Which thrillers are your personal favourites and why?

There are a couple of thrillers which are my personal favourites. For me, a thriller must have a lot of tension throughout the film whilst it also being very unpredictable. In order for me to regard a thriller as good there should also be a good amount of action in it.

Split (2017)

Split is a 2016 American psychological-thriller film written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan. Casey Cooke is an emotionally-withdrawn teenager, having been molested as a young child by her uncle John, who became her legal guardian after her father's death. While hanging out with her classmates Claire and Marcia, the three are kidnapped by Kevin Wendell Crumb, a man suffering from dissociative identity disorder. Kevin has been evaluated by psychiatrist Dr. Karen Fletcher, who discovered he formed multiple personalities as a means to cope with abuse from his obsessive-compulsive mother. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Split_(2016_American_film)

Green street hooligans (2005)

Matt Buckner (Elijah Wood), a journalism major, is expelled from Harvard University after cocaine is discovered in his room. However, the cocaine belongs to Jeremy Van Holden (Terence Jay), his roommate. Buckner is afraid to speak up because the Van Holdens are a powerful family, and Jeremy offers him $10,000 for taking the fall. Matt doesn't initially accept the money, but reconsiders and uses the money to visit his sister Shannon (Claire Forlani), her husband Steve Dunham (Marc Warren) and their young son, Ben (James Allison) living in London. There, Matt meets Steve's brother, Pete (Charlie Hunnam), an acerbic and imposing Cockney who leads the local football hooligan firm – Green Street Elite (GSE): a group of football supporters that arranges fights after matches.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Street_(film)

Taken (2008)

Retired CIA field agent Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) attempts to build a closer relationship with his shy daughter, Kim (Maggie Grace), who lives with her mother Lenore (Famke Janssen) and her wealthy stepfather Stuart (Xander Berkeley). While overseeing security at a concert for pop star Sheerah (Holly Valance), Bryan saves her from an armed attacker. Out of gratitude, Sheerah offers to have Kim assessed as a singer. Before Bryan can tell Kim, she asks her father for permission to travel to Paris with her best friend Amanda (Katie Cassidy). He initially refuses, but eventually agrees after Lenore persuades him. At the airport, he learns the girls are actually planning to follow the band U2 during their European tour. Upon arriving at Charles de Gaulle International Airport, Kim and Amanda meet Peter (Nicolas Giraud), a Parisian local whose taxi sharing habits act as a ruse to learn more about them. Kim and Amanda go to Amanda's cousins' apartment, only for Kim to find that the cousins are in Spain. While Kim makes a call to her father, she witnesses Amanda being abducted in the living room. Kim follows her father's instructions to hide in a bedroom and listen closely. After she is dragged out from underneath the bed, Kim yells a description of her abductor. Bryan then hears a person breathing heavily, and suspects that one of the abductors has picked up the phone. Bryan then states that if they release his daughter, he will not go after the kidnappers, but warns them that failure will result in a hunt wherein death is an outcome. A man with an Albanian accent answers "Good luck." Later on, Bryan infiltrates a secret sex slave auction beneath Saint-Clair's manor. As soon as Kim comes up for sale, he forces Abil, an Arab bidder, to purchase her. While making his way out, he is knocked out and chained to a pipe, but he manages to escape and eliminate Saint-Clair's henchmen. Bryan forces Saint-Clair to reveal Kim's whereabouts. The Saint-Clair reveals that she is on a yacht owned by a sheikh named Raman, before Bryan shoots him dead. Bryan gives chase after Raman's yacht, he then boards the yacht and dispatches his guards as well as Abil, who is revealed to be Raman's head of security, who gives Bryan a difficult fight. He eventually kills Abil, then enters Raman's suite, only to find Raman holding Kim at knife-point. Raman attempts to negotiate, but Bryan fatally shoots him in the head the moment he lowers his knife. Kim is reunited with her mother and stepfather. The film ends with Bryan and Kim visiting Sheerah.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taken_(film)

Which thrillers are considered to be the best of all time?

Rear Window (1954)

An insight into voyeurism long before the internet age, Hitchcock's Rear Window follows L. B. "Jeff" Jefferies, a magazine photographer cooped up in his New York apartment during a swelteringly hot summer. Jeff becomes obsessed with watching his neighbours through their open windows until he witnesses a murder and takes justice into his own hands. Grace Kelly is magnetic as Jeff's girlfriend Lisa as is the 50s soundtrack of Nat King Cole and Dean Martin.

North by North West (1959)

Gary grant at the peak of his game-wearing one of cinema's greatest suits, no less- joins Alfred Hitchcock at the peak of his in this classic crime caper. A New York ad executive is mistaken for a government agent and pursued across the country by a (real) spy, as Grant's ineffable charm and Hitchcock's flair for producing an iconic action sequence (the crop duster scene is one of the most influential in movie history) culminate in a thriller many have copied but few have equalled

Manchurian Candidate (1962)

The Manchurian candidate tells the story of the son of a prominent right-wing political family who becomes an unknowing assassin in a communist conspiracy. The original adaptation of the novel is an iconic thriller with Frank Sinatra playing the tortured platoon commander.

Blood simple (1984)

Blood simple is a noir thriller about a bartender who starts an affair with his bosses wife only for it to end in gunshot and bloodshed- quite literally a tense affair from start to finish. Frances McDormand's terrified facial expressions and whispered scenes make the directorial debut of the Coen brothers one that stands the test of time- even if it was grossly underrated when it was first released.

     Argo (2012)

Argo is a film released in 2012 which was directed by Ben Affleck. On November 4, 1979, Iranian activists storm the US embassy in Tehran in retaliation for President Jimmy Carter giving the Shah asylum in the US during the Iranian Revolution. 60 of the embassy staff are taken as hostages but six avoid capture and are sheltered in the home of Canadian ambassador Ken Taylor. With the escapees' situation kept secret, the US State Department begins to explore options for exfiltrating them from Iran. Tony Mendez, a US Central Intelligence Agency exfiltration specialist, is brought in for consultation. He criticises the proposals, but is at a loss when asked for an alternative. While on the phone with his son, he is inspired by watching Battle for the Planet of the Apes and begins plans for creating a cover story for the escapees: that they are Canadian filmmakers who are in Iran scouting exotic locations for a science-fiction film. 

Who are some of the most popular and well-known directors associated with the genre?

Who are some of the most popular and well-known directors associated with the genre?

There are many directors within the genre who have been recognised for the great quality of films they have made. Examples of these directors would be:


Alfred Hitchcock

Alfred Hitchcock is known for making some well respected and great quality thrillers over the years of him being a director. Born in 1899 in Essex, he immediately fell in love with movies and film-making His most famous films he's made are: the birds and psycho. Hitchcock became a highly visible public figure through interviews, film trailers, cameo appearances in his own films, and the ten years in which he hosted the television programme Alfred Hitchcock presents (1955–1965). He also fashioned for himself a recognisable directorial style, and the term "Hitchcockian" is now often used to refer to his style of filmmaking. Hitchcock's stylistic trademarks include the use of camera movement that mimics a person's gaze, forcing viewers to engage in a form of voyeurism. In addition, he framed shots to maximise anxiety, fear, or empathy, and used innovative forms of film editing. His work often features fugitives on the run alongside "icy blonde" female characters.      

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Hitchcock                                                                                                

Steven Spielberg

Steven Spielberg is an American director who is regarded very highly for his outstanding film making over the years. In a career spanning more than four decades, Spielberg's films  have spanned many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films, such as Jaws (1975), Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), and E.T The Extra Terrestrial  (1982), were seen as archetypes of modern Hollywood escapist filmmaking. In later years, his films began addressing humanistic issues such as the Holocaust, the Transatlantic slave trade, Civil rights, war, and Terrorism in such films as The Colour Purple (1985), Empire of the Sun (1987), Schindler's list (1993), Amistad (1997), Saving Private Ryan (1998), Munich (2005), War Horse (2011), Lincoln (2012), and Bridge of Spies (2015). His other films include :, A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001), and War of the Worlds (2005). He has won many awards such as 'Academy Award for Best Director'. 2 of his 3 most famous films are thrillers and are Jaws and Jurassic park.   

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steven_Spielberg       
                                                                                               
                                                                                                       

Brian De Palma

Brian De Palma is an American director and screenwriter. He is considered part of the new wave of hollywood film making. His best films and most famous films are usually crime and psychological films although they all contain an element of suspense. Brian De Palma has also won many prestigious awards for his quality of films. An example of this would be the silver lion for best director in 2007. Brian De Palma's most successful and famous films he's directed are: 'Scarface',' The untouchables' and 'Mission: Impossible'.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_De_Palma                         

John Frankenheimer

John Michael Frankenheimer (February 19, 1930 – July 6, 2002) was an American film and television director known for social dramas and action/suspense films. 

Frankenheimer won four consecutive Emmy Awards in the 1990s for the television movies Against the Wall, The Burning Season, Andersonville, and George Wallace, which also received a Golden Globe award. He was considered one of the last remaining directors who insisted on having complete control over all elements of production, making his style unique in Hollywood.

Frankenheimer's 30 feature films and over 50 plays for television were all notable for their huge influence on contemporary thought. He began his career at the peak of the Cold War so became a pioneer of the 'modern-day political thriller.' 

Many of his films were noted for creating "psychological dilemmas" for his male protagonists. He had a similar style to films by director Sidney Lumet, for whom he had earlier worked as assistant director. He directed many famous films such a Birdman of Alcatraz (1962) ,The Manchurian Candidate (1962)  and Seven Days in May (1964) just to name a few.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Frankenheimer

Michael Bay
                                                                                                              

Michael Bay is an American filmmaker known for directing and producing big-budget, high-concept action films characterised by fast cutting, stylistic visuals and extensive use of special effects, including frequent depictions of explosions. The films he has produced and directed, which include Armageddon (1998) , Pearl Harbor (2001) and the Transformers film series , have grossed over 7.8 billion Dollars worldwide, making him one of the most commercially successful directors in history. He co-owns Platinum Dunes, a production house which has remade horror movies including The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003), The Amityville Horror (2005), The Hitcher (2007), Friday the 13th (2009) and A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010).

Characteristics of thrillers

Thrillers have many clear and notable characteristics:

Thrillers can cause the audience to have a certain mood depending on the film. Thrillers can make the audience feel excited, anxious and feel suspense.

In Crime and Action thrillers common elements may be: ransoms, heists, kidnappings and revenge. An example of a Crime and Action thriller would be Taken (2008)

In Mystery thrillers common elements may be: investigations and detective-based plot lines. An example of a Mystery thriller would be Shutter Island (2010)

In Psychological thrillers common elements may be: plot twists, mind games and psychology obsession. An example of a Psychological thriller would be Black Swan (2010)

In Horror films common elements may be: serial killers, death traps, stalking and horror-of-personality. An example of a horror film would be A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

Examples of characters or characteristics in thrillers may be: Stalkers, hitmen, assassins, menaced women, spree killers, sociopaths, secret or undercover agents, police or high speed police chases, insane murderers and terrorists to just name a few.



Locations of thrillers:


Horror films: In horror films the location tends to vary however most of the time the location of the film is isolated so the victim can be shown to have little chance of survival. An example of a location for a horror film location would be a dark, spooky and haunted house.

Crime films: In a crime film the location can also consist of a prison or simply on the streets in a dark place where the criminal would operate. Most crime films are set at certain time of day which would be night-time. This is also because night-time provides more tension as it gives the audience more uncertainty. 

What is a Thriller?

What is a Thriller?


A Thriller is a movie, book or play with a plot which is exhilarating and thrilling. The Thriller genre can also be split into many different sub-genres such as: Action thrillers, crime thrillers, horror thrillers and psychological thrillers to just name a few. An example of an action thriller would be the Bourne series films. Many good examples of thrillers are films which keep the audience on the edge of their seats as the main plot.


Action thriller: It focuses on action and is more common in movies than books due to it being easier to visualise. An example of an action thriller would be the Bourne series films. Action film is a genre in which the protagonist or protagonists end up in a series of challenges that typically include violence, extended fighting, physical feats, and frantic chases. Action films tend to feature a resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include life-threatening situations, a villain, or a pursuit which generally concludes in victory for the hero (though a small number of films in this genre have ended in victory for the villain instead). 



(below is a scene in the Bourne Ultimatum which is a good example of an intense thriller scene)

Crime thriller: it's usually from the criminals point of view and the criminal avoids the police to make the film more exciting and tense. Detectives may be involved in crime thrillers as well as courtroom drama, hard-boiled fiction and legal thrillers being part of crime films. Suspense and mystery are key elements that are nearly ubiquitous to the genre. An example of a crime thriller would be Angels and Demons (2009).

Horror thriller: A horror film is used to get a physiological reaction. It's main adjective is often to give the audience a sense of fear. Horror films often deal with viewers' nightmares, fears, revulsions and terror of the unknown. Plots within the horror genre often involve the intrusion of an evil force, event or personage into the everyday world. Prevalent elements include ghosts, aliens, vampires, werewolves, demons, satanism, gore, torture, vicious animals, evil witches, monsters, zombies, cannibals , psychopaths, natural or man-made disasters and serial killers. An example of a horror thriller would be 'IT' (2017) .

Psychological thriller: Psychological thriller is a thriller story which emphasises the unstable psychological states of its characters. In terms of classification, the category is a sub-genre of the broader ranging thriller category, with similarities to Gothic and detective fiction in the sense of sometimes having a "dissolving sense of reality", moral ambiguity, and complex and tortured relationships between obsessive and pathological characters. Psychological thrillers often incorporate elements of or overlap with mystery, drama, action and horror (particularly psychological horror).  An example of a Psychological thriller would be Shutter Island (2010).

Hello my name is Marco Radice-Morrás. I am a year 12 media studies student at Aldenham School. I am eager to start the course as I find it fascinating and I feel it is something I could even pursue after I leave school.