THRILLERS THAT INFLUENCED ME

Mise-En-Scene

Escape Room 

Escape Room's use of Mise-en Scene is important to the film, as every room as some relation to the players. In the first scene we see a bright red room, this encodes danger and heat as we can see the characters struggling to move as they are so hot. Everything in the room relates to what will happen, i.e., there is a book called 451 Fahrenheit, which indicates how hot the room will get. This room relates to the blonde woman who is called Amanda as she was in the army and there was a fire. The way they get out of the rooms by using the water cups, and placing them on the "coasters," this goes back to my point about how everything in the room can help them leave, they could've used the books on the shelf to hold the button coasters down. The Mise-en scene in this film is very creative. It has inspired me for my Thriller work as it has been set in a location that loads of people go to, this is why there is so much suspense built within the Mise-en scene as it makes everyone worried that it could happen to them as they were all just normal people, however, they did escape death (they mention later in the movie). The lighting changes throughout the whole film this is because of the different rooms and how they represent different locations for example there is a winter room, where there is a lake with ice over it and snow, the use of lighting in this scene to highlight the main focuses, in this case the lighter that Danny tries to get. They focused the lighting on the lighter between 0.13 to 0.18 thesis because there is some relevance to the lighter.

 

As Above, So Below use of Mise-en Scene 

As Above, So Below is a Horror Thriller. The Mise-en scene in this film is vital to make it a Horror Thriller. The Mise-en scene in this film is crucial as it is based in a cave below the ground, so it needs to give off the right tone. This film's M-E-S has inspired me a lot because it proves to me that the Mise-en scene is important to the film and that it has to be right, the Mise-en Scene in this specific film is how it seems so realistic also todo with the camera movement (hand held camera). The lighting in this film has a big impact on this film as it can help highlight who the main characters are their relationships with each other. It is mainly Low-key lighting which indicates that the films dark and eerie this has helped me to incorporate this into my ideas for my final piece. The low-key lighting helps distinct the shadows and silhouettes in this case it helps us see the "ghosts" of people as the lighting around them is very faint so they are hard to see. The main colours in this film we see are red and black these colours connate the message of danger, in this film black is mainly connoting death and fear and red connotes blood and danger, this gives the film a more dramatic effect and give the scene a specific look or feel. There is no specific scene that uses the Mise-en Scene specifically as it is mainly shown throughout the whole film as the "protagonists" are searching through the underground caves of Paris to find Marlowe great family treasures found beneath the surface. The positioning of the characters in the film is interesting as they are all walking in a specific formation without realising, this gives a sense of realness to the film as the audience feel like they could be put in that position. The setting of the film is very close together as the characters have to squeeze through tight gaps this can make people feel more scared or make them not want to look as they know there is a chance they could get stuck there and never get out or that the cave could collapse onto them, people with claustrophobia should not watch this film as there are a lot of tight spaces that the characters have to get through. A lot of things we shave relevance to the characters e.g. the piano we see was the same piano that George had as a child, as he plays it he realises that something is wrong. With the scene below we see the thing that is relevant to Papplion, in his case it was someone in a burning car and he didn't help them. The Mise-en scene in this scene creates a lot of tension because there is a car on fire deep within the underground caves, this is weird use of Mise-en scene because it gives off the impression that the caves are haunted and everything that goes on is important to them. With the car burning, the whole atmosphere changes because none of them are aware of what is happening, then 1 minute into the clip we see that the "dead" man is actually "alive" and giving off the idea that Paplion didn't help him, while this is happening the lighting around the car goes dark and the main focus is the burning car. The makeup on the mans face shows that he is being burnt alive starting off with his face. 1.05 you can see the look in Paplions eyes and face as he realises that, this was his friend who has come back to tell him that he hasn't forgiven him for being left. 5 seconds later he starts being dragged by a force towards the car you can see that the others are trying to help him as you can see their facial expressions, which show that all of them are scared as they do not know what will happen once he is dragged in. 1.30 - we see that the car has disappeared casing the lighting to change around to a brighter colour which can give off some relaxation for the time being as at the moment there is nothing haunting them. Papilion has been dragged into the ground and the only thing that you can see is his calves, which can trigger some peoples phobias as a lot of people are scared to be buried alive underground. 

 

Camera Angels

Silence of the Lambs Camera Angles

Silence of the Lambs has inspired me for a specific type of camera angle, the Point-of-View. This films uses this technique a lot and it is what helps make the film so realistic and intense. A lot of the POV's we see is through Starlings eyes, most of the time when she is speaking to someone, giving the sense that the characters are talking to the audience and breaking the fourth wall. In the scene where Starling is visiting Lecter in the Prison with bars the camera flips from showing two different perspectives from the two main characters. This technique is how this Thriller inspired me because the POV movement is good if you want to get a connection with the audience, they feel like they are being watched and when someone is talking directly into the camera its like someone is talking to them. Point of View shots are used continuously throughout the film, mainly with Clarice but also with other characters i.e. when the police enter the jail room to see a police officer hanging from the ceiling, it also gives a sense that something important is taking place.

Psycho's Camera Angles

Psycho inspired me for the Camera angles because there was a variety being used at different times, so it would be possible for me to film the opening to my thriller somewhere similar. Psycho is most known for the shower scene, within this scene there is a lot going on lighting and camera angles. When Marion (female lead) first enters the scene the camera is doing a following pan movement (following Marion), the scene is mainly in white which conveys the idea of innocence and purity, as Marion is not pure meaning that shower is washing away all her wrongdoings. As the scene continues there starts to be more different camera shots, which encodes the idea that something is going to happen. The camera cuts to a silhouette of Marion which signifies that things are going to get bad. When Marion is in the shower there is a camera shot showing her in the shower and someone's shadow walking closer and closer to her, the creates a lot of suspense, it starts to zoom into a close shot. Close shots start to be introduced to make the anticipation seem longer making the audience impatient to see what will happen this is the main camera angle being used in the murder scene to show the murder from Marion and Norman's point of view as the camera angle switches back and fourth showing different perspectives. The medium shots are shown before and then after Marion is stabbed, there wouldn't be any during the actual murder as it takes away the realness of the violence making the audience feel how Marion feels as she is stuck in her bathroom and cannot escape leaving her venerable as she is in danger and nobody can help her. At the end of the scene there is a tracking camera movement this is when the camera is being moved away from Marion to create a medium close up of her on the floor. There are a wide range of camera angles in this film, in the first 5 seconds the camera is doing the following pan movement, after this there is just mainly close-ups and medium close-ups to give a more clearer perspective from each of their point of views. 

 

Editing 

Shutter Island use of Editing

In Shutter Island a lot of fast and slow pace cuts are used. The different paces are used really well in Shutter Island. In the scene below you can see at first how there is slow pace cuts and that each shot is getting shorter as the scene goes on, when he starts to get chased the shots speed up, it starts to fluctuate between the two. When the person they are trying to run away from is in the shot the scene includes much faster pace shots to when he is not in the scene this helps emphasis the chaos created in this scene, and anticipation to if he will re-renter the scene and give out that tone again. There is a lot of jump cuts in Shutter Island a lot used for then Teddy is shown pictures of Racheal "the missing person" each time the shots are getting closer to his face creating a feeling of stress for the audience. This has inspired me for my thriller as this technique is a good technique to show the emotion. The transitions in this film are mainly straight cuts to different scenes this can create a tense and suspenseful atmosphere as the audience are unaware of how the scene ended and where they are going

Don't Breathe use of Editing 

Don't Breathe uses a lot of editing techniques to heel focus on specific objects, a lot of the time its the lighting to focus on the Blind man's eyes, this is because a lot of the film is based about is how three teenagers are going to rob the blind man, due to them thinking it would be easier, but it is not that easy with this specific man. The editing in this film includes a lot of cuts too different angles to show different and more clear perspectives of what is happening. The film includes a lot of cutting on action shots between different rooms from different perspective (all of which we think might be one of the teenagers) , this creates the feeling of worry and tension as the audience are unaware of what room he is going to walk into next, another example of this is when the Blind Man is trying to catch Alex, there a lot of jump cuts but a main one in this scene is when it jumps from him being strangled and beaten up to his hand trying to grab the gun, while we can still roughly see what is happening in the background. One scene in this film has used a specific editing technique, to trick the audience. When Alex is trying to unlock the basement door, the camera keeps cutting back to the door seen at the very beginning of the scene. The way that the editing director, Eric L. Beason, has edited this specific scene is to make the audience on the edge of the seats, thinking about when he is going to turn the corner, this has made the audience more intrigued to watch the film, the technique used it Cut Away shot, this s when there is an insert shot of an objet and then quick cuts back to them trying to hurry up, in this case the insert shot is the wooden door with the eerie lighting, in the background you can hear them hurrying up and heavy breathing which can also indicated that they are in a stressed situation. The editing in this film has created many ideas for how I will plan my Thriller as this type of editing creates a lot of suspense and terrifying atmosphere, this is what creates a good thriller, so it is a very good technique to include. When the camera is zoomed into the padlock there are a lot of fast pace cuts to show the point of view from both Alex's eyes, the padlock and the two girls point of view, this type of cut is a Jump Cut as these shots create a feeling of urgency. The cuts get faster between 0.09 to 0.20 this scene builds up the anticipation of whether they will get out. 0.23 seconds into the movie we see that the Blind Man is there the scene focus on that for 1 second to make sure everyone has scene he is there, after this the cuts are much faster until the gun has been shot towards the phone between all this the camera has shown everyone faces, reactions and that Alex's ear has been shot, all of this happened in 7 seconds.  31 seconds into the clip we see that the shot has changed to a completely different location and then switches back, this technique is used in a lot of movies to show how vulnerable and in danger the characters are as nobody can hear them, this technique inspired me because it shows me that I can be creative with my final project as long as the correlate. 

                                                                                                                                       

Sound 

Reservoir Dogs use of Sound 

Reservoir Dogs uses a very different type of music than other film, the scene includes Stuck in the Middle With you by Stealers Wheel. The use of this song is unusual but creates a concept of Blonde of that he is a psychopath as he is using an upbeat, fun song while he is torturing Marvin this can confuse the audience due to the fact that he is laughing and sinning while hurting somebody. During the scene you can hear Marvin groaning in pain and heavy breathing as his ear is getting cut off. This has inspired me because it shows that you can play any form of music just as long as it plays along with the story in this case Blonde rhetorically asked Marvin previously if he liked the 70s and  Blonde states "Its my personal favourite," this creates a reason for why this specific song was played. At 2.27 Blonde goes outside to get gasoline from his car, as he does this the music fades to stop, this makes the audience feel more on edge as the room is know shown to be soundproof so nobody can hear him scream in pain.The diegetic sounds of the cars in the background and the keys to unlock the door make the scene seem more realistic which makes the film more scary. As he enters back into the room the music is blasting as he throws the gasoline onto Marvin his screams get louder and he starts to shout, this only irritated Blonde more.

Jaws use of Sound

Jaws is well-known for the music used when the shark is approaching.

The sound is a non diegetic and parallel (compliments what we see) sound. The sound influenced me because of the way it has been used, it is used to portray a character in this case it is the shark, the way the music has been used is what has made me inspired the most due to that I can try and "replicate" it but in my own style i.e. use different sounds for a different character. In the scene below we see that there is a girl swimming in the sea, normally there would be uplifting sound alongside it, but in this case there is a shocking sound effect (the Jaws music), this has created a terrifying atmosphere as the audience are unaware of what will happen. As the shark is approaching the girl the tempo of the music speeds up creating the feeling of tension and suspense. There is also the use of diegetic sound in the scene which is the water splashing and the dialogue this gives a sense of realness to the movie as a normal girl who was at a party got attacked by the shark. At the beginning of the scene there is a feeling of joy, there is diegetic sound of party music and sea waves crashing down onto the shore. Its not until 3.30 seconds into the scene that we hear the music of the shark approaching, this encodes that something bad is going to happen as it changes from upbeat to eerie and low tempo. You can hear the shark making noises at reaches the top of the surface this makes the scene more intense and make the audience feel unhelpful as they cannot go and help the girl as she will get attacked by the shark meaning she is vulnerable. 3.56 minutes into the scene there is a sudden drop in the music, when she is first dragged down this prepares the audience to what is about to happen. At the end of the scene we hear the girl's horrific and terrifying screams stop and the camera flips to the boy on the ground with the sound of only the waves crashing and the sound of the ding on the boi towards the horizon, this can create shock feeling to the audience due to the fact that he could've been there and tried to help her and how the girl got killed without anyone knowing till the next day. The Jaws theme music is one of the most famous pieces of music to use when something scary would happen and that is because of the mystery behind the music and how it speeds up, the same way the shark speeds up towards the person