Themes
Perception - An individuals interpretation of the world around them through their senses. Usually within psychological thrillers characters misinterpret their surroundings and the perceptions are altered by factors that are within the narrative. The protagonist may have this behaviour in a thriller film which would make them an unreliable narrator. For example the protagonist in Shutter island, Teddy Daniels, believes he is a U.S marshal investigating the disappearance of a murderess who escaped from a hospital for the criminally insane however he is actually a patient at the mental institute who believes he is still part of law enforcement.
Reality - Characters usually try to figure out what is true or false within the narrative. For example within the Silence of the Lambs, Clarice tries to get answers from Hannibal Lector a psychopath that is serving life behind bars and may know what has happened to a missing woman.
Mind - The mind is sometimes used as a location for narrative conflict as characters can battle their own minds to reach a new level of understanding or perception. This happens within Shutter Island as the protagonist believes that he is a U.S marshal however the truth of him being a patient at a mental institute interferes with the storyline.
Identity- A person defining themselves. These characters are often confused and doubt who they are which leads to them trying to discover their own identity. within the film The Prestige two men battle to find out their own identity's as well as each others through their talent of illusion, throughout there is also a high focus on death and the dangers of their pursuit.
Existence/ purpose - This is when an individual aims and strives towards an understanding for their reason for existence. These characters usually try to discover what their purpose is in life and narrative conflict is often used for a way for the characters to discover their purpose. The Black Swan is a film where a character find their purpose as Nina knows she is perfect for the part in a show however the pressure of competing for the part of the white swan causes her to lose grip of reality and she begins living in a nightmare.
Death - characters within a thriller film either fear death or have a fascination with it. In Silence of the Lambs death is heavily featured as Clarice is determined to get an insight into the mind of a killer as she is trying to save a woman who is missing from being murdered.
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