In our group we hope to achieve the top bands for this unit. Below are the grade boundaries that assess the work needed within a level 4 band for students opening of a two minute thriller. The categories we will be assessed in are video, audio, research and planning and the evaluation.
Video
Research and Planning
Evaluation
By looking at the mark scheme it will give our group an overall understanding of what needs to be done and how much work needs doing to be able to achieve the top bands. I think looking at the mark scheme is a key part into my research as it will help me to develop my work further. Overall this will help my group as we know what is expected of us.
Seven
This is a film about two detectives' hunt for a serial killer who is murdering people and justifying the crimes by absolution for the worlds ignorance of the Seven Deadly Sins. The two detectives try and track down the serial killer who chooses his victims bases on the Seven Deadly Sins. Together, the two detectives trace the murderers every step, witnessing the aftermath of his horrific crimes one by one as the victims increase, all while moving closer to a gruesome fate neither of them could have predicted.
In the opening of seven it immediately creates a suspenseful atmosphere by showing someone turning pages of a book, however you cannot see what's written inside the book creating some sort of mystery for the audience. However it does show a hand that then is blurred out to create this uncertainty of the character for the audience. The lighting at this point its used perfectly with bright light focused on the pages of the book but behind the book is very dim and dark which relates to the way the camera is focused on the top of the book so you can clearly see the pages turning but the actual surface of the pages blurred creating a sense of mystery. As what is being shown is a book it connotes the idea that the character who is reading the book is intelligent. The music in the background while the book is being shown at the beginning of the credits uses thunder like sounds which are repetitive throughout provoking the audience to feel tense while watching. Then what is shown is the company that is being represented (New line cinema) is it faded onto the screen. The writing has a hand written in ink so it looks messy which is then edited to flash to bold creating that suspense. The credits then fade out to a pitch a black screen that displays 'An Arnold Kopelson Production' The font colour is white to make it stand out against the dark lighting and to suggest that there are protagonists in this film as well as antagonists. The font type is really well done as it differs from bold to very thin to create an a dark and unnerving style but to show inconsistency and to perhaps tell us something about the personality of this mysterious figure and connote that he is doesn't have a clear pattern to him.
The editing in this opening is fast-paced and consists of several dissolve transitions, which are used to create a sense of disjointedness which can be represented through the drawing of the hands which are deformed. It consists of many extreme close ups of tools which aren't also identifiable leaving the audience in mystery, some shots are flashed onto the screen so that audience can barely see them reinforces this. Further more I repetition of close up shots intrigue the audience with very little detail and distance the audience by not showing any wider shots that would give a clearer view of the character. Within the whole opening there is a textured effect which gives the sequence a washed-out, sepia like tone sometimes black and white. The colours used connotes a lack of feeling especially when we see the shot of the man scraping of his skin on his fingers with a blade; flashes od red appear connoting violence which can relate to the tools being shown. These connotations create a sense of foreboding for the story's dark matter
Thriller is a genre of literature, film, video gaming and television that uses suspense, tension, and excitement as the main elements. The best examples of thrillers are the films of Alfred Hitchcock. Sub-genres include crime thrillers, mystery thrillers, paranoid thrillers, psychological thrillers, and horror thrillers.
I am now analysing 4 different titles sequences' music throughout them and comparing them to one another. With this I am seeing if there is a trend in the type of audio used in Thrillers or if there is a variety. My aim is to find out as much about the sound in thrillers by analysing these following four movie title sequences: Inception, Shutter Island, Seven & Limitless; and from this hoping to gain knowledge in what is typical music of a thriller which my group and I can therefore go on to use when creating our own for our title sequence.
Inception:
loud dramatic symphonies
building up
repetition
loud dramatic build up fades out to loud waves
ambient sound of waves
sound of children in distance
ambient calm tide coming in
eery sound developing
calm eery beat with calm tide
loud shriek/scream of a child in the middle of peace
sudden noise
Shutter Island:
long orchestra sounds
sharp sounds
deep loud sudden sounds
loud to quiet
repetition
build up
deep horrific trumpets and symbols
small sharp blips
replica siren sound
Seven:
lightning and thunder like sounds
static sounds
repetition
computer generated sounds
robotic
sci-fi sounds-space
sudden sharp sounds
radio tuning
strange sci-fi/space fake eery music
constant beat
music layering
fast beat
non-digetic narrative or speech
quiet end
Limitless:
silence
loud bangs
sudden sound
quiet ticking clock in background building up
banging getting slightly faster
quiet speech in background begins
louder bang and narrative starts
mellow melancholy quiet noise
faster banging and mechanical drills
digital sounds
non digetic up-beat music
quiet low sounds
parallel foley sounds of police cars
parallel sound and gun shots
My Evaluation
From my group members analysis i have learnt that within these thrillers the producers have used repetitive deep melancholy downbeat music a lot to make the audience feel tense, they have also used a lot of ambient, Foley, parallel and non-diegetic sounds to further emphasis this and also create a suspenseful atmosphere for the audience. I have also noticed that within these analyse you can see specific codes and conventions which relates to its genre. For example within the film seven it uses "strange sci-fi/space fake eery music" to correspond with the theme of the film, the film limitless uses gun shot sounds and police sirens to go with the action theme within the film. Furthermore film producers can raise the audiences suspicion, tension and anxiety by building up the sound level and constantly use deep mellow sounds which are seen within all four films.
When thinking about doing a thriller opening we have to consider what type of thriller we are going to us as over the years they have become more developed and more types and variations have been created.
Conspiracy Thriller - The conspiracy thriller is a subgenre of thriller fiction. The protagonists of conspiracy thrillers are often journalists or amateur investigators who find themselves pulling on a small thread which unravels a vast conspiracy that ultimately goes "all the way to the top. 'Edge Of Darkness'
Political Thriller - In a political thriller, there's usually a problem where the whole government is at stake and the protagonist is hired by the government to stop the decline, an example of a political thriller: 'The Interpreter'
Crime Thriller - Crime films are films which focus on the lives of criminals. The stylistic approach to a crime film varies from realistic portrayals of real-life criminal figures, to the far-fetched evil doings of imaginary arch-villains. Criminal acts are almost always glorified in these movies. 'The Bourne Ultimatum'
Action Thriller
Includes normal conventions of the thriller genre but focuses on action and usually includes explosions/violence etc, an example of an action thriller: 'The Dark Knight Rises'
Mystery Thriller - Mystery film is a sub-genre of the more general category of crime film and at times the thriller genre. It focuses on the efforts of the detective,private investigator or amateur sleuth to solve the mysterious circumstances of a crime by means of clues, investigation, and clever deduction.The plot often centres on the deductive ability, prowess, confidence, or diligence of the detective as they attempt to unravel the crime or situation by piecing together clues and circumstances, seeking evidence, interrogating witnesses, and tracking down a criminal.
Psychological Thriller - A distinguishing characteristic of a psychological thriller is a marked emphasis on the mental states of its characters: their perceptions, thoughts, distortions, and general struggle to grasp reality. Psychological thrillers are suspenseful by exploiting uncertainty over characters' motives, honesty, and how they see the world. 'Silence Of The Lambs'
1920-1930's
A man called Alfred Hitchcock made his first thriller (the third silent film in 1926) this film was called 'Lodger'. It was one of the first thrillers to be made and is about a landlady who suspects her new lodger is a madman killing women in London.
His next thriller in 1929 was a film called 'Black mail' this was notable for being his and Britain's first sound film. From this point Alfred Hitchcock was known for producing thrillers. There were also many other notable British directors who produced thriller films such as Walter Forde, Victor Saville, George A. Cooper and the young Michael Powell up to the years 1940.
1940'sAlfred Hitchcock went on to direct more suspense thrillers, in this year he produced two films in which one was Oscar winning. These films were 'Foreign Correspondent' and 'Rebecca'. Rebecca being the Oscar winning film. In 1941 he went on to release a film called 'Suspicion' and then released a film called 'saboteur' in 1942 and 'Shadow of a doubt' in 1943 which was one of Hitchcock's own personal favourite.
1950's
In the 1950's was when Hitchcock started adding Technicolor to his thrillers, as the time changes you can see the development. Strangers on a train, made in 1951 is about a psychotic socialite who confronts a tennis star on how two complete strangers can get away with a murder, a theory that he plans to follow through.
1960'sIn the 1960's the film Psycho was released. This film was one of the most well known thriller film ever directed by Alfred Hitchcock. It is recognised and praised as a piece of cinematic art by international film critics.
Modern Day thrillersAlfred Hitchcock has had a major impact on modern day thrillers. Hitchcock directed his films using many techniques and codes and conventions within his thrillers that influence suspense and tension most thrillers now borrow these themes and elements from those in the past, but to avoid repetition they often use ideas and aspects from other genres such as horror where they add things in such as sadistic violence/gore etc. which is why some people mistake thrillers for horrors. This is when we get sub genres and hybrids.
The codes and conventions of a thriller include colour, objects, music,
location, lighting, quick cuts, diegetic and non-diegetic sounds, shadows,
humour, quick editing and camera angles causing tension.
Objects
Objects such as the mirror which is often used within thriller films it is
used to show a different side of a character (evil/good), The mirror is used to
help the audience to understand the true qualities of the characters, and often
represents darkness, deceit, danger, it also reflects the powers and morals a
character possess. It is often used to show the truth and uncover the real
intention of someone.
Shadow
Shadows are very commonly used
within thrillers movies, it is used to hide and bring the theme of
mystery and suspense into a movie as it allows the audience to predict what's
going to happened and ask questions like who? Why? how? And what's going to
happen next? Shadows can also be used like the mirror to show a different side
to the characters. Shadows can be used very effectively in thrillers to also
represent and symbolize a dark side to a character, all these help to keep the
audience engaged and interested wanting to know more and who the person beneath
the shadow really is.
Editing and Camera
Quick editing and camera angles in are used in thrillers to help engage the
audience and build the feeling of fear, anxiety, suspense and tension between
the audience and the movie, some thrillers would make the audience feel they
were in the characters position at certain points to create this fear. The
camera angles and positions are used to make the movies come to live almost as
if it was happening right before the audience capturing the emotions and body
language of actors. This allows the audience to connect with the characters and
feel the same way that they do. Close ups are used to show the fear/expressions
of a character and also his/her other emotions, it also helps to bring the
audience closer to the personalities of the actors. Different movie angles make
the audience feel the tension and scary scenes such as a mid-shot/two –shot
would allow the audience to see the full action of a villain about to attack
and this would often cause the audience to give a reaction.
Location/scenery and Mise-en-scene
Within thrillers these aspects are very important as they help the audience
to understand the situation better; also the scenery helps to increase the
level of anxiety and tension in a movie as well as the editing and sound.
Certain locations are commonly used in thrillers such as stairs, grave yards,
dark rooms, car parks, underground stations and abandoned houses and they can
help express the state of the situation and what is about to occur in a
particular scene, also the lighting and colours of the Mise-en-scene is very
important in helping the audience feel and understand better the moods of the
characters and also the type of occasion that is being
represented. Colours are very useful in signifying the mood of the actors
and the sense of what’s going to happen. It also contrasts between characters
and can help the audience to understand the actions taking place and
characters. Colours of different objects, places, light in a movie helps the
audience to understand the mood of the actors and also helps them to foretell
the expressions and educates them more about the scene and what is going on or
about to take place
Black
The colour black in a movie thriller would often signify darkness, sense of
danger and evil. Black is used to express bad moods and help the audience
understand the emotion of the characters in a movie. It also helps the audience
differentiate evil from good. Black is used within scenes to create a tense
atmosphere for the audience it helps the audience to understand the
surroundings, predict some scenes and perceive it to be evil. Dark pathways,
stairs, rooms, villains, masks, dark clouds would fall under the colour black
and are often scene in thriller movies.
White: The colour white is used to show the opposite of black, meaning
good, happiness, heaven, heroes, light, safety, peace and purity. It helps the
audience to differentiate between good and evil.
Age classification is important to consider when in the process of researching before you plan and make the film. The main ones our group are looking to aim for are 15-18, so we want to know what makes a 15 film and what makes an 18 film. The people who decide this are the BBFC (British board of Film Classification.) What is the difference between a 15 and 18 certificate? There are age limits on films as the media believe that some content is unacceptable to be shown to certain ages. With 15 certificate films No-one under 15 is allowed to watch a film in cinemas without ID or buy/rent a 15 certificate film. Films rated 18 are for adults only. Again no-one under 18 is allowed to watch films in the cinema or buy/rent a 18 certificate film. This is because the film is considered unsuitable as it contains explicit content. A 18 certificate contains:
-very strong violence -frequent strong language and very strong language -strong portrayals of sexual activity -strong verbal references to sex -strong horror -strong blood or gore -real sex (in some circumstances) -discriminatory language or behaviour (e.g racism or homophobic) -drug taking. A 15 certificate contains: -strong violence -frequent strong language -portrayals of sexual activity -strong verbal references to sex -sexual nudity -brief scenes of sexual violence or verbal references -discriminatory language or behaviour (e.g racism or homophobic) -drug taking.
Ariel movement shot An Ariel movement shot is when the camera is in the air and above, looking down onto the object being filmed. Tracking shot A tracking shot it where the camera moves and follows a object or character. Tilt shot A tilt shot is where the camera is stationary but moves up or down. Pan shot A pan shot is where the camera is stationary but moves left or right.
