The Thriller genre is a genre which highlights films of a more physiological nature. The films are intended to make the audience think about what they are seeing and will enthrall them, as they would be excited and tense about what will happen in the film. The majority of the time the plot lines will be focused around danger, usually in the form of murder or natural disasters and many times, the films will contain a complex narrative which sends the audience on a ride as they watch it.
There are different interpretations and theories as to what a Thriller movie actually is, and all thrillers will contain at least one of these theories;
The Question and Answer Model (Noel Carroll)This theory highlights the idea that when the audience are presented with a question in a film, they are most likely to wait in suspense for the answer which involves the audience in the narrative structure, as it allows the audience to discover the answer along with the protagonist/antagonist. There are two sub-factors involved in this, known as the probability factor and the Moral factor. The Probability factor focuses on the possible outcomes of the film which is a lot more exciting for the audience, hence why Caroll believes it is so important. The Moral factor highlights the fact that what the audience believe is the morally correct thing to do, may not be the actual outcome of the film, and this can cause shock.
The Transformed City (C K Chesterton) This theory indicates the belief that a seemingly ordinary or bland location such as an urban city (where many thrillers take place) may become extraordinary as the plot of the film unfolds as the event would be the most 'exciting’ thing to have happened there
Concealment and Protraction (Lars Ole Saurberg) This theory suggests there are two forms of suspense, and both of them can intrigue and interest the audience. Concealment is the form of creating suspense by hiding important information from the audience, and Protraction creates suspense by delaying a suspected outcome, as the audience already has a brief idea about what will happen, but the actual event is stretched out.
The Heroic Romance (Northop Frye) The protagonist in a thriller generally begins as a normal person, just like any other member of the crowd, but according to the situation which occurs in the film, they will need to react and adapt. Frye believes that a protagonist in a thriller film is generally forced to react and behave in a certain, extraordinary manner to be able to survive and stated that Thrillers 'move the world in which ordinary laws of nature are slightly suspended' and this allows characters to perform amazing acts and survive.
Partial Vision (Pascal Bonitzer) This theory follows the idea that what cannot be seen in a thriller, such as subtle hints about what is actually occurring, is just an important as the points the audience actually see. When you can't physically see or guess what is going to happen in the thriller, it makes the audience want to follow the 'maze' like structure to see if the main character is able to figure this information out for themselves, for example, if we already knew the identity of a murderer, then the film would be less of a surprise and less suspense would be formed, giving the thriller less impact.
Mazes and Labyrinths (W H Matthews) This theories origins originate from the Ancient Greek myth of Theseus and the Minotaur. The theory is, that the protagonist finds themselves in a certain predicament, and they must pass through a 'maze' to reach the final outcome. Mazes are often filled with dead ends and wrong turns, and that is exactly what happens in the films. Actual mazes are also found a lot in Thrillers, such as the Shining, as it identifies with the plot, symbolizing the path that the main character has to follow to find their way out, but the maze can be both literal and metaphorical.
The Exotic (John Cawelti) This theory generates around the idea that both buildings and objects that can found in Thrillers are items which may not be found in everyday life. It isn't unusual in Thrillers for props to have originated from the Middle East and this provides the film with the sense of abnormality and difference. The presence of a foreign object in a film provides the audience with further knowledge that the film is set in a completely different reality.
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