Preliminary Task 1(Final Edit)

The Interrogation

Thriller Sub Genres

Thriller:
A thriller is a genre that is made to create, and almost impose a wide range of emotions like fear or excitement to the audience.

Action Thriller:
An action thriller is made to evoke and create emotions of suspense and excitement or some may call it "hype". They usually aim to keep audiences on the edge of their seat with slight cliffhangers and twists that are laid out through the entire movie. The plot of an action thriller usually has the main villain and a hero which has a girl companion most of the time the plot ranges from terrorist attacks to espionage, however, the plots usually have to keep to some form of reality to keep the movie's story actually mean something rather then it being a film where the main take away was the explosions and CGI.

Snowpiercer:

Snowpiercer is an action thriller which is critically acclaimed, being nominated for many awards and even receiving a rating of 95% on rotten tomatoes. This movie actually does not fit the typical story of an action thriller, due to the lack of a female lead but rather replacing that with an extra male lead. the movie itself is heavily story-based but being an action movie, it has to have some sort of CGI or action sequence which this film has plenty of, as the main character Curtis (Chris Evans) makes it to the front of a train having to fight many people on the way there, resulting in countless deaths.

This clip here is an example of the action. This clip portrays clearly the violence and action which keeps the audiences on the edge of their seats as they are unable to see Curtis in some shots, leaving them to wonder where he is.

Conventions of an action thriller:

• Enigma: The result of this convention, creates a strong feeling of suspense that just keeps the audience on the seat, as they need to find out more or what the outcome would be of the enigma. E.G. The opening sequence of Enemy of the state (0.00-7.56), where a man is killed and we do not find out the reason for it until further down the line in the movie.
• Fast paced music: The use of this convention is to "hype" or excite the audience before and during an action scene in order to create drama and exaggeration.
• Close-ups: Close-ups are used to create tension and suspense as we get a good view of the characters facial features and thus we can use that to interpret their feelings and through this, the suspense and tension get multiplied.
• Fast Edits: Fast edits are a convention that is used to match the tension and excitement a scene is supposed to create, usually a fight scene where the cuts are common and fast. This helps keep the action up for the audience, as they have to quickly process whats going on in each scene before it quickly gets cut to another, and thus this naturally creates adrenaline which really helps boost the excitement.

Other examples of action thrillers include: Die Hard (1988), Taken (2008), John Wick (2014) and RoboCop (1987).

Psychological thriller:

A psychological thriller is a thriller that creates and explores the unstable or deteriorating psychological state of mind of its characters. The plot usually follows the main character as he/she goes through the ordeal of losing their mental state and we follow the progression of he/her deteriorating and the effects it has on her and her friends or family, till we reach the point where they either get saved or end up int he state of no return.

Queen of earth:

Queen of earth is a psychological thriller that follows the slow mental deterioration of the main character Catherine due to the circumstances that she had faced and the effects it has on her and most importantly the effect it has on her friend Virginia. The movie itself could almost be compared to a horror due simply to the detailed breakdown of Catherine, her character becoming more and more psychotic.

A clip which shows the result of her mental breakdown can be seen here

Conventions:

• Close-ups: The effect of this is that we are able to witness firsthand the faces of the character, their facial features clearly seen and we as the audience get to see the distortion or disfiguration or even at the extreme, the complete lack of emotion. This has the effect of "creeping the audience out or at the extreme, scare them.
• Shadows or dim light: This convention, helps set the mood and tone for the film, and maybe a representation of the character's mind as it gets shrouded in insanity.
• Music: The music in a Psychological thriller, is usually eerie and tense, may it be to psyche up the audience or to give them the chills, it accompanies the tone and mood very well, helping to express it more. (an example of such music Queen of earth title music)

Other examples of Psychological Thrillers: Black swan (2010), Shutter Island (2010), The silence of the lambs (1991) and American Pscho (2000)

Crime Thriller:

A crime thriller is usually a fictional film that involves some form of crime, murder, robber ETC. The plot is usually realistic in order to have a believable story which helps intrigue the audiences more. It usually involves a criminal and some form of authority (police, detective ETC).

Wind River:

 Wind River, follows an FBI agent and a local that acts as a guide for the agent Jane Banner investigating a murder of an 18-year-old girl. After a autopsy, they find out that she had been raped and the movie follows their investigation into who had done it.

A clip of wind river Link

The clip shows the beginning of the investigation, determining where she came from and how'd she died. The movie is a more eerie and dramatic crime thriller, as it focuses more on a tone of isolation and suspicion, with minimal action apart from the shooting scene. This creates a more realistic plot that would relate to people who know and want to experience a more realistic crime thriller that focuses on the investigation more then it does focusing on action.

Conventions:

• Enigma: this helps portray to the audience a scene which they would have to idea what was going on however there is just enought to pice tiogether what type of crime it may potentially be.
• Guns and violence: most crime thrillers, usually have a shootout and that is usually there to put in some form of action in other to cater for the audiences that may not be particularly interested in forking up $16 to just see people talk about and investigate a crime. This takes a break from the less exciting investigation to a more action-packed scene which would entertain most audiences.
• Location: this helps set the scene and also helps explain to the audience what type of crime the movie maybe potentially be about, E.G. Bank=Robbery

Other examples of a crime thriller: Nightcrawler (2014), The girl with the dragon tattoo (2011) and Gone baby gone (2007)

Sci-Fi Thriller:

A sci-fi thriller is a thriller that is usually based on the future or extraterrestrial attacks. However, some movies do base the plot of modern-day epidemics like a virus breakout. The usual plot follows the main character as he/she has to go find a solution usually in the form of a cure and we follow the adventure he goes through in order to accomplish his mission.

Edge of tomorrow:

Edge of tomorrow follows Major William Cage as he gets forced to fight against a hoard of aliens invading earth. He gains the ability to relive the day he dies and he uses that along with his new partner, and together they have to find a way to end the invasion.

A clip that goes over the basic plot of the movie is here

The movie itself follows the basic plot of a sci-fi thriller and produces it quite well, where the plot is believable to the extent that aliens are real, however, the equipment used in this movie is modern and nothing too futuristic, keeping with the believability of the movie.

Conventions:

• Music: the music used in a sci-fi thriller, usually is very futuristic, involving a lot of computer-generated sounds. this helps keep the tone in check that this movie isn't a 1980's crime film but rather a futuristic film based on the future.
• Settings: the setting plays a major role in the film, whether the film is based on in space or a dystopia of a planet, the setting needs to fit the category of the what the film is about whether it be an epidemic or an invasion of some sorts.
• Props: the props play a key role in distinguishing the era the movie is based off, whether its the future where laser guns are a thing or the more modern day where guns consume bullets. The props play an overall part in distinguishing whether the movie would be realistic or not.'

Other examples of a Sci-Fi thriller: Alien (1979), Interstellar (2014), The Matrix (1999) and Oblivion (2013)

Disaster Thriller:

A disaster thriller follows the plot of an impending or ongoing disaster that is threatening the human race. Examples of this would be a terrorist attack, tsunami, the end of the world ETC. The plot would follow a group or single person in an attempt to evade the catastrophe or to escape it.

The day after tomorrow:

The day after tomorrow follows a climatologist after his pleas are ignored by the UN, his prediction of a natural disaster comes true, a "superstorm" develops and now he has to brave the storm and try to save his son whilst evading the storm.
A clip of the film can be seen here

The film follows the basic plot of a natural disaster with the added drama of having to find his son whilst escaping the storm the plot is generally believable.

Conventions:

• CGI: A lot of CGI would be required due to the fact that they need to create a natural disaster or terrorist attack, the quality of the CGI itself affects the movie to the point where even a slight error may affect the movie.
• Setting: The setting needs to be believable, where a threat is always there but has to be big enough for the main character to have some extra time to either save the day or to save someone.
• Characters: these films usually have a group or in some cases, a singular character but they always have some sort of mission to accomplish.

Other examples of disaster thrillers: San Andreas (2015), Cloverfield (2008) and Pompeii (2014)