackmail, Obsession and supernatural.
The iconography of the film that forms a typical thriller would be High-
tech gadgets, large property, Office building, security cameras and lastly
the facility.
Lastly the audio and visual styles consist of a typical thriller, since the film
includes intense music or the Jurassic World theme song as non-
diegetic sound, and some diegetic sound such as screams and sounds
from its surroundings, visual styles of the film consists of a thriller film as
it has typical shots like high or low angles.

JURASSIC WORLD
CHARACTERS
Rich people:
Rich people are quite common in thriller movies, mainly because they show power and
property. The rich person (Irrfan Khan) in “Jurassic Park” was seen in the opening as he
was flying a helicopter, throughout his island.
Antagonist:
The antagonist (Vincent D’Onofrio) of the film was also shown in the opening. He first
appeared with (Chris Pratt), when he was training his velociraptor, while Vincent
D’Onofrio was showing an interest on the dinosaur with an evil look, as he was trying to
use animals as weapons for wars. Another Antagonist would be the dinosaur Indominus
Rex, who’s a genetically modified dinosaur, who’s appearances are big, intimidating and
clever. The dinosaur was causing a lot of trouble to the visitors and the other dinosaurs
The Innocent visitors:
The innocent people are typical characters in the thriller genre, mainly because the
death of an innocent character creates anger and a curious emotion and it also develops
an enigma “Why did they have to die!”. In Jurassic Park many innocent visitors died or
got injured when the dinosaurs escaped their cage. Also many soldiers and the owner of
the island died in the film.

Helpers:
This is a typical character role in “Jurassic World” as it formed up
the character Claire, who was played by Bryce Dallas Howard. She
was a woman who knew about the whole island worked and all
the dinosaurs, as she’s a scientist. She used it in order to help
Owen in the film. Another helper was Omar Sy, he was Owen’s
other helper who looks out for the velociraptor and interacts with
them.
Protagonist:
It’s very hard to tell who’s the protagonist in the film, but the
whole film was aiming for Owen who was played by Chris Pratt,
they targeted him as the protagonist, because at he controls
velociraptors and has a very courageous personality, as he is able
to communicate and communicate with the four velociraptor as
he calls himself ‘Alpha’. The other two protagonist would be the
Tyrannosaurus Rex and the Velociraptor named “Blue”, as they
both defeat the antagonist Indominus Rex, who appeared to be
causing trouble to the other people.
JURASSIC WORLD
CHARACTERS

JURASSIC WORLD
CHARACTERS
Wealthy person (Founder of
Jurassic World)
Protagonist (Blue & Owen)
Innocent people (Attacked
by other dinosaurs)
Helper (Claire)
Antagonist (Vincent &
Indominus Rex)

High-tech gadgets
This iconography was shown throughout the whole film, especially in the
start when the facility were using their gadgets in order to keep track on
the dinosaurs. It was shown at the start, middle and the end of the film. It
showed that the people who work have a variety of IT knowledge and try
to keep the visitors safe and sound. But when the antagonist Indominous
rex found out about that it ripped out the tracker which was located at its
back. Another high-tech gadget would be when Gray and his brother were
adventuring through the fields with the Gyro-ball.
Guns and weapons
Weapons such as military equipment were used in the film. They were
used in the film as it symbolizes war and fighting. As this symbol is very
important in thriller films because it could get the audience’s attention and
creates a short notice that someone is going to die. Relating this
information with the film, when the founder of Jurassic world hired a
military group, in order to kill the wild Indominous rex.
JURASSIC WORLD
ICONOGRAPHY

Large property
Large property are typical in thriller films, especially because most action
takes place around a large property. In Jurassic world the island itself is a
large property belonging to the founder of Jurassic World. The audience
could tell that the island belongs to him, since he was flying with a helicopter
by himself throughout his island.
Security Cameras
Security cameras are common in thriller films showing that someone's being
watched or stalked. In Jurassic world security camera’s were used because
they were watching over the dinosaurs, so they do not cause any trouble to
the visitor.
JURASSIC WORLD
ICONOGRAPHY

JURASSIC WORLD
ICONOGRAPHYHigh-Tech gadgets - High-tech
gadgets are used for the visitors
entertainment and safety.
Security Cameras – People are
being watched for their safety.
Large property – The owner flying
through his own island as it’s his
belongings
Weapons and guns – Owen and the
others are using a gun against the
antagonist

Obsession
This was represented in the movie, when Vincent(Antagonist)
first appeared, the scene when Owen was training his
Velociraptor. Vincent wanted to use the dinosaurs for himself
as weapons.
Supernatural
This theme was shown when the big creatures was shown up
in the film. As the dinosaurs pushed against the laws of
nature, it created a supernatural theme, the only reason why
dinosaurs are supernatural nowadays is because they are
extinct.
JURASSIC WORLD
THEMES

Family
This was the ‘key’ theme in Jurassic world. Mainly because if
Gray and his older brother weren’t there for each other, the
conclusion would have been different. Also there was a lot of
family problems as Gray was worried about his parents
getting divorced.
Blackmail
The theme of blackmail played near the end of the movie,
when the island went crazy and the antagonist Indominous
Rex was released causing a huge trouble, the Founder of
Jurassic World asked the person who’s in charge of the
scientist. And also the theme of blackmail occurred when the
four velociraptors, turned their back on Owen and left him
for the antagonist.
JURASSIC WORLD
THEMES

JURASSIC WORLD
THEMES
Supernatural – dinosaurs living in
the modern days.
Family – Gray and his older
brother, being there for
each other. Blackmail – BD Wong blackmailing
the CEO and founder of Jurassic
World.
Obsession – Vincent is
trying to use the
Velociraptor for himself.

Non-diegetic sound
Non-diegetic sound is when the sound is not naturally produced by it’s
surroundings, non-diegetic sound was used in Jurassic world near the end of
the film when the antagonist Indominous Rex and the the Velociraptor
named Blue and the Tyrannosaurus Rex were fighting, creating a dramatic
mood music, which creates an intense music.
Diegetic sound
Diegetic sound is used a lot in the film, as it’s sound that is produced in it’s
surroundings. The diegetic sound in Jurassic world was produced pretty
much everywhere, an example for this would be when people were running
away from the dinosaurs trying to invade the streets, you would hear them
scream and running away.
Incidental Music
Incidental music is normally used to create and effect for the mood or
atmosphere created in the film.
JURASSIC WORLD
AUDIO/ VISUAL STYLE

Tracking shots
The tracking shot was used when Owen was running away from the antagonist
Indominous Rex, the track shot in this scene was used because it creates an adrenaline
rush and an enigma for the audience “Will Owen be able to escape?”. These two key
points are two common outcomes from thriller films.
Close up shots
Close up shots are normally created to show a person’s expression or emotion for the
character under certain occurrence. One of the close up shot is when Owen
(Protagonist) was running away from the Antagonist and he was hiding under the
vehicle, while rubbing fuel on his skin, so the Indominous Rex couldn’t find him.
Owen’s expression was serious and disgusted when he rubbed fuel on his face.
High/ Low angle
High and low angle shots are normally shown to display who has the power and
shows the position of the characters. This angle view was used when the four
velociraptor were looking up to Owen, which shows the audience who’s the Alpha.
JURASSIC WORLD
AUDIO/ VISUAL STYLE

JURASSIC WORLD
AUDIO/ VISUAL STYLE
Tracking shot –
Antagonist running after
the protagonist and
trying to escape.
Close up shot – Gray and
his brother, with a
frightened expression.
Low Angle - The Antagonist
viewed in a low angle shot and
behind the leader of the military
group, representing power
High-angle – Owen training his
velociraptor and the camera is
displaying the surrounding

THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN
“The amazing spider-man” is an action-thriller that was released in 2012,
although it’s an action-thriller, this movie still had many thriller aspect, which
is why this movie is a thriller film. The aspects are coming from the typical
characters, themes, iconography and the audio/ visual style, which consists a
thriller film.
This film consists of a typical characters in a thriller movie such as Protagonist,
Antagonist, Helper, innocent and a rich power-hungry organization.
This film forms up a thriller film again because of the themes such as
corruption, romance, supernatural, greed for power and family.
The audio/ visual style forms up a typical thriller as the film includes high
angle and low angle shots, incidental music, diegetic and non-diegetic sound.
And lastly looking at the iconography of the film, it consisted a thriller film
towards the urban setting, high-tech gadgets, uniform, guns, blood and cars.

Protagonist
The protagonist of the film “The Amazing Spider-man” is a high school geek
called Peter Parker, who was played by Andrew Garfield. At the start of the
movie, the protagonist was established as a normal student, picked on by
the sportier guys. One day Peter was bitten by a radioactive spider and had
a spider’s characteristics, such as reflex, able to climb walls etcetera… . After
he was bitten by the spider he was more established as the protagonist than
before.
Helper
Gwen Stacy played by Emma Stones, who appears to be Peter Parker’s
helper and lover. She helped him near the end when spider-man was
fighting against the antagonist, when she was making the vaccine. And she
became his lover when she found out that Peter Parker is spider-man, which
was shown mid-way through the film.
CHARACTER

Antagonist
The antagonist of “The amazing spider-man” is Dr. Curt Connors, who was
played by Rhys Ifans. He appeared to work for the OSCORP Cooperation
along with Peter Parker’s father. In the start of the movie he appeared to have
only one arm and he’s working on a project where he can grow his other
organ. He ended up using lizard DNA and transformed into one. The
antagonist later on decided to turn everyone into lizard, as he said “Humans
are weak creatures”.
Innocent
The innocent character in the film would be Ben Parker (Peter’s uncle) and
George Stacy (Gwen’s father). Ben died innocently, as he went out looking
after Peter and wanted to apologize to him. While George died when Spider-
man and Dr. Curt Connors were having a fight. George attempted to fight
against the big lizard and tried to save Spider-man. George Stacy’s last words
to Peter were, not to involve his daughter into spider-man.
CHARACTER

CHARACTER
Protagonist – Peter Parker/
Spider-man
Helper – Gwen Stacy
Antagonist – Dr.
Curt Connors
Innocent – Ben Parker &
George Stacy

Urban setting
Urban setting is a very common iconography of the thriller genre, since it’s a
high-populated area, meaning that the crime rate usually is a lot more higher
than in other areas such as rural. The film “The Amazing spider-man” takes
place in an urban area, the city New York, some of the settings are sound such
as car noises and noise pollution and the other setting is the aesthetic of the
city, common looks of an urban area would be large buildings.
Blood/ Injuries
Blood and injuries are important iconography in thriller movies because, they
show the audience there is a huge fight occurring in the film. Especially for an
Action-thriller, they often end of with a huge fight. And blood also come up
when someone is murdered or injured. An example for this would be when
Uncle Ben was shot by the robber.
ICONOGRAPHY

Costume/ Uniform
Uniforms and costume are very important, as the audience judges a character
from the clothes and you can instantly tell whether the characteristics of a
character. An example for this would be, when the audience saw spider-man’s
costume for the first time they’d assume that the person must be either an
outlaw or a superhero, another example for this would be Dr. Curt Connors,
the audience could tell that he was a scientists by looking at his lab coat.
High-tech Gadgets
This iconography was shown around the OSCORP building, as the building
used virtual reality and holographs. The OSCORP building had a variety sense
of technology, especially scientifically machineries and genetically engineered
organisms e.g. the Radioactive spider that bit Peter Parker.
ICONOGRAPHY

ICONOGRAPHY
Blood – Uncle Ben’s
death
High-Tech Gadgets –
Peter Parker’s self made
web shooter
Urban setting – Spider-
mans location
Costume/ uniform –
Spider-mans costume

Revenge
Revenge is one of the key themes along with Romance in the
film. Mainly because Peter Parker only became spider-man, the
masked hero, just to find the murderer of his uncle Ben. After
Uncle Ben’s death Peter decided to find the serial killer and
bring justice to him. And so along he became the masked
super-hero.
Romance
Romance is the other key theme in “The amazing spider-man”,
mainly because Peter always had feelings for Gwen Stacy and
they ended up dating once she found out about him being
spider-man.
THEMES

Supernatural
This is an obvious theme that consists a thriller film, without this
theme there wouldn’t be a battle neither any sort of action. Since the
whole OSCORP developing and breeding radioactive spiders. The
supernatural theme forms up a fantasy view for the audience which
makes the movie interesting and without it, spider-man wouldn’t
appear.
Greed for power
I believe that this theme is quite common with thriller movies that
includes a protagonist and an antagonist, since the antagonist try to
control or take over something, such as organization, city or goods. In
the film Dr. Curt Connor wanted to turn everyone into lizards and try
to be the king of the lizard.
THEMES

THEMES
Romance – Gwen Stacy and Peter
Parker
Supernatural – Spider-man and Dr.
Curt Connors fighting
Greed for power – Dr. Curt Connors
spreading the gas, so everyone
becomes a lizard
Revenge – Peter’s holding a
drawing of his uncles killer, and tries
to find him.

Non-diegetic sound
Non-diegetic sound is sound that’s not naturally produced, which means that it’s
usually defined as a mood music. An example of this would be when spider-man
was fighting against Dr. Curt Connors, which was a dramatically and intense music,
which helps to control the audience’s emotion.
Diegetic sound
Diegetic sound is when the sound is produced naturally by its surroundings.
Diegetic sound is pretty much used everywhere in films, especially in “The Amazing
spider-man” which is located in an Urban location, which means that cars and
people walking would be normally heard in the film. An example from the movie
would be the police siren when the police were chasing after spider-man.
Incidental music
This music is usually used within the film to create an effect of mood or
atmosphere, an example for this would be when George Stacy died at the end of
the movie.
AUDIO/VISUAL STYLE

AUDIO/VISUAL STYLE
Close up shots
Close up shots are used for showing a characters expression in
much more detailed. Also the expression is often related to a
certain event. An example for this would be the scene where
Peter cried when his uncle got shot.
High/ Low Angle
High and Low angle view often represent power. Obviously the
person who’s viewed in a low angle view is the character with
the most power. In the film, spider-man was often viewed in a
low angle shot by the public when he was jumping from
buildings to buildings, this angle view showed that the super-
hero is respected by the citizens in New York City.

AUDIO/VISUAL STYLE
Close up shot – Peter’s
reaction to the final battle with
Dr. Curt Connors
Low angle view – Spider-man
using his web shooter to go to
other buildings
Incidental music – when
Stacy’s father died.
Diegetic sound – noises from
the cityscape
Non-diegetic sound – Final battle
between the protagonist and
antagonist, with dramatic music

Thriller genre & convention

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