Research Into Mise-En-Scene - Miss Georgiou

I decided to use a famous 'Mama' scene as my topic to write about for Mise en scene. This is because it includes the 5 elements needed in mise en scene. I have used the cabin scene in Mama which is when the two men find the children in the abandoned house. This scene is scary because there is no one around to help them, plus it is the ideal scene for a thriller. So, the audience know something scary will happen here.


Mise En Scene is used in films to make the stories in the films more believable. There are five key elements that come under mise en scene. These include, settings, where it is set, for example, most thrillers are filmed in an abandoned cabin which is almost always set in the woods, this creates an effect because it makes it more scary because it means that a victim who is here will not be able to get help as there is no one living here. Iconography, the objects being used by the characters, for example if a killer were to be holding a gun, we can interpret that they will use that gun on their victim, so we know that they will die. Costumes, costumes make it easier to understand where characters have been and what their clothes could mean. For example, if that character has just come into the house wearing a suit and tie, we can believe that they have come home from work, or had something very professional to attend. Hair and Makeup is key to the scene, for example, if the character has their hair messy, we can assume they have been through something that would require running away etc. Makeup is also key because if they have makeup running down their face we can assume they have or are crying. This promotes emotions to the viewers because it makes us understand what is going on. Facial expressions are a huge element in mise en scene because this is how we as viewers see how the characters are feelings and how we can tell when something bad will happen. For example, if we see someone screaming, we can connote that the killer is coming for that victim. It also show fear and this is how the audience ends up becoming scared as we don't know what will happen to that character next. Lighting is a very important element. There are two different types of lightings such as, low key lighting, this is when the only lighting we can see is coming from the main or lights coming from the back. This produces sharp contrasts of light and dark areas as well as showing us the different shadows and silhouettes that are formed when using this lighting. There is also high key lighting, and this is when more filler lights are used. This lighting is natural, therefore making it appear to be more realistic from our point of view. For example, sunny days. The positioning of the lights must always be the same in order to help the viewers understand the story. The key light is always the brightest and in the middle of the scene. It will always go directly infront of the camera. The backlight comes from outside to create shadows. It is always behind the characters. The filler lights are usually the smallest light that we can see and this is used to lose the appearance of contrast and shadows. Body language is another element as it can show us how the characters feel about other characters. For example, if a character were to lean into a character, we would see that they know the other character well. If they were to lean away, we would know that they are not reassured by the other person and do not trust them.

In the 'Mama cabin scene' there are  a variety of mise en scene elements. The first element i will be discussing is iconography. Iconography is anything within the scene that is used by the characters. In the scene,  the torch is the object being used by the male character, therefore making this iconography. Within the scene, i can see that the man is using his torch as a source of light inside the abandoned cabin in search of the children. It is a very sombre area so it is perfect because the dark scene makes the torch the only source of light that the audience can see. This makes the scene sinister for the audience to watch because the torch is the key light and the audience must follow the light to follow the story and to be ready for what will happen. The reason is it so mysterious is because the audience can't see anything behind him. Due to the darkness, it creates suspense because the audience want to be able to see whats going on but because it's so dark. It is conventional because the civilian is trying to be a hero in search for the girls and is using the torch as his main source of light. This is conventional within the thriller genre because the audience are frightened of what may happen next and as their vision is unaware to make out anything behind them, they are left to be shown the sinister presence rather than trying to find it for themselves.

A further element within the mise en scene topic is setting. Within the scene, this image is shown. The image shows a man walking into a dark cabin in the middle of the woods. I can see that it is in the forest due to the background behind him. In the image to the left, i can see that the forest is discarded and deserted. The fact that it is this way shows that no one is around. As no one is around, this creates a sense of mystery as they want to know why someone would want to build a cabin so isolated to everyone else.  This suggests that they are hiding something away from the public. It also shows the audience that if the characters needed help in anyway, they would not be able to receive any aid as there is no one around. This is the ideal setting for a thriller movie scene due to the fact that it creates fear for the viewers because there seems to be no where for them to hide in the forest from the antagonist and they would have to run a long way to get any kind of help. Another point i would like to mention is that this setting creates a sense of realism as people often go through forests to get to other places. So, this allows them to relate to the story and feel as though they are part of it. This makes them feel empathy and sympathy towards the characters. It is conventional because it is an isolated cabin so no one would know if anyone were to die aswell as the fact that the potential victims will not be able to ask for help because everyone is so far away. The audience know that something will bewilder them in this scene due to the lack of people around the area aswell as the fact that no one actually lives here. This creates a sense of fright and shock because we find out that the children are living there. The audience feel sorry for the children because they way they are living is not a state for humans to live in.  

One element within the mise en scene topic is body language. Within the scene, body language is used to create shock and surprise. From the image on the right hand side, i can see that the man is stood completely still facing the fridge. The man standing still can connote that he is startled by the image in front of him. The audience see a child standing upon the fridge acting very animal like. As the audience as well as i can see, the child is very hunched aswell as twisted and dark. This can represent the mindset of the antagonist as they are portrayed this way. As previously mentioned, the element of shock and surprise are present to the audience within the scene because of the way the man is standing. He is stood very still, showing the viewers that he doesn't want to move incase the child on the fridge attacks him. The audience can see the child is not acting normal, so they can connote that they have not been treated as children should and are actually acting more like animals than humans. This makes the viewers feel anxious and this makes them want to know more about the story aswell as find out more about the children.

Another element within mise en scene is clothing. In this scene, i can see that the type of clothing that the men are wearing to enter the cabin is outdoor wear. I believe that they have worn this type of clothing s that they could us them as protection. They may need this clothing for protection as there may be something dangerous inside the cabin. From this, i can also infer that this type of clothing is a shield to them, warning the audience that there may be something in this cabin this is very unapproachable and will put up a fight. Another reason the men may be wearing this clothing could be to show that they walked through the forest to get to the cabin. This could show that something bad is going to happen to the people that have entered the house. I believe that the children inside have not been treated like children but more like animals, and animal handlers wear protective clothing such as thick jackets, just like the man shown in the image above. So, i believe this shows that the children have not been living the way they should be. This makes the audience feel sympathy towards the children due to the fact that they need to be saved rather than kept in this abandoned cabin. This is conventional within the thriller genre because the producers always try to give hints within the story. This allows the audience to think outside the box and make up their own ideas rather than just relying on the story to be told to them.

The next element within mise en piece is the facial expression that characters are giving. Within this scene, I can see that the men are afraid of the children that they have just seen climbing on the fridge and other places. They are shocked and bewildered due to the fact that the children are acting like animals. The men using these facial expressions show us exactly what is happening and how we should feel about it. For example, when the men's faces are shown on the screen, their mouths are slightly open and from this the audience can connote that they were not expecting them to be like this. In the image, the fear is shown mostly through their eyes, they are wide and looking straight up. This makes them look petrified and the audience will eventually relate because they will feel the same when they see the sight of the animal-like children. The viewers will be faced with the elements of shock, surprise, suspense and tension because this was very unexpected and the faces of the characters make the audience even more fearful as they feel sorry for them for being there. They feel sympathy for the characters because they would not like to be in their position, the also feel empathy as they begin to imagine themselves in the same positions that the men are in right now. This is conventional to the thriller genre because the audience always feel a certain way when seeing the emotions and facial expressions that the characters give out. So, the audience end up relating to them which makes it easier to imagine being placed in their positions.

The lighting within this scene is low key lighting. Low key lighting is created by using only key and backlights in that particular part of the film whilst also producing sharp contrasts of light and dark areas. Deep distinctive shadows and silhouettes are created when using low key lighting. Within this scene, the audience can see that the only lighting is coming from the natural light outside. I believe that this is done to show realism as no colours or effects have been added. This makes it more realistic and the idea of imagining themselves in the situation occurs. Also, as the only light is from the outside, it highlights to the viewers that the men are in the woods. The image also shows the forest as very deserted and hardly any trees are present. I think this is shown to allow the audience to understand that there is no where for the characters to hide and that if they needed help, they would be very far away from any town or village. Therefore, the scene gives the audience the elements of shock, surprise, suspense and tension. Suspense and tension are built up during this scene because they are waiting for the audience know that bad things are going to happen because it is conventional within a thriller film for something to go wrong when the characters are alone and away from everybody. Surprise and shock are present within this scene because when the audience see the children in such a way, they would not have expected them to be like this, therefore, making the shocked and surprised. Low key lighting is conventional within a thriller film because it allows the audience to feel more tension as they can barely see what is going on, therefore making their emotions and feelings heightened. Also, within this scene, the majority of the background is black. Black represents many things such as darkness and evil. This could make the audience aware that something inside of this cabin is dark and evil. It is almost as if they are given a warning. The black is conventional because it is giving the viewers a hidden warning and this allows them to be more aware when they find out what is in the cabin aswell as the characters.

The next element that is makes up mise en scene is the positioning of characters/objects. Within the scene, i noticed this image. The audience aswell as I can see that the way this man is standing fully facing the front tells us that he is scared about what is to the left of him. I believe that he doesn't want to move a single muscle in his body because the children will notice if he moves. As they have not been looked after properly and have been taught to be more like animals than humans, they would most probably attack him. Another reason which leads me to believe that he is frightened is because of the way his eyes are looking downwards and from this image the audience can tell that his eyes move very slowly. From this the audience feel scared because they can't fully see what is there, due to the low key lighting. This makes them anxious to see what is near him but at the same time they don't want to see because they know that they will be afraid. This body positioning is conventional within the thriller genre because in most films the audience see the victims, aswell as other characters, facing this way to not get noticed by the possible antagonist.

In conclusion, i believe that mise en scene is an important factor to look out for when researching about thrillers. They help the audience to understand what is happening and what has happened. I have now realized that I would like to include more of the mise en scene elements that I hadn't thought that I would have wanted. For example, I would like to include more low key lighting, this makes the scene appear to be more dark, therefore, making the viewers understand that the scene will be more dark. It also hints to the audience that they will be scared within the upcoming scene.  It also allows us to point out key features that can influence the way the viewers see things and what makes each film we analyse a good thriller/

Research Into Cinematography - Miss Miller

Camera angles, positions and movements are used to make the audience feel a certain way. For example, the low angle is when the camera is below the character which therefore makes it bigger, this can make the character look heroic or powerful. I think is makes the characters feel this way because in terms of social class, the lower class always look up to the higher class, so it's as if the audience are looking up at him because he is wiser or is capable of doing more than the audience are. Shallow focus is when everything behind the character is blurred. This is so that the audience can concentrate more on what the un blurred person is saying rather than the background, the producers of the films want us to keep engaged with the story by keeping up with what has happened. So, they blur everything out apart from the one the audience are listening to so that the viewers don't lose our focus on the main plot of the story. Another is P.O.V (Point of view), this is when the camera shows the viewers the same image that the character sees. I believe this is an important movement because it allows the audience to feel as important as the character, and seeing things in their eyes makes the viewers engage more. It also helps us to spot clues and images that the audience would only see if the camera were to present the images to us in this way. I have chosen to use a scene from 'The Prisoners' as my example of cinematography because it has a varied amount of angles, positions and movements.

Within this scene, low angle has been used in this scene. Low angle is when the camera is angled to look up at the character. Within this image, i can see that the camera has been placed lower down so that the audience are looking up at him. This can be seen whilst he tries to enter a house where he believes a crime is being committed. This makes the character look and feel very heroic and powerful. Therefore, making the audience feel inferior to the character. The use of this character being displayed this way highlights the feeling of power and dominance. Also, low angle makes the character look taller and more important within the story. However, in thrillers, the villain is normally shot from a low angle and therefore, this is unconventional to the thriller genre. As i have previously mentioned, i think that it makes him look superior to the audience because the audience are looking down at him. He is about to try and stop a crime from being committed to save someones life, unfortunately, it was too late.  This makes him look and feel superior because this wouldn't happen in real life. I don't believe people would risk their lives for others. It shows him as brave and serious, so the audience can tell that something is going to happen in the next scene that could change his life. As viewers, it allows us to know that he will do something good in order to protect someone else. This makes us as the audience want to watch more to see what he discovers, this creates suspense and tension because the audience wait to see what is going to happen next, as they know it will be important to the rest of the story. The use of this technique is conventional to the thriller genre as they are often used to show just how sinister and scary the villain can be. However, in this scene, it is used to show that the character is superior which allows the audience to be happy as they know he will do well in the upcoming scenes to save the people. The use of the low angle helps the audience to build a relationship between the audience and the characters because the audience know that detective Loki is the hero, as he is being looked up at by the viewers. So, they know that he will help everyone that is in need of his aid, which means that the audience stay on his side throughout the scene.

Close ups are also used in this scene. Close ups are when the camera is close to the subject that it is filming. The camera has zoomed in on the little girl because she is dying. The way the audience see the little girl is important. This is because it shows us how she is feeling. Emotions are shown throughout this part. The viewers can see that she looks very pale which can connote that she is hurt or feeling ill. The audience know that in the end of the scene she is injected with something that will kill her. Close ups are used so that the audience can see the facial expression of the character that is on camera. The viewers then understand how she feels and can guess what will happen next by the way she is lying down. When emotions are shown on the screen, this triggers feelings of empathy towards her and begin to feel sorry for the girl. Some close ups are used for longer amounts of time than others, this position was quite long and this is good because it gave the audience enough time to understand what is happening without being behind in the story. The use of this creates suspense and tension as the audience await to see if the hero of the story can save the little girl in the photo above. This technique is conventional to the thriller genre because it is used to capture detail in the important scenes. Therefore, allowing the audience to feel certain types of emotions. The use of close ups allows the audience and character to build a relationship because for example, in this photo, the face of the little girl is shown and she looks weak and ill, so, the audience feel sorry for her and want her to feel better. So, they build a relationship because the audience doesn't want the little girl to die.

Over the shoulder position is used within this scene. The audience can see the detective looking at an old photo with the camera looking over his shoulder. Over the shoulder angle is a way of showing us the point of view of the character and it allows the audience to see what they can see. Whatever the characters show the camera is always something that brings out emotions to the viewers. It makes people feel as though they are part of the scene and helps the audience to know what is going on because they can see from the characters eyes. As the audience watch the over the shoulder positioning in the scene, they are sped up and know exactly what is going on so that the scene can proceed and the viewers won't be confused with the story line. This creates tension for the audience as they wonder who the man in the photo is and what will happen next in the story, also, the use of seeing the man in the photo can connote to the audience that something to do with this character is important to the story and that they come into use in the next scenes. This technique is conventional to the thriller genre because it is very useful in creating tension for the audience. It is used so the audience can see what is happening as soon as the audience does. So, the audience feel as though they are part of the scene, and they then feel connected to the character as they try to help them. The use of over the shoulder allows the audience to build a relationship with the character because the audience are allowed to see what the character sees, so they feel the same emotions as the character, which allows them to be more alike. Which allows them to build a strong bond.

In this scene, the tilting of the camera is used. The tilt is used so that the audience can see the man taking the gun out of his pocket. The taking out of the gun can connote to us that something bad will happen. However, the fact that the audience are shown the gun and that the character has brought a gun means that he knows what he is doing and is prepared for the worst. The viewers feel as though he is a hero in the scene because he is trying to protect people from a crazy woman. This creates mystery and curiosity as the viewers want to watch more to find out what happens, this is shown when the detective takes out the gun, the audience are prepared for the worst but must wait for the bad things to happen. So, suspense and tension are heightened because the audience have to wait for what will happen next. This technique is conventional to the thriller genre because it creates a lot of of tension for the audience because it allows them to concentrate on what they can see upon the screen. The use of the tilt shot helps to create a relationship between the audience and the characters because the characters feel as though this is a way of signifying for a victims help. For example, it is often seen in thrillers to connote that the camera is a helpless victim on the floor looking up at the character on the screen. So, the audience feel as though the camera is acting like the little girl, vulnerable and weak, so, the audience are trying to tell him to go and find her so that he can help her. The creates a bond between the audience and the characters because they feel as though they know that in the end, her will help her.

The next camera angle/shot used is the midshot within this scene. Mid shot is when the camera is when the character is shown from the head to their hips. The use of this shot shows some part of the subject in detail. This allows the audience to feel as though they are still looking at the whole subject rather than just a part of it. This is often used when the character wants to deliver information, also the camera space is tight, it does allow room for hand gestures and slight movement. The use of this shot allows the audience to listen intently on what is being said by the character on the screen. As the detective has just entered the house, and there is silence within this part of the scene, the audience feel as though something bad is going to happen. So, their eyes are glued to the screen in order not to miss out on anything. The camera technique creates tension for the audience because they must wait for the important and sinister scenes to occur. They know that something bad is going to happen due to the fact that there is mostly silence within the scene, this means that the audience are gripped to their seats to try to figure out what is going to happen as wait for the bad scenes. This technique is conventional to the thriller genre because it allows them to see the elements of mise en scene, eg, clothing or props used by that character shown on the screen. This allows the viewers to understand what type of a person that certain character is. The use of the mid shot helps to create a relationship between the characters and the audience because it allows them to get to know that character properly. As previously mentioned, the viewers are able to see the clothing amongst other things that can define who that character is. So, it is easier for the audience to see and tell who they are, quickly building a bond as they know that the character on screen is a good person.

In conclusion, i believe that cinematography is key to making a good thriller film, it allows the audience to really think about what things mean and think outside the box rather than making everything very simple to see. Within my thriller opening sequence I will definitely include close ups in order to show the emotions of the characters and therefore create emotions for the audience. They will create suspense and tension because of the way that they are shown on screen, the audience will understand based on the shots/angles used that this is important to the story and that they must listen carefully in order to keep up with the story.

History Of Thriller Films - Miss Georgiou

Why Do You Think The Thriller Genre Is Still Popular Today?

I believe that people like to be scared, so by watching them it gives them a slight thrill which makes it more exciting. Therefore, people become excited and watch more and more of these types of films. The more that watch it, the more that want to or are told about great films, so they end up watching it. In addition, being scared is one of the main reasons that people watch thrillers. They receive an adrenaline rush which makes them want to watch more. They end up being gripped to the television or cinema screen even though they can't bare to watch more. To this day, the thriller genre is one of the most popular, with a very large viewing audience. Thrillers can sometimes be based on real life events, which can cause more of the audience to relate or to understand what is happening.

1930's

The Man Who Knew Too Much

The man who knew too much is a 1934 British film directed by the one and only Alfred Hitchcock.

This film is based on a British couple (Jill and Bob Lawrence) who vacate in Switzerland with their daughter (Betty Lawrence). Jill goes to a shooting contest where she meets a foreign man named Louis Bernard. Later on,  Jill dances with Louis where she witnesses to his death. Before his death, he manages to let Bill and Jill know about some information that must immediately be given to the British consul. However, to make sure the Lawrence's keep quiet, assassins kidnap betty (their daughter). So, the Lawrence's return to England to receive help and find suspects in this mysterious kidnapping. Then eventually find out that the assassins are trying to kill the head of state of an unknown European country. They plan to do this during a musical concert at the Royal Albert Hall. Jill Lawrence makes it to the concert and prevents the assassin from making any dangerous moves by making a very loud scream. They are then tracked down at a sun worshiping cult. Bob enters the cult and is then held captive himself but manages to escape. A gunfight begins as the police surround the building. However, the assassins run low on ammunition and the majority do not escape death. Jill witnesses Betty and the last of the remaining assassins and uses her shooting skills to get Betty to escape from the villain who turns out to be Abbott, the man who beat Jill in the shooting contest. But rather than be caught Abbott commits suicide and Betty is safely returned to her parents. I believe this is a good use of a thriller because it allows the viewers to feel sorry and scary for the family. The amount of deaths create a scary scene for the film and also make the characters look heroic for the Lawrence’s and the police. The result of Louis' death has impacted the viewers because he was a good character. This however makes it a good thriller because the death could have been avoided but wasn't which makes it a mysterious killings people become suspicious and begin to make suspects. As it is mostly set in Switzerland as well as Britain. I think this is very interesting as they are in a foreign country, it is harder for them to get help. This is a sad scene in the film as we feel sorry for the family when their daughter goes missing because we don't know if they will ever see her again. This creates suspense which is the number one thing to have in a thriller.

Jill is portrayed as the smart, more or less confident woman. We know this because she enters a contest and does very well by getting second place. Also, i believe she has a strong willpower as well as a tough side to her. We know that the contest she entered was a pigeon shooting one. A woman using a gun is in my eyes considered very brave, especially when women didnt have much control during this time. The gun was probably one of the only things Jill was in control of. The fact that she is portrayed like this in the beginning shows us that something great will happen at the end because of her. Betty Lawrence plays the innocent victim. She is helpless and has nothing to do with the story. She is simply there as part of a revenge plot from the assassins. Abbott is the darkest character of the film. The colour of clothing he was wearing was black. Black is a colour of  the unknown, hidden or secretive. This is perfect for a thriller film because it creates mystery. Abbott is seen smoking cigarettes a few times, this could mean a few things psychologically. Some people smoke cigarettes to seem sophisticated, which could be the impression Abbott was letting off. It could also be to show that he is independent and can do what he wants. However, in old thrillers, we often see the 'baddie' smoking, Could it be that the characters and the audience just didn't see it coming?

In the clip above, the audience can see that a chair fight takes place. The use of the violence within this scene shows that there are some very evil characters within this scene. Therefore, when the violence takes place, the audience feel uneasy and scared for the good characters in this clip. Also, when watching the clip, i can hear music being played, however it is not sinister music but it is happy music being played over something else, this is called contrapuntal sound.  This makes the audience feel scared because they have two things to worry about. This makes the audience feel more than one emotion and the fact that there are different sounds playing with different images on the screen, the audience are left feeling overwhelmed because they have to concentrate on what is happening on the screen as well as what is being heard in the background.

1940's

Rebecca

Rebecca is another one of the many films produced by Alfred Hitchcock.

This romantic but thrilling film involves a young woman who gets married to a widowed man Max De Winter (Laurence Olivier). But she begins to live in the shadow of his ex-wife who mysteriously died a few years before. She must deal with her new husbands awful secret as well as face the housewife Mrs Danvers (Judith Anderson) who will not accept that she is the new woman of the house. Max is the ex-husband of Rebecca. He is a very gothic man with very dark secrets, these match perfectly with his character being dark. We find out that he is the one that murdered Rebecca due to thinking she was carrying the child of another man. The problem we face is that we feel very sympathetic towards Maxim in most of the film, but we find out that he is the murderer which leaves us as viewers feeling confused and betrayed. Mrs Danvers is the head housekeeper at Manderly, and is by far one of the scariest people to share a scary, gothic mansion with. She is always dressed in deep black, which could mean that she is very mysterious and secretive, this describes Mrs Danvers perfectly.We never actually see Rebecca but we hear a lot about her. The first thing I’d like to add is that we never find out the name of the new wife. This is a huge clue because we know that she is jealous and upset that all anyone ever talks about is Rebecca. So, the fact that she has no name is huge because she has always felt unworthy compared to the other woman, so, she is unworthy of having a name.

In the clip above, the audience can see that there is a woman doing the narration at the beginning. This is a good thing to do for the viewers because they are then up to date with what has happened aswell as the images that are shown on the screen. Also the fact that it is in black and white can connote to the audience that there is some good and some bad happening within the scene in the background. I connote this because black means death aswell as evil and white means angelic and pure aswell as good. So, when they clash in the same images, i am led to believe that some characters in the scene have some good and some bad in them.

1950's

The Killer That Stalked New York

Sheila returns from her trip to Cuba smuggling in 50,000 dollars’ worth of diamonds. Noticing that she is being followed, she immediately sends the diamonds to her husband Matt. Sheila tries to escape the eyes of the secret agents but begins to feel sick and nearly faints in the street. A policeman takes her to the hospital, but on the way there she meets a  little girl who she infects. The doctor misdiagnoses her with having a cold so Sheila leaves and returns home. The girl is admitted to hospital only to find that she has small pox. While Sheila has been away, her husband, Matt is cheating on her with her sister, Francie. This is a thriller because a lot of tension and suspense is built up during the film. What makes this film so interesting is that it is semi documentary and a true story. This makes the audience feel as though they are part of it because it is indeed a real life situation.

In the clip above, the audience can see men looking at paperwork to see who could have stolen the diamonds. The fact that it is black and white can show the audience that everyone is equal within the scene and that no one is guilty in this part of the clip. The fact that the men are trying to figure out who stole the diamonds creates suspense as the viewers are waiting for them to understand.

1960's

Psycho

A young real estate agent (Marion) wants to get married to her boyfriend Alex. However, Alex is in a lot of debt and therefore cannot afford to get married. During work, Marion is given a huge amount of money from a customer who would like to buy one of the houses that she offers. Instead of giving the money straight to her boss, she keeps the money and sends it to Alex. Without letting anyone know, Marion takes a trip very far away so that no one will ever find her and the stolen money. As she is driving, she notices her boss who is quick to spot her and she becomes very frightened. She ends up spending the night in her car but is quickly awoken by a patrol officer. Unfortunately for Marion, she takes a wrong turn when trying to get to Alex. She ends up in a motel where she meets the proprietor, Norman Bates. He invites her to dinner and whilst waiting for him, Marion hears a heated argument between Norman and a woman who she thinks is his mother. Instead of going to Normans home, they go to eat in the motel parlour where Norman explains that his mother, Norma, is mentally ill. Marion goes to her room and showers unaware that Norman is looking through the peephole. As she is showing a female figure forms behind the curtain and appears, the figure then stabs Marion with a butcher knife. Norman runs through to see the dead corpse on the floor. He knows his mother is responsible for the death. He cleans everything up and puts all of Marion's possessions, including Marion, in her car and dumps it in a swamp which has everything sunk in.

A few days later, Marion's sister Lila demands to know where her sister is. A detective explains to Lila that Marion is wanted for taking $40,000 from her boss. After a lot of searching, he comes across the motel. When Norman is questioned, his behaviour makes the detective suspicious. After overhearing that Norman's mother had spoken with Marion, he decides that he wants to speak to her. However, Norman refuses to let him do so. He calls Lila to let her know what he has found and how he wants to speak to Norman's mother. The detective decides to head over to the Bate's house where he believes Norma is hiding. When he enters the home, a figure appears from upstairs and kills him. When Lila doesn't hear from the detective again, she goes to the local Sheriff who tells her that Norm bates had killed herself a decade ago following the death of her lover. Lila and her boyfriend Sam make their way to the motel. Norman demands that his mother stay hidden in the house until further notice. At the motel, Lila and Sam meet with Norman. Sam attempts to distract Norman so that Lila can enter the house. Realizing this, Norman punches Sam and runs to the house. Lila sees Norman heading over so she hides in the cellar. Whilst in the cellar, she sees the figure of a woman sitting on a chair. She becomes terrified when she discovers that the figure is the remains of Norma. Hearing Lila's screams, Norman rushes into the cellar dressed in his mother's wig and clothes. He tries to hurt Lila but is quickly stopped by Sam. Norman is now stuck in the persona of his mother forever. He has adopted her personality after killing her and her lover out of pure jealousy ten years ago. Feeling wrong for murdering Norma, he began to treat her as if she were still alive by unearthing his mother's corpse. Now, whenever he feels sexually attracted to a woman, Norman would mind control him and kill that woman. Norman has previously killed two girls aside from Marion and Arbogast. Whilst Norman sits in the room, the characters hear Norma's voice claiming the murders were completely her sons fault and adding that she 'wouldn't even harm a fly'. At the end of the film, we see Marion's car being taken out of the swamp.

The main character of this film, Norman, is portrayed as being a very over protective, jealous but caring son. He killed his mother due to her being with her lover a lot. He remains obsessed and we see that her soul is in his body. Although he tries to move on, his mother's soul inside of him remains sure that his new friends must die. From this, the audience can connote that his mother has placed a curse of him after she was killed.

In the clip above, the audience can witness a deranged man thinking that his dead mothers soul is inside of him, therefore making him kill all the women that he has ever been with. I believe that this scene creates a sense of suspense and tension for the audience because they then witness something that they weren't expecting at all. The use of the sinister music in the background allows the audience to build up the tension because of the music becoming louder as the evil presence is shown to the characters as well as the viewers. The use of the sinister music is conventional to the thriller genre as it makes the audience wait for what is to come within the next scenes, the sinister music is almost like a warning to them, so that they are prepared for what is going to happen next.

1970's

The French Connection

Two new york detectives, Doyle (Gene Hackman) and his partner (roy scheider) chase a french heroin smuggler who has a lot of money and connections. 

In this clip, the audience can see one character running from three other characters. The fact that they are running builds up suspense for the audience as they wait to see if the character that is being chased is caught or if he manages to run away. In the background, screaming and shouting can be heard, this builds up the level of excitement that the audience feel.

1980's

Blow Out

Jack is out at night recording sounds that he hears in order to complete an assignment that he has been asked to do. Nearby, a car has a blowout and falls into a river. He sees a dead man and manages to save a woman who is still alive. The only issue is that the dead man was the governor and presidential candidate. Sally, the woman Jack saved, is actually a call girl. Jack listens back to his recordings and hears a gunshot just before the blowout, which makes him realise that this wasn't an accident, it was a shooting. Jack goes on a journey to find out who killed the Governor and why.

1990's

Sin City

This film is based in a place named Basin City. It is about various characters and their very different lives. We learn about the lives of two hit men, the wife of a gangster, a boxer and two bandits. These stories are all joint together to create four tales about redemption and violence. The first part of the story is that an old police officer, Hartigan, tries to stop a child killer from raping his next victim, Nancy Callahan. The father of the killer, Senator Roark, has bribed the police to hide the crimes of his son. The police officers partner,  Bob, attempts to convince Hartigan to step away from the situation. Hartigam punches Bob and hits him badly enough that it leaves him unconscious. He then goes looking for Roark Jr. Hartigan goes to a warehouse where he finds Roark Junior and other men who are holding Nancy captive and Jr is preparing to rape her. Hartigan is shot in the shoulder by Junior who is attempting to flee. Quickly, Hartigan shoots Juniors ears off as well as other body parts. Bob who is now conscious is revealed to be one of Juniors helped shoots the back of Hartigan. Bob runs away just as police sirens are heard and Nancy lays on the lap of Hartigan. Hartigan quickly dies but believes that this the best way to save the the girl's life.

The next story is about a man named Marv who has a one night stand with a girl named Goldie. But quickly finds out that Goldie was killed while he was sleeping. As the police arrive, Marv flees the scene as he realises that he is being framed for her death. He decides he will get revenge on her behalf because she was the only woman who has ever been so kind to him. Hearing that Marv was on a mission, his parole officer Lucille warns him to stop looking for the killer. Due to his condition, she believes he has gone insane and is hallucinating about the killing. He asks many informants about what happened but in the end he asks a shady priest who tells him that he thinks the Roarks family were behind this. Quickly afterwards, the priest is killed by Marv for saying rude comments about Goldie. Just as he had murdered the priest, a woman who looks very much like Goldie attacked him. However, he just believes it's his mind playing games with him because of the condition he has. Marv goes to the Roark family farm and is hushes by the same stalker that killed Goldie. As he wakes he sees that he is in a basement and sees Lucille has also been taken. Lucille tells Marv about how the killer is actually a cannibal and how Goldie was prostitute. He manages to find out that the name of the cannibal is Kevin. Quickly, he manages to escape. The leader of the group of corrupt policemen shoots Lucille, but are then killed by Marv. The only one who wasn't killed was the leader because Marv wants to question him first. Marv finds out that the one behind the plotting of Goldie's murder was in fact Cardinal Patrick Henry Roark. Marv travels to old town which is Sin City's red light district to find out more about Goldie. However, he is taken by Goldie's twin sister Wendy, who is the same girl he thought he has hallucinated about when he was attacked. Wendy believes that Marv is the killer. After convincing to her that he wasn't the killer, they both return to the farm where Marv eventually kills Kevin. He confronts Cardinal Roark who confesses everything that he was part of in the murders. He finds out that Kevin was the Cardinal's ward, one of the two men who ate the prostitutes in order to 'consume their souls'. Marv manages to then kill the cardinal but is taken by his guards. Marv is rushed to hospital where policemen come to tell him to admit to the murder of Cardinal Roark, Kevin and their victims or they will kill his mother. He is then sentenced to death in an electric chair. Wendy comes to see him on death row and thanks him for helping her dead sister to get revenge. He is then placed in the electric chair and mocks the prison guards when it doesn't kill him. It is activated once more and this time, he is killed.

Shellie is pestered by her violent ex, Jackie Boy and his posy and he breaks into her apartment with his men. He doesn't notice that Shellie's new lover Dwight is also in the flat in the bathroom. When Jackie Boy goes in the bathroom. Dwight goes behind him and shoves his face in the toilet so that his face is covered in his own urine. He threatens to kill Jackie Boy if he doesn't leave Shellie alone. A mad Jackie leaves Shellie's flat and is followed by Dwight, not hearing Shellie's warnings. In Old Town, Jackie and his friends harrass a young prostitute named Becky. What Jackie doesn't know is that Dwight, Gail, the head of the prostitutes, his old lover and a martial arts expert, Miho are watching. When Jackie Boy threatens to kill Becky, Miho kills him and his friends. When the bodies are checked for personal effects, they find out that Jackie Boy was a Detective Lieutenant Jack Rafferty from Basin City Police and is considered a hero. If ever the police find out what happened to him, there would be a feud between the cops and the prostitutes. Dwights finds a tar pit where he takes the bodies to cover up the crime. However, he is attacked by ex IRA mercenaries hired by the boss of the mob, Wallenquist. Miho manages to save Dwight before he drowns in tar. The mercenary who is still alive runs to a nearby sewer with the head of Jackie Boy. Dwight and Miho work together to kill him. They take back the head and go back to Old Town. In the meantime, a mob enforcer, Manute, kidnaps Gail. Dwight trades Jackie's head in exchange for Gail's freedom. What Manute didn't know was that the head was loaded with explosives. This hides all evidence from the police and kills the kidnappers. The prostitutes kill Manute and the rest of the group because they knew it would be risky if they allowed any survivors. Becky, injured in the fight, escapes.

The last story involves Hartigan recovering in hospital whilst being told that Junior is in a coma and the legacy of Roark is at risk. Hartigan will be framed for all the crimes Junior has commited and if he tells anyone the truth, they will be killed. An appreciative Nancy was denied to testify against Hartigan. She promised that she would write to him every week while he is stuck in prison. Hartigan is sent to prison though he will not confess. After receiving a weekly letter from Nancy for 8 years, she stops writing. Scared that the Roark found Nancy and will hurt her, he confesses to everything and is given parole. He looks for Nancy not knowing that he is being followed by the yellow man. He finally finds her in a bar where she is an exotic dancer. He realizes he was followed and lead the yellow man to Nancy, so they both run away to Nancy's car not knowing that the yellow man was in the trunk. But it turns out that the yellow man was Junior all along. He attacks Hartigan and kidnaps Nancy taking her to the Roark farm to end what he began a long time ago. Hartigan uses his acting skills to fake a heart attack, which is his chance to kill Junior. Knowing that they will never escape from Senator Roark, Hartigan kills himself to make sure that Nancy is safe. Once again, he ends his life in return for Nancy's.

Hartigan is the 'hero'. He is portrayed as being determined and selfless. We find out that he is an ex detective, retiring due to him having angina. Even so, he risks his own life to save someone else's. We as viewers, end up feelings very sorry for him when his wife leaves him thinking that he was the one that raped Nancy. Nancy is portrayed as the victim. She is being held against her will and has no idea what is going on. However, due to what she almost went through, i think this is why she becomes an exotic dancer later on. Bob is a corrupt man. He pretends he is on Hartigan's side but it actually on Roark Juniors. However, we see Bob tell Hartigan not to go inside. Although he was  telling him to allow a crime to happen, he, in a way, was trying to protect him from being hurt. Roark Jr is very troubled. I believe he now has a better life but had a bad childhood. From what i can see, i think he had issues with his father when he was younger. I don't think his father was always there for him as he might be now. Senator Roark is very evil, he would rather make someone go down for a crime they didn't commit than have their son known as being the rapist and killer. This is a man who has a high status and a lot of money, so he doesn't want his son to ruin anything for him. Marv falls in love and in doing so he risks his own life more than once to try to get revenge for Goldie. We can see that he has had a tough life, and we know that he is quite tough seeing the amount of brawls he has had with his enemies. We know that he tried to avenge Goldie because she was the only person that was good to him. But even though he hasn't had the best life, he tries to help the ones he cares about and really appreciates friendliness.Wendy is a strong, protective and caring woman. We see that when she beats Marv up, thinking that he is the one that killed Goldie. Once she finds out that Marv didn't hurt Goldie, they team together. This shows us that she is very trusting and was a loving sister because she is trying to find who killed her. Shellie is a very shy but confident woman at the same time. We can also see that she is frightened of Jackie Boy. But she is quick to threaten him and his friends after Jackie Boy hits her. This shows us that she will not let herself be played as the victim when she clearly wants to stand up for herself. Jackie Boy is a coward who hits Shellie to feel powerful. He likes to be in control and the dominant figure. He is a violent character who makes us as viewers feel very scared for what he might do next. Dwight is the 'hero' of the story. He saves Shellie and threatens Jackie Boy to stay away from her or he will kill him. He shoves his head down he toilets to teach him a lesson. Jackie Boy cowardly runs away. Dwight follows him to show that this is his territory and that he will not let him treat a woman the way he did. We see that he is protective of Shellie.

All of the clips above allow the audience to feel scared, for example, when Shellie is thrown to the floor, the audience feel sympathy towards her because they want her to be strong and fight back. However, when she retaliates by talking back, the audience fear what Jackie Boy will do to her now that she is defending herself. The use of the scene being in black and white allows us to see the characters for what they really are instead of judging them based on what they could be wearing or the colour of their clothes etc. The use of iconography when Shellie's boyfriend holds a gun to Jackie Boy's head makes the viewers feel on edge as they don't know what these characters could do.

2000's

Memento

Momento is a film that was released in 2000. It is a psychological thriller that is shown differently in two different scenes. One is in black and white and the other is in reversed colour. This makes the audience see how mental the protagonist is. The husband of the man whose wife was mysteriously murdered has to to deal with short term memory loss. So, in order to remember what happened to his wife and who killed her, he must try to overcome his memory loss and he does so in a strange way.

I think that the husband is very caring and protective of his dead wife. And due to his memory loss, he could have easily forgotten his wife's murder. But, this clearly shows how important his wife meant to him if he was able to keep the memory of her death in his brain.

When looking at this clip, i noticed a variety of things that are very conventional to the thriller genre. For example, i noticed that there was silence building up to when the blonde man found the picture telling him to kill the man with the glasses. The use of silence makes the audience really think about what is happening aswell as feel frightened as to what is going to happen next. When the picture is found, sinister music can automatically be heard in the background, making the viewers feel on edge as to what the blonde man is going to do. The audience feel suspense as they wait for the next bad thing to happen. Another convention i have seen is the violence that occurs within this scene. Violence is typically seen in thriller films in order for the audience to feel fear because it shows that some characters have very bad sides to them.

2010

Black Swan

This film is based in a New York City Ballet company. The Swan lake is the theme of the show they are playing in the theatre and everybody including Nina Sayers, a fantastic ballet dancer. She really wants the part because she has been at this ballet school for a long time and has never gotten a part in anything before. Nina wins the part of the swan queen, and is perfect for the role of the white swan - Odette, but starts to slowly lose her mind as she is so focused on being perfect for the part of the black swan (Odile) in order to impress her mother and her teacher who she has strong feelings for.

Nina seems to be a very pressured dancer. She is very talented but goes way in over her head and becomes mentally ill. However, it isn't till the end of the film do we see how ill she was. She is a very angelic figure, being very sweet and timid, but she soon meets her demonic side which turns her into the human version of the black swan. During the film, we see Nina training in a room when all of a sudden the room's lights go off. I think this is a key clue in the movie because i believe this was when Nina lost herself and became dark psychologically. From then on, everything turned to the worst.

I think the target audience for this film is around 15 plus. Not only is the rating of this film a 15 anyway, but Nina Sayers is supposed to be a young adult, and this story very much appeals to people her age because in modern day, the children that work hard are often under pressure and are always scared to not be good enough. So the story line will make the audience feel as though they understand what she is going through. It is a very dramatic film which makes the young audience love it.

In the clip, the audience can see that Nina is hallucinating a darker presence within her, thinking that she is going crazy. The sinister music in the background makes the audience feel scared when they see a hallucination, as they know that it is just her mind playing games with her. The use of the close up shot, shows us her emotions deep down and makes us feel sympathy for her as the viewers know that she going slightly insane.

To conclude, i believe the thriller genre is exploring more and more different stories in order to scare and surprise. However, i believe that during the 1930's-1970's this was when the best thrillers were produced. In my opinion, this is due to the remarkable work that Alfred Hitchcock did. He directed and produced over 60 years in his lifetime. He used creative stories and made them into stories that would certainly entice and thrill the viewers.

Top 10 Thriller Films

In task 2, I researched audience figures for the top 10 thriller films. This picture below represents the box office figures.

Looking at the table, we can see that four of the rankings are made up of 'Saw' films. This is four out of the possible 7 films that are in this particular franchise. The first saw was released in 2004, where modern thrillers were just being introduced. Roughly every year after the first saw was released, a new saw came out. This allowed the producers, directors and actors to be given a lot of money. Without doing any research of my own, i would have thought that any sequel would be less popular than the original movie. However, this table shows other wise. We can see that the sequels actually had better figures. This meant that the original was lower down in the rankings table. We can see that they were a huge success, however i believe that if it wasn't for the original film, the sequels wouldn't have done so well. 

 I also noticed how some films that are quite old, were quite high on the list. For example, the eldest film on the table, 'Sea Of Love', which dates back to 1989, was quite high on the list. This surprised me because i would have expected it to be further down due to the lack of technology that was around then. This film is 12th on the chart with $58,571,513 being made altogether. I discovered that Silence of the Lambs, a 1991 film was 2nd on the list, even though it is slightly old. The thriller film managed to make $130,742,922 as its lifetime gross. The movie is about a top student at the FBI academy named Clarice Starling has been asked by Jack Crawford to interview Dr. Hannibal Lecter, a psychiatrist who is also a scary, aggressive psychopathic cannibal. He is currently serving life behind bars in prison. There is another case where Crawford believes that Lecter can help, but in order to get the killer, Clarice must be the bait so that they can find him. 

Comparing Silence Of The Lambs to Saw, i think they were both very successful. Silence of the lambs earned $130,742,922 and Saw earned $55,185,045. But, when the films both opened out in cinemas we see that Saw received more money, $18,276,468 where as Silence Of The Lambs only received $13,766,814. I believe that this is because of the difference in times that they were released. For example, Saw was released in 2004, where more cinemas were around. Where as for Silence Of The Lambs, which was released in 1991, there weren't as many cinemas.

In conclusion, in order for a thriller to do very well, the narrative must be different from other films that have previously existed as well as an interesting storyline. The narrative is the main part of what makes a film good, but sound and editing also come into it. I have decided that i will use an original narrative that will allow the audience to have the same reaction that they have when watching on of these good thriller films. I have learnt from box office results that if the original of a film is successful by being interesting and unique, it is likely that the sequels to those films will be just as popular with their type of audience. By looking into the box office, I have learnt that my thriller piece, I must have an interesting opening sequence, this is so that it engages the viewers as soon as the film has started.