Below are the replies i have received on the research group so far. Thanks to Felicity, Jenny, Tom, Caitlin, Annie, Aisha, HEather, Helen, Matt, Nat and Jenny
1. Name, age, gender
Felicity Sarah Mockford, Female and im 17
Jenny Welham, 17, Female
tom burby, 18, man
Caitlin Evans, 18, female
Anni Porteous, 17, Female
Aisha, 19, female
Eleanor, 18, Female
Heather Love 18 Female
Helen, 16, female
Matt Dolman, 17, Male
Natalie, 16, female.
Jenny , 15 , Female
2. Are you a fan of 'scary' films, why?
no im not
Sometimes, depending on my mood. Can be fun to watch with friends!
yeah, most effective thing at keeping me interested, like, having an emotional attachment to the characters
Yes. Mainly psychological thrillers
No, because they are scary and freak me out and my imagination then makes them scarier
I like psychological scary films more than jumpy or gory ones. It requires more skill to genuinely scare someone, instead of grossing them out or making them jump.
Yes, because they are good to watch with loads of people
Not really a fan because i have an over active imagination so they scare me too easily! although they do provide a good laugh!
Ish
Love them- anticipation, suspense, ension are all great. Gore is pretty good too, and outright shocks are always great.
Yep, because they're really exciting and have you on the edge of your seat!
Yer i am, the adrenaline is great
3. Please state the number of your preferred choice of thriller sub-genre
1 - Horror
2 - Political
3 - Psychological
4 - Action
5 - Other, please state
4 – action
3 – Psychological
3 (psychological)
3 – Psychological
Action
3 – Psychological
3 – Psychological
2,3,4
4 – action
1 - horror or 3 psychological
3 – Psychological
deffo 1
4. What elements of a Thriller film do you enjoy and why?
a twisting plot
Mystery and suspense.
other people think its boring maybe but i do like suspense, like in no country for old men
The fear that it's something that could feasibly happen makes a film scarier
Fight scenes (as long as there isn't too much blood!) cos they get your pulse racing which is what they're sposed to do
I like dramatic tension (when the audience knows something the characters don't), and eerie atmospheres.
Suspense and tension, because they are exciting and lead on well to surprises
The fact you dont always know what is going to happen but sometimes its so blindingly obvious but you don't notice or realise because you're looking WAY too deep into it.
the thrill
Suspense, knowledge that something is going to happen to the characters, trying to guess ahead of the film.
The storyline.
They get you hooked on the story more, and have you on the edge of your seat with anticipation. They keep you questioning.
5. What elements of a thriller film do you dislike and why?
masks, there tacky
Lots of chases and violence. Gets boring and is too common.
ones without any style :P i like a clear style, love maltese falcon
The same as above, for the same reason lol!
Blood and guts and stuff flying everywhere cos its just gross
I don't like red herrings, simply because they annoy me.
Gore, it's disgusting
when they have tried too hard to make it scary or "thrilling" and instead it's just amusing at how bad it is!!
the bits where the script writer was clearly a little bored.
When they try to be too clever and miss the point.
Endings where you don’t find out what happens.
None really
6. Do you believe it is the narrative of a film or the technical conventions it has such as camera angle and lighting that makes a good thriller film?
definitely the narrative
Yep :)
ultimately a combination, but of course amount of technique is gonna make a dodgy plot look good, take ALL video games for example :P
a good blend and balance of both!
Mixture of both, you have to have a good story in the first place and then build on that with good lighting and cinematography etc
A bit of both. You can't have one without the other.
Technical conventions, they build up the mood well and can save a poor narrative
Both are extrmeely imnportant as ithout a reasonable narritive the film would fall apart and without SE's and all it would look really ineffective
Narrative
Narrative is essential, and even the best technicality will not save a stupid plot. However, without at least partially decent effects a story can be boring anyway as we don't believe it.
Narrative… but it probably wouldn’t be that good without special effects & camera angles and stuff.
Yer .. the camera angle and lighting adds to the effects and therefore makes it better
7. What do you expect to see in a thriller film?
a death
Erm....mystery, clues to the outcome being dropped along the way. I like films where you have to go back and watch them again after you've found out the ending just to pick up on other things.
over coats, denzel washington, lots of hidden meaning, done with style
Fighting...ummm i dunno wot else!
Usually, fast paced action, lots of explosions, and a snarky Alan Rickman-esque villain.
Tension building music, unknown attackers/followers
I don't expect to see stuff when i watch horror/thriler films as they are all so differnet and rying to connect one to another isnt easy. However the standard dead people, blood, gore and that something unexplainable!
something amusing
Thrills? Maybe some twists, recurring themes, elements we thought were irrelevant becoming important.
Scenes that make you hide behind a pillow.
Deaths, Evidence, Thrills, unsolved mysteries
8. What audience would you suggest a Thriller film would be aimed at and why? e.g. 15-17 females, Over 18 males etc
Young males more than females there alot more easily entertained
Probably teenage males because girls often prefer romances or chick-flicks.
err older people who have the patience for them?? also horror aspects arnt generally aimed at properly young kids... id say male, 18 upwards, thats not to say id put thriller in the same category as Rambo though
Generally probably late teens into 20s, as it's thrilling to get scared
Depends...if you want to aim at men you have to put lots of gorgeous women and fighting and grossness in it and if you want to aim it at women you want to put hot men fighting and being really deep at the same time!!!!!
16-30 males, as most older women aren't into explosions and younger ones are usually into rom-coms. (Or so the stereotypes go.)
15-25 either gender, people seem to be more interested in horror and thrillers at that age
16+ and both genders. Thrillers are usually aassociated with males but i know loads of females who enjoy thrillers more than comedies and chick flicks
anyone over 15
Both genders, 15+, in order to be able to like the genre and understand what is happening.
Teenagers and people in their 20’s
Teenagers and young adults because they have a wilder imagination towards the horror side of things.
9a. Which is most important to you in a thriller film?
1 - Music
2 - Character + costume
3 - Location
4 - Camera shots
4
1 – Music
4
2 - Character + costume
2 - Character + costume
2. It's all important, but without believable characters it's pointless.
1 – Music
3 – Location
1- music
2 – character
4 - Camera shots
Ummm a combination of all 4 ... they are all important facts.
9b. Why?
Being a music student, it's something that I always pay great attention to :P
becuase they create all the meaning whiich ties the other things together i guess
Cos a character has to be believable for the story to be believable
See above.
Helps to build up tension
Because if a thriller was set in a pit full of cotton buds it would be terribly boring.
because it sets the mood
because no matter how good an angle is, noone cares if they're looking at a boring character.
Because they can make something seem really scary.
Camera shots give it added effect. Location adds to the suspense ... Characters and costumes are vitall in any film .. makes the film beleivable. Music can add an errie feel to the movie.
10. What is your most memorable thriller film and why? Were there certain scenes that shocked or frightened you?
Gothika because it was just so unusal and contained so many twists.
oldboy, its really perfect, everything v for vendetta thinks it is and isnt, it has an amazing plot,actors, cinematography, soundtrack, fight scenes, style, psychological stufffff.... tis good... : )
The Sixth Sense, I watched it years ago and am still haunted by some visions from it, like the boy with the bullet hole in the back of his head! It had such a clever plot too, what a great twist!
I dunno if Casino Royale counts but that probably was it! I thought the end sequence in
Fight Club. I was scared of the lye burn scene (but impressed by the make-up effects) and a little shocked at *blank* dying. I’m not going to ruin it for anyone!
The Forgotten - the tension was felt throughout the film and meant that action and sudden surprises were scarier, the psychological element also made good watching
umm.... probably clockwork orange - i was only about 13 when i saw it and it freaked me out
Final Destination's are great once you know the formula, you can try and guess ahead. The Sentinal, Die Hard 4.0 and similar films.
Secret Window (with Johnny Depp in). Just because it’s got a really good twist at the end.
Creep - The tension throughout the film kept me on my toes. The scene in the surgery was horrible and the content of it makes you gag.
