Key Thriller Conventions - Location

Locations are used in the Thriller genre to maximise the intent and connotations linked with the situation or sense. I think, after studying the use of location, we should make sure that location is used not only well, but also with meaning and strong connotation.

Examples of good use of locations:

Enclosed spaces:

    The location of a car is a generic location used in the Thriller genre. It is used to show the character in a confined space and show isolation and disassociation. It is also a lot easier for a person to commit a crime inside an enclosed space as there will be less witnesses, if any. Shown here in Essex Boys, in the opening we see Billy in the car. This is used to show his vulnerability and that he could be a target or involved in crime because he is young and naive. The car is also a very claustrophobic place and makes him seem very disassociated as he doesn't show much emotion even when he is being part of a violent crime.

Here in Witness an enclosed space is used as it is the place in which the crime is committed. The use of an enclosed space is to show the isolation and could perhaps, in this case, be used to show social and moral corruption in that crime is being done 'underground' and in enclosed, secretive places - showing the social corruption in America. The direct contrast between this idea and the Amish boy is used to show his innocence and idealism of how his life with the Amish community would be perfect with no corruption, just like originally how the 'American dream' would have thought to be.

Unglamourous Locations:

The murder scene in Witness uses a toilet as the location. It is used to show the pure realism of the crime and that you cannot make a murder a 'glamorous' event. The more realistic a scene becomes, the more eerie and creepy it becomes as it shows the pure realism of a murder/crime. It also shows that it can happen anywhere at any time of day and to anyone - reinforcing this idea of realism. I think this idea and connotations of realism make for an interesting scene and I think we should do something similar in our Thriller as it would be much easier to make the scene unglamourous and realistic rather than using a complicated or glamorous location.

Similarly in Essex Boys, the use of the Essex cityscape is used to show the realism once more. The weather is also a very key aspect in this shot due to it reflecting coming events. The use of pathetic fallacy is used to foreshadow that a crime is about to take place, but also it is used to show that a crime can happen at any time - even on a cold, rainy day in Essex. Although, the location itself cannot be used in our Thriller we could use a similar cityscape to connote more realism. I also really like the idea of using pathetic fallacy and the connotations of rain and overcast weather - being mystery, pain and sadness - to emphasise and foreshadow events to come in our Thriller.

How we are going to use this in our own Thriller:

    We are going to use it by our café location will be slightly unglamourous because the café we are using is slightly old-fashioned and 'run-down' - so it will reflect the mood of the Thriller and also add the conventions to the mise-en-scene. Also the space of a café is quite enclosed, meaning it reflects the girl as being vulnerable.