A genre is a specific category of film, defined by similarities in form, style or subject matter. For example: Romantic comedy, Western, Science fiction, etc.
Name three different things that films within a particular genre might share in common?
1. Particular soundtracks or music. Action Thrillers generally have heroic, aggressive soundtracks to reflect the action of the movie.
2. Particular actors. For example, Clint Eastwood was notorious for appearing in Westerns.
| Clint Eastwood as The Man with No Name in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly |
3. Particular settings or locations. Science fiction films are often set on alien planets or the future and have sets with technological, futuristic designs.
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| The classic 80's sci-fi film, Blade Runner is set in a technological, dystopian future. |
The Thriller genre is different from most other genres because on the surface many of them look entirely different from each other. Identify a couple of Thrillers that are very different from each other and point out some of the key differences between two of them.
Two thriller films that are different are The Machinist - a dark, fatalistic Psychological Thriller, and Kill Bill - an intense, violent Action Thriller.
The editing in both films is very different. The Machinist favours bleak, grim lighting and slow, wide shots. The music is orchestral and harrowing, utilising stringed instruments.
Kill Bill opts for a more bright, colourful form of lighting with high contrast. The music is often energetic and cool, in keeping with the bright, violent theme defined by Tarantino films.
What do these films have in common at a more basic level (in terms of the audience response)? What do they have in common in terms of characters and narrative structure?
The defining features of a thriller are suspense, tension and excitement. The suspense is usually achieved by introducing conflict. This conflict can be anything that the protagonists will have to overcome - for example, the meteor heading towards earth in Armageddon and the Xenomorph in Alien serve the same narrative purpose. Suspense and tension are huge parts of what makes a thriller. Alfred Hitchcock has often been called 'The King of Suspense" due to his expertise in creating tense, suspenseful thrillers.
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| Alfred Hitchcock |
There are various different sub-genres. Here are just a few of them:
- Psychological-thriller
- Comedy-thriller
- Crime-thriller
- Political-thriller
- Horror-thriller
- Spy-thriller
- Techno-thriller
The Sub-genre which appeals to me the most is the psychological thriller. I enjoy films which force their audience to think and be in a constant state of intellectual activity. I feel like they justify the idea of films as an artform rather than just entertainment. Psychological thrillers that I have enjoyed include The Machinist, Shutter Island and American Psycho.
