Conventions of the Thriller Genre

The Thriller Genre...

             
Recently, I have been noticing certain characteristics and traits that seem to always be present in films in the Thriller genre. These are called conventions of the Thriller genre. The reasons that they are usually present it because they always succeed in creating specific effects on the viewer. Hence, the director can then utilise a few of these conventions to have an effect on the viewer. This effect can then be played on to scare the viewer or get them excited etc...

             To know why a certain trait has been adopted as convention of a genre, I should first understand what the genre in question 'is'. I need to know why a film is a thriller and not a romcom. The Thriller genre fits an interesting niche because it seems to fit between action and horror, with elements of both. Thriller is defined as a film the uses suspense, tension and excitement as its main elements. They very often play with the viewers emotions to achieve an effect on the viewer. It is usually a Villain driven plot, the story being pushed forward by the act of the antagonist rather than the protagonist.
             One of the most common effects that's used in Thriller films, and films in general, is to use music to build tension as well as to release it. Psycho, the film I first analysed, uses this extensively in it's murder scenes. There is a long near silence to build the tension with a large crescendo of string instruments to then release it as the murder happens. This also works both ways as a total silence can build tension as well as 'letting it sit'. This means not building any more tension but not letting it diffuse away. When used correctly its a very effective mean of keeping the viewer engaged.
             Conventions can quite often relate to the plot. Thriller films tend to have a crime at the centre of a plot. This convention is often used because a crime itself is thrilling, but it is also a feasible starting point for the protagonist to then get into these thrilling situations. The themes presented in thrillers tend to be similar such as identity and mirroring. These are all effective themes to be in a thriller film to bring out the desired emotions of the viewer because of how the human mind wants to learn and know the truth. So when an identity is thrown into mystery, we naturally want to know who the person is and why this has happened. This then allows the plot to talk interesting, thrilling and sometimes scary twists.
             The story of Thriller films tends to be experienced from the point of view of the protagonist, therefore several conventions of the genre relate to the protagonist, such as how he acts; how others react to him or can be as subtle as the opening credits reflecting his psychological state. There is almost always an flaw that, for the majority of the film, remains unknown to the viewer. However, the antagonist does know this flaw and does exploit it. Thus putting us as the viewers and the protagonist 'on the back foot'.
             These conventions are important to note because of how often they appear in the Thriller genre and to know why they are there in the first place and what effect they are trying to have on the viewer. I will pay attention to these different techniques and conventions and use them when making my own film. I will try to incorporate some of them in the final piece to produce the desired effect on the audience.