Witness Analysis

Title: Witness
Director: Peter Weir
Date: 1985
Genre: Drama, Romance, Thriller
Certificate: 15

Brief Synopsis:
A young Amish boy Samuel (Lukas Haas) is witness to a murder. Policeman John Book (Harrison Ford) goes into hiding in Amish country to protect him until the trial.



This is a trailer from the film 'Witness'

Witness begins with an Amish boy who is witness to a violent murder in a Grand Central Station in Philadelphia which is a location that has been used in many Thriller films such as 'Strangers on a Train' (1951, directed by Alfred Hitchcock) and is typical of the Thriller genre. It is used to emphasize the


This is an exteme high angle shot of Samuel from the statue's point of view. It gives an eerie feel in that someone/something is watching him. This is ironic it foreshadows the events of the film because later on Sam is witness to a murder. It is almost as if it is a CCTV shot and that he is being viewed as he accidently witnesses the murder.

This is a close up of Sam in the toilet cubicle witnessing the murder. There is a bright white light behind which suggests innocence and angelicness, giving the boy religious ideology. The cubicle gives a sense of claustrophobia (which is a common factor for Thriller films) and a feeling that there is no escape for the boy. The fact that he is so young and from an amish community where everyone is polite to eachother makes Sam vulnerable which reinforces his innocense. He probably hasn't ever seen this violence before and doesn't fully understand what is happening. This makes the audience empathise with him, making him a likeable character.  

There are many extreme close ups of Samuel's eye, which is used to demonstrate how shocked and terrified he is. By using just his eye puts the audience in the character's position iof the sheer horror of witnessing something life changing. It puts an emphasis on how disturbing it is for Sam and how it would be or anyone else in his position.  

This is a clip of the murder scene from 'Witness'

In this clip a black man is the murderer which stereotypically represents black men as criminals. This is called a zeitgeist, displaying the 'mood of moment' in America at the time as there was a lot of racism and discrimination against black people.   

Thriller mock exam: Psycho

Psycho Analysis

Title: Psycho
Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Date: 1960
Genre: Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Certificate: 15

Brief Synopsis:
A young woman steals $40,000 from her employer's client, and subsequently encounters a young motel proprietor who is under the domination of his mother.



This is a trailer from the film 'Psycho'

Psycho is a noir Thriller that was made in 1960 starring Anthony Perkins as the character Norman Bates. It connotes a lot of major generic aspects of the Thriller genre, such as chiaroscuro lighting which is used to portray the intense atmosphere of the killer Norman Bates. It specifically indicates the diversities of his character and the way that the film is made, in the sense that even though the story starts to follow Marian Crane, the hidden signifiers link back to the madness of Norman Bates.

In the opening credits the words are presented as strips with the lines looking as if they are cutting into them, as the famous Herrmann’s soundtrack plays. This could demonstrate a premonition of what will happen to Marian Crane in the famous shower scene, when Norman Bates continues to slash and cut into her with a knife.

This shot of Marian Crane looking at herself in the mirror indicates that she is torn between right and wrong, and whether it was a bad idea to steal the money even if it was for her love interest. Hitchcock has used this representation of ideology to portray her confused attitude towards good and evil and how the line between them is ambiguous. Marian is fighting a battle against herself because she stole the money to aid the one she loves, but continues to hear the voices in her head considering the consequences of her actions – how her employer and sister will react when they find out. This anticipates the representation of the voices in Norman’s head (himself and his psychotic mother) and how even though he is a murderer, they are similar to each other.

This shot of the car in the mirror suggests that the policeman is following Marian and that his suspicion could ruin her, making her end up in prison. In the mise en scene the main focus is the car that is following her, the outline of the mirror drawing the eye straight to the car by using the rule of thirds.

Throughout the film there is the theme of rain running and in the scene where Marian is on the run, her window screen becomes blurred by the rain. It affects her vision which indicates that as she has started to become possessed by her thoughts, her personality has also changed and she doesn’t know who or what she has become. The blurred vision, rain/water running, shadows and use of mirrors are recurring features in the mise en scene of psycho. This specific type of cinematography reinforces the sense of confusion and doubt about the characters personalities which link to Bates and the constant split personality battle that he is facing.

This screen is a screen shot of Norman Bates; Hitchcock has used non ambient lighting to produce Norman’s shadow on the wall next to the pictures of the birds of the wall that cover his spy-hole. He has done this to create the idea of Bates’s split personality and that he is not the harmless, stuttering character that he seems. This is the scene where Marian first arrives at the motel and sees all the stuffed birds and notices Bates’s obsession with them. This suggests the misogyny that he has, stereotyping Crane as one of his birds or victims which is ironic because a Crane is a type of bird, suggesting that he can do what he wants with Marian, demonstrating his hatred towards women.

This is a clip of the famous shower scene which uses the diegetic sound of the shower mixed with the non diegetic soundtrack to indicate the danger that is about to happen. The diegetic sound of the running water links to the rain on Marian’s windshield which connotes that the audience knew that something disastrous was going to happen which creates suspense. The use of the shower demonstrates the confined space and claustrophobia that the character is feeling. It suggests the idea that Marian’s world is caving in on her.       

 

Analysis of The Third Man

Title: The Third Man
Director: Carol Reed
Date: 1949
Genre: Film-Noir, Mystery, Thriller
Certificate: PG

Brief Synopsis:
Arriving in Vienna, Holly Martins (Joseph Cotten) learns that his friend Harry Lime (Orson Welles), who has invited him, recently died in a 'car accident'. However, he quickly finds out that things aren't as they seem and 'Harry Lime' has a secret past and isn't who he thinks he is...



This is a trailer from the film 'The Third Man'


In the opening of this scene from 'The Third Man' the first thing that you hear and see is a musical instrument called a Zither. It is a cultural reference to the destroyed city Vienna, and the song which is playing is named after the character Harry Lime and introduces us to him. It is used to symbolise that he pulls the strings and is in control of 'Holly Martin’s' emotions. The use of the voice over sets the scene and introduces us to the city of Vienna and the ‘black market’ where they use close ups of hands to show the exchange of money and stolen goods, which emphasises the illegality of the situation.





In this clip Holly Martin walks underneath a ladder which is called dramatic irony because it suggests that something unlucky is going to happen to him. The use of his shadow when walking up the stairs implies that he has a split personality or it could relate to a theme of heaven and hell where Holly is heaven and his shadow represents Harry Lime who is hell.  Holly is always trying to following Harry and the perspective of his character is being turned upside down as Harry plays 'cat and mouse' with him. Also, the use of a high angle shot of Holly looking up to the porter (Paul Horbiger) on the floor above represents his vulnerability.

This screen shot of Harry Lime in the sewers emphasises that he is being compressed by the feeling of doom and there is a visible metaphor of the 'walls closing in on him' leaving him with no escape. The sewers create a labrynth effect, empahsizing the distopian feel which is also being portrayed through the dark, chiaroscuro lighting. The setting enhances the audience's attention by using the low ceiling and narrow brick walls and impiles that he is trying to find a light at the end of the tunnel. The composition of Harry standing in the middle suggests that he is the centre of the whole mystery of his death, and now Holly has found him, the uncertainty that surrounds him has faded entriguing the audience to find out what happens to him next.

This slight tilt shot is the first time Holly Martins sees the person that he has been searching for, and builds up the tention about the mysterious Harry Lime. The way the light has been thrown across his face and everything else remaining in darkness suggests that Holly Martins has finally 'seen the light' and stumbled across what he has been searching desperately for. As the light appears and finally shows the audience the illusive Harry Lime, the soundtrack with the same name starts playing and he smiles at Holly as if nothing has happened and that he hasn't been stalking him. This contrasts his menacing personality displaying that even though he knows he is in the wrong it doesn't stop him from being arrogant and 'toying' with Holly's emotions.  
    

    

Analysis of Once Upon A Time in America

Title: Once Upon a Time in America
Director: Sergio Leone
Date: 1984
Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Certificate: 18

Brief Synopsis:
A former Prohibition-era Jewish gangster returns to Brooklyn over 30 years later, where he once again must confront the ghosts and regrets of his old life.




This is a trailer from Once Upon a Time in America 

The first signifier of this introduction is the song (or anthem) ‘god bless America’, this soundtrack has a sense of irony because it is stating that America is a great country whereas this song contrasts the film because it is about gangs and violence in America. Sergio Leonie has specifically done this for that reason and maybe to criticise America because the citizens think everything is fine when they don’t know what is happening behind the scenes.





This is just a clip of the opening credits which opens the film with the anthem ‘God Bless America’. The song shows the irony and mood of the moment.

The first character that appears on the screen is the character ‘Eve’ who is a femme fatal which could be insinuated by her pearls. They could represent purity which could also be another portrayal of irony because her character is involved with gangsters or even teardrops which could be a premonition of the fact that she will shortly meet an abrupt end. The fact that you can only see her face and that the rest of her is caped in darkness might suggest that her beauty is the only thing that shines through her whereas she might be hiding something or that her personality might not reflect her looks and that looks can be deceiving. This gives reference back to the film and what Sergio Leone is trying to insinuate, that not everything is as it seems and that America was going through some troubled times in the with their government and the way that the law was inflicted.  It reflects the mood of the moment of that time (1910-1967).

This film clip uses the rule of thirds to draw your eye to the main focus which is the corruptness of the police in the fact that they have just killed a woman for no apparent reason other than with holding evidence. The archway frames them, which shows that they are the main focus and the way that they are positioned suggests that they are a strong force who have cornered Eve and seem to have the upper hand. The way the light is positioned above Eve’s head might symbolise her beauty and her being angelic compared to the police and the measures they take to ‘enforce the law’ by taking it into their own hands.

This camera shot is called a worm’s eye view and has been used to create an effect of being over powered. It has been turned upside down to show the blurred lines of the law enforcers of this time; and the law breakers. It shows how the two sides have in this film been switched upside down to symbolise the corruptness of the police and the point of view of the gangsters.   

Essex Boys Analysis

Title: Essex Boys
Director: Terry Winsor
Date: 2000
Genre: Crime, Thriller
Certificate: 18

Brief Synopsis:
The film is based loosely around events in December 1995 that culminated in the murders of three drug dealers in Rettendon, Essex. On 6th December Patrick Tate, Craig Rolfe and Tony Tucker, three drug dealers well known to the police, were lured to Workhouse Lane. There they were blasted to death with a shot gun while sitting in their Range Rover and had been lured to their deaths on the pretext of a lucrative drugs deal. The three bodies were found the following morning.



This is a trailer from the film 'Essex Boys'

The wording at the very beginning introduces the premise of the film. By saying it is based on a true story gives the audience a sense of reality and by saying that it ‘left three men dead, two serving life imprisonment and another living under an assumed identity’ immediately creates suspense and intrigue as to what happened.

In the opening credits the use of the white lines being drawn could symbolise someone scratching a car with a key which gives reference to the location and actions that take place in the film. It gives a sense of grittiness especially with the harsh, scratching sound that goes with it and the melancholy soundtrack.

In this image the way the mud has been smudged across the windscreen gives Jason a gritty and harsh persona which also reflects the location. His posture is full of arrogance and the way he is looking straight at Billy without expression is quite aggressive. The framing of the car windscreen gives the effect that darkness is closing in on him and that something bad is going to happen to him which is dramatic irony. The chiaroscuro lighting gives this image an eerie effect and by using Billy's perspective to show the uncertainty that he has of Jason and the opinion that he has of him is unclear.

The use of the vertical lights connotes the feeling of imprisonment or that the character Billy is trapped in this dangerous situation. This could insinuate that Jason has just got out of jail and that maybe Billy is heading in that direction. Billy is in focus to show his emotion whereas the character Jason is blurred to create a sense of unknowing about him and that Billy maybe has an unsure perception of him.

This image of the car in the tunnel could be interpreted as looking down a barrel of a gun suggesting that something bad is going to happen to these characters. It could also be perceived as there is light at the end of the tunnel, however, the car is blocking the light and therefore they are stuck in a never-ending bad situation.  

Definition of a Film Noir

A Film Noir is French for ‘black film’ and it was first applied to Hollywood movies by French critic Nino Frank in 1946.


Generic conventions of a thriller film:


Lighting – Dark, noir lighting is used a lot in thriller films. It is used to place the audience in the same positions as the characters. It creates uncertainty, confusion, mystery, enigma, suspense and aspects of evil. Chiaroscuro lighting reinforces the sense of the nightmare illusion. It is also aesthetically pleasing and adds to the visual pleasure of the audience. It sometimes uses ambient (natural lighting) and non ambient (artificial lighting). There are many common lighting features to the thriller film such as dimly lit places and car headlights. Also the effect of the ambient lighting used to create big shadows making the character seem very eerie and maybe have two sides to their personality.


Sound – Diegetic (natural sounds in the film) and non diegetic sounds (un-natural sounds such as the film’s soundtrack). These sounds are used to create suspense and sometimes portray the characters emotions. Common diegetic sounds are normally the sound of the character’s footsteps, a car pulling up and braking and the character’s breathing.


Location – Isolated areas or claustrophobic space such as dark alleways, coffins (such as the scene in 'Kill Bill 2' where the bride is trapped in a coffin) and sewers like in 'The Third Man', where Harry Lime is trapped down in the sewers, making it seem like everything in his life is closing in on him.


This screen shot from the noir-film 'The Third Man' portrays the aspects of the Thriller genre because it is shot in black and white and has dark, chiaroscuro lighting. The gothic railings also gives reference to the genre, by putting a twist on a seemingly respectable house, portraying that there may be something strange going on or something is about to happen, which puts an edge on normality. The large shadow gives reference to the character 'Harry Lime' and the question that 'Holly Martins' is dealing with, whether he is good or evil. Also it shows that 'Holly' could have a spilt personality and that maybe he has a dark side as well. 





Definition of a Femme Fatale

A femme fatale is French for ‘deadly woman’. It is a powerful female character used in many Thriller films that gives a sense of class and intrigue by them having irresistible charm that hypnotises men into dangerous situations by using their sexuality. These characters have been used in Thriller films throughout the ages. In the 1940s they were portrayed as beautiful, seductive temptresses who lure men with their charm and sex appeal. For example in ‘Gilda’ (1946, directed by Charles Vidor), the femme fatale was seen as a sex object who was trapped by the males in her life. However in more modern Thriller films such as ‘The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’ (2009, directed by Niels Arden Oplev) and ‘Kill Bill 2’ (2004, directed by Quentin Tarantino) the femme fatale has a different perspective, therefore can stand up for themselves and fight for what they believe in. This development has been because of the change in women's roles in everyday modern life. Women now have careers and so are not reliant on men for anything and would prefer to see a stronger femme fatale rather than one that solely relies on appearance.  


When films use a femme fatal there are usually two different outcomes, she either turns into a good housewife or she gets killed for her wrong doings.







There are many femme fatales in Thriller films such as Rita Hayworth in this trailer of the 1946 Noir thriller ‘Gilda’. She is the main character who seduces men and makes them fall in love with her, much to the dismay of Johnny Farrell.

This is an image of the character Catherine Tramell (Sharon Stone) from Basic Instinct (1992, directed by Paul Verhoeven), she is a femme fatale who uses her sexuality to her advantage to get what she wants. She seduces the Detective Nick Curran (Michael Douglas) to mislead him and distract him from his muder enquiry and from the fact that she murdered her husband. She wears sexy outfits that show a lot of flesh to entice her victims and in the end kill them. 

Angelina Jolie plays the part of Fox from the film 'Wanted' (2008, directed by Timur Bekmambetov), she is a modern femme fatale who has tattos and piercings making her look edgy. She's a trained assasin who acts like she's not afraid of anyone or anything. This contrasts Gilda, who is a traditional femme fatale because she is glamorous and portrays the image of a feminine women.  

The Intertextual references between Kill Bill Vol. 2 and The good the bad and the ugly

Title: Kill Bill: Volume 2
Director: Quentin Tarantino
Date: 2004
Genre: Action, Crime, Thriller
Certificate: 18

Brief Synopsis:
The murderous Bride continues her vengeance quest against her ex-boss, Bill, and his two remaining associates; his younger brother Budd, and Bill's latest flame Elle.



This is a trailer from the film 'Kill Bill: Volume 2'

In our media studies lessons we have been analysing aspects of the thriller genre, the different types of Thriller films and how the director Quentin Tarantino utilises the conventions of the genre in 'Kill Bill Volume 2'. This is a clip from 'Kill Bill 2' which is an action thriller with a female as the heroine making it more modern to show how society is changing. In this extract from 'Kill Bill 2' it shows the blonde bride (Uma Thurman) trying to get revenge on her husband by killing everyone before him, in this case Budd. Tarantino uses the waste land location to create a sense of isolation which is an import generic convention of thriller films. The location reflects the character of Budd because it is empty and dead which is how he is inside, also it is very unglamorous and suggests that he is ‘trailer trash’. The scene is lit with chiaroscuro lighting which contrasts between light and dark affecting a composition and is normally used in noir films. It uses non ambient lighting because otherwise it would have been to dark to film and you wouldn’t be able to see anything. Also, in the opening the director uses diegetic and non diegetic sounds - such as the western soundtrack - playing over the scene. The non diegetic sounds would be the car pulling up to the trailer and Budd’s footsteps when he’s in the trailer. This film has a lot of intertextual references to the film ‘The Good The Bad and The Ugly’. They are both based in a western location and use the same piece of music which is called ‘Ecstasy of Gold’. Tarantino has done this to demonstrate the similarities between the two films. The main character in ‘The Good The Bad and The Ugly’ is a man called Blondie (Clint Eastwood) whereas in 'Kill Bill 2' the main character is a blonde woman which demonstrates how times and society has changed having a female as the heroine. 

  

In this clip Tarantino uses close ups to show the emotion of the characters and engages the audience into the action. At the beginning of the scene there is a close up of the car headlights which is a common camera shot in the thriller genre.





This is a clip of the heroine breaking out of the coffin, which again illustrates the intertextual references between the two films as 'The Good The Bad and The Ugly' was also shot in a graveyard. The lightung is ambient, as the torch is the only light source that is lighting her face which creates tention by showing how scared she is and how claustrophobic it is. It is used to create excitement and suspense and is to award The Bride the same status as the hero Blondie in the Leonie film. Also there is the good (The Bride) the bad (Budd) and the ugly in this scene is Budd's friend who helps to bury the bride. This is the last volume of the 'Kill Bill' series and to finalise it Tarantino has used this reference to a graveyard therefore reinforcing the intertextuality and keeping the western theme.





This is a clip from  the film 'The Good The Bad and The Ugly' which is set in the graveyard and shows you the typical role of the hero that is usualy played by a male in this case Clint Eastwood. It was directed by Sergio Leonie and uses a lot of extreme close ups of the characters faces and eyes to show the emotions that the characters have. Blondies's eyes are more focussed whereas Angel Eyes's eyes are more slanted which implies how crafty he is and how he's always up to no good, and Tuco's eyes are wide to show fear. This scene shows how Blondie has his revenge on Angel Eyes, tricks Tuco and leaves with the loot.