JC Thriller as a genre

The purpose of a 'hriller is to keep the audience 'on the edge of their seats', as though each sequence within the film is a cliffhanger. The tension that leads to this climax usually arises when the main character is placed in a periless situation, and their victory within the narrative looks improbable.

If we use the characteristics outlined in my previous posts as the principles for establishing a genre, the main features and conventions of thrillers are:

• suburban/city locations
• the heroes are often normal citizens
• the hero thwarts the plan of an enemy
• the identity of the archetypal villain is known throughout the film
• crimes are often on a much larger scale (ie terrorist attacks)
• the climax occurs when the hero defeats the villain