Genre Research: Storyline & Themes

Storyline

• The fast pace and action of thrillers means the structure of the story is often different than other genres. e.g. the romance genre utilises the alternating scene & sequel format – there is a scene of action or conflict, then a sequel where the heroine goes away to think over the events, and plan their next action. In a thriller this would slow down the pace if there were thinking sequels like this; instead the decision making and plans are made quickly and on-the-fly in the middle of the action.
• Tense and constant conflict scenes – conflict through every scene, whether in dialogue, action, events… the conflict moves the action forward. The conflict must escalate – or undergo change throughout the story. Layer conflict on top of each other, complicate it with twists and turns 

The primary elements of the thriller genre:

• The protagonist(s) faces death, either his and/or her or somebody else's.
• The force(s) of the antagonist's must initially be cleverer and/or stronger than the protagonist's.
• The main storyline for the protagonist is either a quest or a character that cannot be put down.
• The main plotline focuses on a mystery that must be solved.
• The film's narrative construction is dominated by the protagonist's point of view.
• All action and characters must be credibly realistic or natural in their representation on screen.
• The two major themes that underpin the thriller genre are the desire for justice and the morality of individuals.
• One small, but significant, aspect of a thriller is the presence of innocence in what is seen as an essentially corrupt world.
• The protagonist(s) and antagonist(s) may battle, themselves and each other, not just on a physical level, but on a mental one as well.
• Either by accident or their own curiousness, each character is dragged into a dangerous conflict or situation that they are not prepared to resolve.

Themes

Guilt and obsession are two themes that often occur in recent psychological thrillers. Sometimes, each of these themes can generally stand alone as the core of a film, but often times, they are combined with a context of ambiguity regarding what is real and what is imagined.

Psychological thrillers also often deal with common themes such as death, reality, perception, identity, existence or purpose, and one or two of these themes should be wound through the novel.

Reality: This theme is often challenge by the antagonist during the film, causing confusion to the protagonist. This allows the antagonist to play with the protagonist psychologically.

Perception: The ability to see, hear or be aware of something through mundane senses. The storyline would bend these senses with other themes such as reality, this frequently blinds the main character, in thinking what is there and confusing their state of mind.

Guilt: This theme usually haunts the main character, building up a traumatising past that might have been forgotten, so therefore haunting them about it makes it difficult to forget. This can be shown through flashback, hallucinations, illness' etc.

Obsession: This is a constant and repetitive thought or idea that occupies a person's mind in a continuous or non-stop way. Obsession is what commonly destroys a human mind and fixates on one thing only.

Shutter Island is an example of a film that combines the theme of guilt with ambiguity regarding reality, creating a mind-bending experience that even has horror-like elements. The story is so meticulously constructed that a second viewing is, in many ways, more rewarding than the first one.