Fargo - Crime thriller

Conventions of a Crime Thriller

From the very beginning the audience see the crime being planned, so this shows the audience that the crime will be the main focus of the film.

You can tell by the amount of screen time who the main characters are going to be and who the binary opposite characters are going to be.

The focus of the scenes are mainly on the person who planned the crime and the reason for it.

There is always mysterious music and features long opening credits to build the tension.

The protagonist always has a partner and that is their weakness.

The locations vary throughout the scenes.

Characters

The protagonist and Antagonists are established at the beginning of the film.
The protagonist is in debt and this links to the crime. From the very beginning you know that he is the one planning the crime and he will go to extreme lengths to get out of debt: even getting his wife kidnapped so this shows us that he is desperate.

The antagonists within this film are shown stereotypically as when you first see them they are both men who are wearing leather jackets and smoking which you would expect them to be like.

From the start when you see the wife you get the impression that she is very family orientated and has a close relationship with her dad. Also she is shown to be quite weak and innocent. This helps the audience identify with her.


Filming/Editing

The editing which is used in this film is quite simple so the only technique which is really used is cuts. So this makes it more realistic so therefore you understand the crime more and that there is less focus on the action. This is not typical of a thriller genre, and has been used in this film to make it more realistic, and focus on the crime. It also suggests that the characters are quite simple, slow and dull. This is also shown through their lifestyle.

Throughout the opening sequence establishing and long shots are used. This makes it clear to the audience where each scene is set so its easier for the audience to understand.

Close ups are shown of the protagonist and antagonists so this shows that they are the main characters and focus of the film.