What are the characteristics of a thriller film?

 

Location:

The Location of a thriller is usually I place which will set a spooky, unpredictable, ominous feeling. Examples of these in modern thriller movies would be:

• An abandoned warehouse.
• Dark alley way.


• A haunted house

A good example of a thriller that is mainly set in one ominous location is 'The Saw' movies. They are primarily set in abandoned warehouses in which acts of torture and meditated murder are carried out.

Plot:

A plot of a thriller usually involves characters which come into conflict with each other or with outside forces- The threat is sometimes abstract or unseen. An atmosphere of creepy menace and sudden violence such as crinme and murder, characeterize thrillers. A common theme in thrillers involves innocent victims dealing with deranged adversaires.

An example of this is in hitchcocks film 'Rebecca'  (1940), where Mrs Danvers tries to persuade Mrs Winter to leap to her death.





Characters:

In a thriller the charcters need to be devious, exciting and most importantly unpredictable. Characters usually include criminals, stalkers, assasins, innocent victims (often on the run), menaced women and charcters with deep dark pasts. The themes frequently inclide terrorism, political conspiracy, or romantic triangles leading to murder.