Case Study: Fight Club

Fight Club

Institutional Information:

Director: David Fincher

Release Date: 12 November 1999

Country where made: USA

USA Awards won: Won OFCS Award 2001, for Best DVD,

Nominated for an Oscar, 2000.

Genre: Action/Thriller

Certificate: 18

Production Company: Fox 2000 Pictures,

Art Linson Productions

Audience Response:

User Comment: "a dangerously brilliant film that entertains as well as enlightens".

External Reviews
User Ratings:

Case Study: Training Day

Training Day

Case Study: Lucky Number Slevin

Lucky Number Slevin

Institutional Information:

Director: Paul McGuigan
Release Date: 24 February 2006
Country where made: USA
Awards won: Best Film, Best Editing, Best actor (Josh Hartnett). 2006
Genre: Crime/Thriller
Certificate: 18

Production Company: Capitol Films

Audience Response:

User Comments:

"In the film noir tradition, but with the intense and graphic violence of the Lock Stock and Layer Cake genre, Slevin is really a caper movie, and frankly reminded me more of The Sting than anything else. It dances nimbly from grisly stomach-churning action to clever and light-hearted banter"

I agree with this comment, however I haven't seen The Sting, I like the way the film includes concepts from other genres, its an interesting mix.

External Review:

Phillip French, The Guardian:

Lucky Number Slevin is an artful confection, directed by Scottish filmmaker Paul McGuigan, best known for the superior British crime movie Gangster No 1. It's a revenge drama in which a seemingly innocent young man (Josh Hartnett) apparently becomes involved in a battle between two rival New York gangsters, the Boss (Morgan Freeman) and the Rabbi (Ben Kingsley), who live across the road from each other in identical penthouses.

I say 'apparently' because nothing in this slick movie is as it appears. The ingenious plot is borrowed from The Sting. Like The Usual Suspects, there are deliberately misleading flashbacks. The dialogue is an odd mixture of Runyon, Pinter and Mamet. From Tarantino comes the discussion of earlier movies (e.g. the Bond films, North by Northwest), an affinity further signalled by the casting of two actors whose careers Tarantino helped revive - Bruce Willis (suave hit man) and Robert Forster (dogged cop). It's not unenjoyable.

User Ratings:

Again, with this film, there was no distinct difference in the male/female ratings. Males rated it at an average of 7.9 and females 8.0. This is quite suprising, as stereotypically, more men would have been expected to enjoy the film, as it has action in it, however I think with Josh Hartnett playing the lead role, this attracted a larger female audience. It was also rated higher by people aged under 18, and aged 18-29. This could be because the film isn't as relevant to the older generation or they just don't find it as entertaining.

Codes and Conventions:

The location of this mise en scene, is outside a penthouse building in the city. It is a public place, in quite an unglamourous, dirty setting,

Case Study: Along Came A Spider

Along Came A Spider

Institutional Information:

Director: Lee Tamahori
Release Date: 4 May 2001
Country where made: USA
Awards won: BMI Film Music Award 2002
Genre: Crime/Thriller
Certificate: 15

Production Company: Paramount Pictures

Audience Response:
User Comment "Does What A Thriller Should, No More, No Less". I agree with this comment however, it is a good thriller, but it's not a great thriller. It has all the right twists and conventions, but it wasn't one that will be memorable. It could have been made better, by incorporating perhaps some conventions from other genres or cross- referencing to another film.
External Reviews
Tiscali UK:

'After the worldwide success of the grisly yet superb Seven in 1995, Morgan Freeman obviously decided that he hadn't had enough of chasing serial killers and promptly made the much less satisfactory Kiss The Girls. Based on a James Paterson book, it somehow captured the public imagination and became a modest success. Now Freeman returns in another adaptation of a Paterson novel, playing the same character and chasing another psychokiller. Co-produced by Freeman and directed by Lee Tamahori (Once Were Warriors), this is a much more successful venture than Kiss The Girls and will, with luck, be the beginning of a respectable franchise for one of the world's greatest living actors.

Based on the first Paterson novel to feature criminal profiler Alex Cross (Freeman), the film opens with a police trap that goes catastrophically wrong and forces Cross into early retirement. He spends his days mulling over what might have been and making model boats. Being the screen presence he is, watching Freeman making model boats for two hours would probably make a bearable movie in itself, but Hollywood needs must and soon enough he is back at the day job. At a local school for kids of the rich and famous, a teacher has kidnapped one of the prodigious pupils and begins sending Dr. Cross evidence of the abduction in the post. Not only does the kidnapper want to commit the crime of the century but he also wants to play mindgames with the successfully published psychologist.

If thrillers with plots that twist and turn every ten minutes are your bag then you could do a lot worse than going to see Along Came A Spider. While it initially appears that we will have yet another drawn out battle of wills between criminal and cop, there are more than enough unexpected gear changes to keep the audience happy. Some of them are admittedly ludicrous but most of them are genuinely clever. And none of them can be revealed here. Suffice to say that it becomes pretty clear pretty quickly that nothing should be taken for granted and very little is as it seems.'

User Ratings: There is very little difference, in the gender ratings of Along Came a Spider, merely 0.1% more females watched it than males, which is a suprising figure for the thriller genre, as it is usually the men who enjoy them more, due to the action and 'scare factor'. This film was also rated more by an older audience, over 45's had a 6.5% rating, whereas 5.6% were under 18. This could be due to the confusing plot, or simply the lack of action and relevance.

I found the film quite entertaining, the plot twists kept me watching, however there were one too many, and it was easy to get lost. It was quite slow paced and although it complied with thriller codes, wasn't very exciting or scary, it had a few shock factors, however I don't think this is the best thriller I've seen.

Codes and Conventions:

The location of the mise en scene, as seen above, is on a carriage on a train. It is a claustrophobic space, in an urban setting, which may not always be deserted but can still be threatening, as it is a moving vehicle. It is also an everyday method of transport, so the audience will find it relevant and therefore more realistic. Trains can also be quite cramped, which makes people suspect each other more. In the mise en scene it is also daylight outside the train, which would make it more obvious, if a crime took place.

The costume that the character Alex Crosse is wearing is more typical of the crime genre, with the long beige trenchcoat, however the jeans and shirt underneath make it less formal, and make him look like an everyday character. The long coat, shows he could be hiding something, which makes him quite mysterious but also quite proffesional as it is quite formal. Formal and proffesional costume makes the character come across as more trustworthy, as you know he is doing his job.

The only props used in this mise en scene, are a gun, which is common to the thriller genre, and what looks to be a drinks flask more relevather everyday object to make the scene more relevant to the audience. The gun brings crime and the idea of death into the scene, it is a powerful tool, and the fact that the character has one, makes him a powerful man in this situation.

The character's positioning is vital, having him at the left of the scene, with his arm coming across, opposite a large clear window, not only shows his vulnerability, at being seen or attacked through the window, but also shows his confidence and power, having a gun in his hand and holding it out ready to shoot. The other character in the scene is bent over, for protection, gaurding himself from any attack, he may be seen as the victim in the scene. The characters name in this scene, doesn't seem to have any connotations, Alex Crosse, however, one girl in the file last name rose is actually the victim, having the last name rose, could be resembling her to the gentle, delicate flower, making her seem more vulnerable, and therefore making it more shocking when she is kidnapped.

This scene uses natural, ambient lighting to, again, reinforce the idea of an everyday location on a train. The light is only shining slightly onto the bottom of the characters coat, perhaps showing that he may not be seen from the outside, from outside the window. The other lighting is from the train, this is not seen very clearly however.

The sound within the scene is mostly diagetic, the sound of the train moving,the window shattering and the people screaming, although the gunshot may have been added post production. This makes it seem natural and more realistic, the screaming adds an element of terror to the scene and the train moving reminds the audience that they are on a moving vehicle, making it harder to escape.

The camera tracks round to see what Alex Crosse is looking at, a point of view shot, out of the window. This provides tension, as it is a slow camera movement, it makes the audience want to know what will be seen out of the window.

There are no CGI's or inter textual references used during this scene.

The male character is represented as the powerful figure in this scene, as he is the one shooting at the criminal. This reinforces the idea of the alpha male, protecting the other people and taking control. The young girl is the victim of the kidnapping, she is seen as more vulnerable, in the way that most young females are represented.

Planning for Thriller Opening

Brief synopsis of plot:

-Two immigrants arrive at the docks, with bags, documents etc, waiting to be picked up. Brother and sister.
-Three men appear: Boss man and his two henchmen, to escort immigrants to vehicles and into city.
-Boss man greets immigrants, checks documents, and nods towards henchmen.
-Henchmen escort immigrants towards road where vehicles are waiting.
-Immigrants realise there are two vehicles and they’re going to be separated, panic and confusion.
-Scuffle breaks out between male immigrant and one of the henchmen.
-Female immigrant is forced into van.
-Splash is heard as one of the men fighting falls off the docks.
-Girl is driven off in van.
-Male body on beach on next morning; can’t see which one.

-Person has seen whole thing, now in danger. Van follows them walking down the road.

[Similar to 'Dirty Pretty Things', with immigration idea]

Storyboards:

Location:

Great Yarmouth docks, at night.

Generic unglamourous, dodgy setting.

Casting:

Immigrant girl: Sarinka - A young white girl, with dark hair, aged about 16/17, who has finished school and worked in a factory, but was made redundant. She comes from Eastern Europe. She is Raphael's sister, they came over to England for money and a better life. They have a deal with Ben to provide illegal documents. She relies on her brother quite a lot, but is a strong minded girl.


Sara Novak. For this character, we have casted Sara Novak, a young 16 year-old Slovakian girl who moved over to England two years ago with her family. She fits the image we are looking for.

Immigrant guy: Rapheal - Slightly older guy, in his early twenties, Sarinka's brother. He had no job and was desperate to support his sister. They have no mother and their father left them. He is also from Eastern Europe, he cares a lot about his sister and is quite strong and physically fit.

Andy Drane. We casted Andy Drane for Rapheal. He is British, but can look quite foreign with costume and props. He is also in his early twenties.

Boss man: Ben - The boss is a well built, wealthy 'business' man. He is helping the immigrants for money, he is slightly dodgy. Drives a very nice Beemer. Ben Howard, just wait till you see the picture. He fits.

Henchman 1: Joe - Both henchman have to be well built, threatening-looking men. They work for Ben, don't talk much, but do his dirty work for him. -Richard Jordan
Henchman 2: Tyrell -Tyrell.

Witness: Lauren Jordan, we decided anyone could be the witness, although it had to be someone who wouldn't react to what they were seeing, therefore someone young or elderly, and also, stereotypically, a girl, as they're probably less likely to act if they see a fight between some older, beefy men. So we're using Lauren, as she's in our group.

(pictures needed)

Props:

Car - BMW, with 'B3N' in numberplate, Bossman's car.

Rucksack and shoulder bag for immigrants to carry.

Flashlight, for Henchmen.

Dog? For witness to be walking.

Objects:

boats, crates.

Costume:

Female immigrant:

Male immigrant: jeans, light t-shirt, trainers.

Boss man: dark jeans, t-shirt, suit jacket, smart shoes, chain around wrist or neck.

Hench One: similar to boss man's.

Hench Two: similar to boss man's.

Witness: jeans, coat, scarf.

Ideas for title of film:

Division, Divided, Seperation, Seperated. Along came an Immigrant.

Tags: Beach, immigration, docks, death.

Sound:

Diegetic: footsteps, sound of waves, splash, sound of cars driving up, away, woman screaming.

Non-diagetic: [Ideas of sound track still to come.]

Thriller Film Research

I compiled a questionnaire, to find out people's thriller preferences and use this information towards my own thriller film:

Here are my results,