Task A - Opening and Definition of "Thrillers"

In this blog I will be giving updates on my AS media coursework on thrillers. It will include updates on research into thrillers, reviews on thrillers I have watched as well as updates on my group's progress, decisions made, reflections on the production so far and evaluations.

What is a Thriller?

A 'thriller'  is a genre that revolves around anticipation and suspense. The aim of a thriller is to keep the audience alert and on the edge of their seats. The characters in these films are set against a problem – an escape, a mission, or a mystery. No matter what sub-genre a Thriller film falls into, it will emphasise the danger that the characters face. The tension 

within the main plot is developed and built throughout the film and leads to a highly stressful climax.

Thriller is a genre that can be found in literature, film, and television. It is characterised by suspense, tension, and excitement. Thrillers impact upon the viewer's moods, giving them a strong sense of anticipation, a high level of expectation, often a sense of uncertainty, the unexpected, concern and fear. Films of this genre tend to be fast-moving, hard-edged and  intense.

A thriller will stimulate a rush of emotions in a viewer. Feelings of excitement and exhilaration that drive the story-line, often subtly with intense periods of dramatic action followed by quieter periods. The pace of the narrative is invariably high, keeping the audience on the 'edge of their seats', as the plot builds towards a peak or climax. Literary devices such as red herrings (aspects of the plot that 'trick' the viewer), plot twists (sudden unexpected events), and cliffhangers (the viewer is left desperate to know what happens next) are used extensively. At the centre of a thriller is usually a villain, who puts barriers in front of another protagonist (invariably a 'hero') which must be overcome.

Common subgenres are action thrillers, crime thrillers, Film-Noir, psychological thrillers, Science Fiction thrillers and Religious Thrillers. The horror and action genres will often overlap with the thriller. Thrillers tend to be psychological, terrifying, mysterious and at times involve larger-scale ciminality such as deception, terrorism and conspiracy.