In what ways does "Taking lives" conform to or subvert what you consider to be the forms and conventions of the thriller genre?

The first factor that is typically found in thriller films is the idea ofcreating suspense and tension in most scenes. This can be portrayed in many ways, for example by the use of music and sound effects can enphasise something happening in a scene. for example if it shows Someone creeping behind some else usually there will be some kind of eary tense music being played to create suspence amoung the audiance."Taking Lives" uses the concept of using music and sound effects to createsuspense a lot which grips the audience and keeps the film interesting. it isimportant to try and create suspence within a thriller because it is one of the key factors in a thriller film . It is also important to create a twisted plot that will keep the audiance on the edge of thir seats and aslo guessing where the plot will go , alot of thrillers create storys where the endings are least expected.alot of thrillers make the audiance question about certain charecters and their role in the story the audiance may often be confussed of certain charecters motives which also create tension becuase they are unsure what is going to happen . ceratin camera shots can also create Suspense and tension in certain scenes for example a fast tracking shot of someone one running can create suspense because it would be clear that they are clearly in danger and runnging from something. Also a long shot showing the charecter from behind could make it seem as if some one may be watching them . In "Taking Lives" the suspension is created with constant mystery of mulitple killings during the film where there are several people who you suspect to be the killer. within the film there are many scences of gory unpleasnat murders that all link together which keeps the audiance guessing and trying to work out why they are doing this .

The protagonists are the key element to telling the story and creating all these emotions we feel when watching the film. Usually in typical thrillers they are very intelligent but they also have weaknesses. We feel less inferior to them because it shows that even those classed as ‘heroes’ and the physically superior have faults and weaknesses and sometimes a feeling of vulnerability in certain situtaions this enables us to relate to them and feel empathy towards them. The characters need to be believable for any film to work, we need to be able to connect and relate to them in order to believe them.

One of the ways in which 'taking lives' subverts to the thriller genre is through using a female lead , in taking lives the main charecter (Jolie) is an attractive , indipendant , hard working woman who through the story of twists and turns ends up being the 'hero'. in some scenes Jolie's charecter faces some difficult and disturbing situations which show strong emotions , and plays these parts very well beucase we are able to connect with her emotions. This allows us to feel the emotions she is, and feel the tension, anxiety, and sympathy for example. She shows to sides of character; a strong-willed, independent and intelligent woman, and then we are given glimpses of her softer and more feminine side. The way this is portrayed is very effective and allows us to connect with her more. All good thrillers have protagonists that are able to do this, however Taking Lives seems to take it to a higher level than the normal typical thriller due to the female lead.

Taking lives is based a lot on psychology and playing with the audience’s minds. A lot of thrillers use red herrings, cliff hangers and twists. Taking Lives also plenty of these, with extra unexpected twists at the end. You are taken into the minds of each character which really leaves the audiance thinking what is going to happen next , you get a feel and insight into Angelina’s character and her confusion and feelings that she faces when dealing with this case especially when she becomes attatched to the main suspect which is also an unepected turn that 'taking lives' also takes. but also get a feel of the character Martin. Martin has a usual but interesting way of thinking and we are able to explore this. Human nature plays a big role within the portrayal of the film. With Martin being a psychopath and sociopath, his thoughts are obviously completely different to others around him and the audiance are able to pick up on his changing behaviour that is quite obvious . This is a huge contrast to Angelina’s character; which is very strong minded, independent, and intelligent and we again see her more feminine side in context to human nature.

Even though in the final scene where she is only acting to be pregnant, she shows signs of maternal instincts, and this is a great mix and contrast to her character that makes her so believable and relatable ,when the charecter of martin shows up you are left feeling exstremely empathetic towards jolie because the audiance are left wondering what will happen to the 'pregnant' charecter which really keeps the audiance on the edge of there seats.The contrast of characters is something you see in many thrillers and gives it a very important element to the film.

The most important element to any thriller is the climax; where the ‘hero’ defeats the villain, . Thrillers tend to be more about the climax than the actual solving of the crime that has taken place, thrillers go into alot of detail that actually surround the crime such as a storyline that may go along with the killings which usually result in the reasons why. Taking lives certainly seem to do this a it goes on. Taking Lives is a thriller that affects you more mentally and therefore does not contain alot of action scences this is sometimes the case in thrillers that they are more foccused on creating suspence and leaving the audiance to make assumptions rather than using action to create impact. Although that there are not very many action scences within taking lives Caruso creates impact very well in his story line and unexpected events that occur throughout .

In conclusion it is clear that Taking Lives conforms to the thriller genre very well, but also has elements in which it subverts to the usual thriller genre , these subverting elements give Taking Lives its own take on the thriller genre but is still recognisable by the audience in the way in which certain events are completly unexpected . The mixture that Caruso has created in both Taking Lives work very well and are very effective.

Inspriation

After this research we were very drawn to the;Psychological thriller: In which (until the often violent resolution) the conflict between the main characters is mental and emotional, rather than physical. The Alfred Hitchcock films Suspicion, Shadow of a Doubt, and Strangers on a Train and David Lynch's bizarre and influential Blue Velvet are notable examples of the type, as is The Sixth Sense by M. Night Shyamalan and The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith (who also wrote Strangers).We did not wish to use violence in our piece, we simply wanted to use psychological effects to play with the audience.We wish to settle the audience before introducing an unsettling feeling. We wanted the atmosphere to be calm but also to be creating tension as it progressed. twist at the end of our opening, hopefully will leave the audience wanting to continue to watch the film.

Analysis of 'Se7en' Opening Credits

The opening sequence for the film 'Se7en' is highly effective. Thisopening sequence is itself very enigmatic. The shots used are all close ups of different objects, as a person does something. We are not shown details of this persons face, and it is difficult to piece together exactly what is going on. The use of consistent close up shots build up a feeling of obsession. This enables the film to develop and give the audience a sense of what is going to be happening at the start of the film. The font used, is very non conformist, it is scribbly, and not faded in and out slowly, but rather the text flashes, mirrors and mvoes around. This technique also strengthens the connotations of the genre. Because of the large number of close ups, the audience are left gripped , wondering what this person is doing. Thus i think this is an extremely effective opening sequence. The music also matches the title effects, and disorientates the audience even more.