Analysis of a Crime Thriller

Typical conventions of a Crime Thriller

+ Screen time is on main characters mostly
+ Variety of locations
+ Mysterious music
+ Protagonist has a partner
+ Focus scenes on a protagonist
+ See the crime planned from the very start

My example: Murder By Numbers

So to see if these conventions were actually present within crime thrillers I decided to analysis the film 'Murder by Numbers'.

At the very beginning there was mysterious music to fit the establishing shot at the same time of hearing the sound of the water flowing roughly. So from this you can tell straight away that it fits the conventions of the mysterious music appearing within the film.

Next there are a variety of locations just as the conventions state as they feature college, the beach at the beginning and also the house which you see the protagonist in. The protagonist is also not alone as he has his fellow partner so therefore this fits the convention that the protagonist isn't on his own.


Throughout the film the scenes are mainly focused on the protagonist so this also fits the conventions. And the last convention  which it fits is the fact you find out about the crime from the very start so therefore again it fits these conventions.

Overall this film fits the conventions extremely well. A few other things which I picked up on were: dull colours were used throughout the film to create tension, There was also a voice over at the beginning so therefore this created some suspense from the very start, unusual settings and finally the mise-en-scene was thought about extremely well especially the props and lighting and finally the colours.

Fake blood

Conventions of an Action Thriller + Analysis

Below I have wrote the conventions of an action thriller:


+ More screen time for the protagonist
+ High place of authority person is shown to be negative
+ Locations vary a lot
+ Partially introduced to various other characters
+ Isolated characters - amnesia
+ No reason behind violence
+ Outnumbered protagonist
+ No fancy/glamorous locations
+ Innocent victims
+ Different countries
+ Weaknesses shown strongly
+ Clues along the way
+ Mature cast
+ Binary Opposites
+ Protagonist normally has a talent e.g. athletic

My analysis of an action thriller --> Quantum of Solace

From watching the opening sequence of this film you can straight away spot the conventions of an action thriller within this sequence. For example from the very beginning of the film James Bond has all the screen time. This fits the first convention as in this film James Bond is shown as the protagonist.
 In the first five minutes of the film the locations already vary a lot so this again fits the second convention of the 'locations vary a lot'.
 Moving on: you are partially introduced to other characters as you are shown the action of the victim being beaten, but only briefly. So therefore you are shown other characters in short bursts of filming. We also aren't aware of a reason for the violence which is shown within this film at the beginning so therefore this fits the convention of there being no reason behind the violence.
  Next the convention of it being in different countries. This is present as throughout the film the countries are varied a strong amount.
 Also weaknesses are shown about the main characters in short bursts of shooting so that they don't get portrayed to weak. However when they are shown they are as the convention says: 'shown strongly'.
 Clues are along the way just like the conventions states and also there is a mature cast for this film so this too fits the conventions.
 As in all action thrillers there are binary opposites in this film which are both protagonists and the antagonists.
 Finally the protagonist is shown to have a talent as he is '007' and he is portrayed throughout the film to be talented so the directors have thought about this well as the audience can clearly see that James Bond is superior.

Gothika poster analysis

This is the poster for the psychological thriller called 'Gothika' which is based on a ghost story in which a repressed female psychiatrist wakes up as a patient in the very asylum where she worked with no memory of why she is there and what she has done. The two tag line's is clearly represented in the poster, one on the females arm; 'Not Alone' and the other one which is just underneath; 'Because someone is dead doesn't mean they're gone.' This is effective in catching the audience's attention as they are very emotive and powerful statements and it also helps to link to the films narrative.
The protagonists name is also presented on the poster. Due to the protagonist being a well known actress helps the audience to want to see the film as they know the actress in it. Also helps to convey the idea the film is a big production and popular due to Halle Berry being a part of it.
The use of the dark colours helps to show that the film belongs to the Thriller genre and the idea that the film links with a mysterious and eerie theme. Also the colours are also mysterious and fanatsy like which conveys the fact that its based on a person's mental state and is it all reality or fantasy.
'Gothika' has chosen to be presented in a font that links to the idea that someone had scratched the word 'Gothika' out. This is a representation of the plot of the film as the protagonist is based in an asylum so the idea that she is trying to escape and find herself is shown. Halle Berry's facial expression is very dazed and confused which provides the idea that she is the protagngonist as she is the only character on the poster but also she is the one suffering with her mental state.

Polictical thriller analysis - Munich Massacre

Conventions of a political thriller:
- Uses many locations, often focuses on different cultures or countries.
- False heroes, characters we think are good reveled not to be.
- "Helper", character who provides the protagonist with something useful.
- Threat is set against a backdrop of political power struggle.
- Plots are designed to give political power to someone while opponents try and prevent this.
- Innocent people drawn in to the political world.
- Trying to prove innocence.

Munich

Munich Massacre focuses on culture and countries as it is a film of the true story of the 1972 Munich Olympics, 8 terrorists from the organisation "Black September" raided the apartments of 11 Israelis and killed. It is a typical convention of a political thriller to be based on a true story.
The film uses many different locations which is also typical of a political thriller, these locations include the apartments and the Olympic stadium, and sets of where the police do their work.
The treat is set against a backdrop of a political power struggle. the plot line is designed to focus on a political power to the group of terrorists, while the police try to figure out the best way to control the situation.
Innocent people had been drawn in to the political world and have had their lives taken due to some other people's political power struggle.

Thursday 10th February (unable to film)

We had planned previous to today than we were going to film after college however, due to the weather we have decided to postphone our filming.

So the new date for filming be a week today (Thursday 17th February). This allows use to be more organised before the shoot as there is still a few things we need to organise such as finding squibs and creating props so this gives us the chance to be able to organise our shoot more effectively.

Childrens film Evaluation

After watching our Children's Film we spotted a number of things that we could improve on in our Thriller project.

Such as;
- Allowing more time to edit the clips together.

- Making sure the shots run smoothly and link together well.

- The use of the match on action shot wasn't smooth which affected the continuity of the opening sequence. 

-  The music was not empathetic; allow more time to compose any music or soundtrack needed and to make sure it fits in with the appropriate scene.

- To develop and make our titles more complex and enable them to link with the genre or plot well.

(The points marked in red are the things that I feel I really need to concentrate on and improve for my thriller opening sequence)

To improve these points that I have highlighted above I will need to make sure I leave enough time in order to create any music needed and to make sure I have enough time to edit the shots to make sure they run smoothly. I also could make sure I plan and produce a detailed storyboard which allows me to know what music will be needed and when and the order in which the shots will be shown in.



However in our clip we also managed to spot any skills or aspects that was positive within our opening sequence:
- The acting from the characters within the clip was realistic.
- There was a good amount of simple dialogue which helped to represent the storyline.
- The credits were colourful; links well to the children's film genre.
- The storyline wasn't too complicated for the target audience.

- We used a variety of shot distances including close up, establishing shot, long shots and pans.

(The points marked in green is what I feel were my strengths in my childrens opening sequence) 

                  

Review Of Childrens Film

The positive aspects of this film

The film was colourful throughout this means that it would appeal to the younger generation which was the target audience, so this made it appropriate to the task.

The storyline was quite basic and simple which fits the classification of a 'U' film which we had chosen.

The music worked well but could be improved a bit more to fit the characters moods more.

Improvements we need to make during the Thriller

The camera work was to shaky so this didn't work well. Therefore I would improve this as it would then make it a better quality film.

Throughout the film the shot distances didn't really vary so during the Thriller we need to use a variety of distances.

The titles were to basic as they only consisted of being literally just the title 'Be happy Charlie' in simple text so for the Thriller we need to make the titles advance by quite a big standard so that the film will look more well made and thought about. Also it will show the audience that we are talented enough to make the titles more advanced by creating them in photo shop for example and then maybe animating them.

And finally the mise-en-scene was thought about but not to a very good standard so therefore this time we will need to plan more in advance so that we can make sure that the mise-en-scene works well and fits the thriller genre.

Peers thoughts about the video

They thought that the music was good and that the characters would appeal to the target audience. And overall it flowed well.

However to improve it we would have to slow down the text transitions as it was hard to read it in a short amount of time. They didn't understand the moral too well so this could be improved and finally there were alot of shadows.

Conclusion

Overall from looking at my personal comments and my peers comments the two main things which I would say is most important which our group needs to improve most on would firstly be the camera work as it was shaky at time and causes shadows which weren't needed therefore we need to take this into consideration before filming.

Another thing which I would improve is to think about the mise-en-scene more so that it will fit the thriller genre this time and appeal to the audience more.


The things which worked well within the childrens film were the time spent on the characters worked well as they would appeal to the audience well. And also the music was quite good.

How I will do this

To make sure that the camera work isnt shaky I will make sure the tripod is used to a good standard when needed so that the filming is clear and easy to understand what is happening.

And to improve the mise-en-scene I will make sure that a variety of props are used and also to make sure that we plan when we need the props to film so that we have them on the right day to film the scenes which they feature in. Also to make sure that we consider the location and the lighting so that it will fit to the opening sequence and the genre. This can be done by making sure we do the location recce so that everything is considered before filming. And finally the final thing within mise-en-scene is the costume. We have already thought about this so therefore this will be made sure that the costumes are at a good standard and that they work well to the thriller genre.

Checklist for filming

Thursday 10th February 2011

- Characters (Protagonist and Antagonist)
- Camera
- Tripod
- Batteries/Charger
- Mobile Phones (in case of an emergency)
- Squibs + (make up)
- Black Coat
- Ensure antagonist is wearing black
- Money in case of an emergency + for food and drinks
- Protagonist must have appropriate footwear


Monday 14th February 2011

- Magnifying glass
- Newspaper Article
- Map
- Books
- Black and white photos
- Weapon

Storyboards

Call Sheets

A call sheet is issued to the cast and crew before filming. It contains a production schedule and contact information for the duration of the filming.

Our production schedule:

4.10pm- We all collect specific equipment from Holly and we then go to Reception and wait for the cast members.
4.20pm- cast and crew all meet up at Reception.
4.25pm- Leave college on the bus to go to the town centre.
4.50pm/5.00pm- Arrive at filming location and set equipment up, also brief the cast members of their task and the basic storyline.
5.15pm- Film shots.
6.00pm- Finish shooting (break)
6.30pm- (if need to film more shoots) break finishes at 6.30pm
7.30pm- Shooting finishes.

Who's collecting the equipment?
-Nicola collects and returns the tripod
-Georgina collects and returns the dolly
-Jade collects and returns the camera


What Bus are we going to get?
The citi7 bus from outside college to Mid-summer common.

 The weather:
We have checked what the weather will be like on the day we are planning to film, and it is appropriate filming weather: It is cloudy which will match the theme of our thriller and add pathetic fallacy. It will also not rain which means that we don't have to worry about the equipment getting damaged.


Sound:
Our filming location is surrounded by noise such as the public and traffic. However, this will not be a problem for us as we do not have any dialogue in our opening sequence. Also, during editing we will mute the sound that the camera has picked up, and make music on garage band to go play during the whole opening sequence.

Shot Lists

Top Tips for filming and other areas.

+ Be organised
+ Preperation is key
+ Good Planning- Foundation of success - No guessing or luck

1) Script writing
2) Storyboarding
3) Test shooting
4) Shooting
5) each process layers build throughout each stage

1) Script - dont rely on memory write ideas down write in at simple was - action + emotions, should be easy to imagine. The script needs to be divided into locations. So EXT (exterior) and INT (interior).

2) Walk through - Act it out, maybe on the actual location you're going to use. This will help identify problems with the script aswell as problems with the location. Also by doing this it shows you potential successes or failures of your project. As we need to fnd the problems early. As if the script isnt right then it will never work.

3) Location Recce - Always needed.
+ Find locations + diagnose problems
+ make notes on what you see and hear
+ Take pictures
+ Source local info e.g. car park, toilets, food, health and safety = appropriate clothing + footwear needed for your location
+ This could make or break a shoot

4) Digital Storyboard
+ Take a variety of different frames, angles, shot types.
+ Print them or on phone for reference of filiming
+ Google Earth - birds eye view, location maps to show where people would be walking etc.

- Always have a shot list
- Annotate your script e.g. go through script it needs to be clear to the audience throughout.
- Could print script off and say how you would show each bit e.g. to show a male student you could have a close up of his face, and to show a college location you could do a wide shot of a college.
- So after doing this the script will  now have turned into a shot list. When doing this you can include the EXT. and INT.

5) Test Shots
+ Get used to locations
+ Used to equipment
+ Polish up script
+ Identify props/costumes - actually needed
+ Helps the editing process
+ Will definately help you before the real shoot

Remember that the little things help develop a character.

7) Shooting schedule
+ Organise day/time
+ Write restrictions you will have

If you are organise you can = shoot on time and possibly shoot more. It then gives you more options when editing.