Thriller Opening Sequence Research On Building Suspense.Brandon Young

ThrillersA wide range of codes and conventions are used to create the foundation of a thriller. These codes and conventions are: mirrors, shadows and tension music. But how exactly are they used to build the main theme of thrillers as well as creating a tense atmosphere? – suspense.

Alfred Hitchcock – psycho (1960)Alfred Hitchcock is known as the master of suspense, what techniques/codes did he use in the film psycho to create suspense?

Lightingin the film psycho a specific use of lighting is used to create this suspense. Shadows and dark contrasts are effectively used to create a sense of eeriness and uncertainty, leaving the audience asking questions of “who's shadow is that”, as a result of this, suspense is created.Locationsthe locations of the film include a deserted/isolated house, where there isn’t anything else around the house. The fact this house is isolated and by itself, almost provokes the audience to ask questions about why the house is isolated, witch creates suspense. Camera workdistorted focus is used to almost blur vision of what audience can see or what the characters are seeing. Suspense is built between the time the distorted focus is set and then removed. Being able to eventually see past the distorted focus creates suspense.SoundTension/ suspense music witch builds up, sound effects such as the door creek when it opens and footsteps is used to create suspense also. These things keep the audience at the edge of their seat and make them ask even more questions. Mirrors Mirrors within this film are specifically placed so that something behind the main protagonist can be shown. Furthermore, this shows the audience something that the protagonist cant see. This instantly builds suspense as anything could possibly happen as a result.

Steven Spielberg – Jaws (1975)What techniques/codes did Steven Spielberg use in the film ‘Jaws’soundSpielberg effectively uses music and sound effects that build up to make the audience feel fear for the antagonist – the shark. The music is uncanny, hazardous and builds up suspense as a result.Camera work close-up, medium and wide camera angles are used to show the antagonist stacking innocent people so that the audience can see exactly what is happening to the victims to allow them to feel fear and feel sympathy. This builds up suspense as a result.

Conclusion From analysing the two films psycho and jaws, we can see that they both use similar codes and conventions to build suspense. From the common use of high pitched sound and camera angles that keep the audience at the edge of their seat, therefore building suspense.