Psychological thriller

AS Media coursework

1. Psychological thriller Research into genre

2. Definition of psychological thriller A suspenseful movie or television show emphasizing the psychology of its characters, rather than the plot.

3. Themes There are a variety of different themes that are seen within psychological thriller film or television show. These themes featured can include things such as reality, perception, mind, existence or purpose, identity and death. In psychological thrillers, they tend to feature characters that are battling with their own minds.

4. Typical settings In psychological thrillers, typical settings can be old, abandoned houses, such as Victorian buildings, because this gives the idea that it may involve spirits in the house.

5. Other typical settings may be abandoned hospitals, especially mental hospitals, or set in a forest, where there is no one for miles.

6. Iconography Iconography is symbolic representation, that provide meaning, attached to an image, such as an object within the film. In psychological thrillers, there are certain things within the film that show the audience that it is a psychological thriller. Common things that appear in psychological thrillers can be knives, confided spaces and shadows. These give the impression that certain things are going to happen.

7. Examples of psychological thrillers within media Television: Hannibal, Dexter, Mad Dogs Video games: Heavy Rain and Alan Wake Movies: Black Swan, Shutter Island, Se7en, The Shining and The Silence of the Lambs.