The Thriller genre is defined as having a fearful and exciting plot. There are a huge variety of sub genres in the Thriller genre, such as spy thriller or a romantic thriller, but there are many common elements which thriller films share.
Plot/Narrative
Twist/s: What the viewer may have anticipated/been hinted is far from the truth
Dark characters: Sometimes with serious emotional problems or a dark backstory. Sometimes revealed in the form of flashbacks
Protagonist's weaknesses often exploited
An Enigma: A question which is not immediately answered which draws the viewer's interest. Many Triller films are based around an enigma: "Who is the murderer", "What event in the past had a deep impact on the protagonist"...
Themes of danger, menace and mystery
Suspenseful, gritty and fast paced storyline
Storyline often about crime, murder, corruption
Mise en Scene
Dark lighting/noir, low key
Dirty and dusty props and scenery
Often modern props/scenery (guns etc), although not restricted to any time period. This is more relatable to the viewer, increasing emotive reaction
Editing
Varied, fast paced action and slow, brooding suspense
Dark grading, often with cyan and orange highlights
"Vantage Point" has a short, one minute title sequence, in which an attempt is made to convey the themes of the movie to the audience.
The main stylisation of this piece is the use of a 'fractured' layering of shots over each other, which is highly relevant to the key slant of the film, of how different people perceive an event.
As such, some elements of the sequence, such as the gun, may go unnoticed or surprise a viewer.
The use of this effect also makes the sequence much more interesting than if the clips were static.
The colour scheme of this sequence is fairly restrictive, with almost every element having a gradient mapped tint of sepia/gold, with the credit text being the exception.
The text is easy to read, which contrasts with the odd and confusing shapes of the other elements.
Names of companies and organisations in the title credits are emphasised in uppercase, while all other text is lowercase.
The main title is a mix of the two contrasting styles, beginning as unrecognisable shapes which slide together to create clear, dark text, which contrasts massively with the yellow and orange tones of the clips behind.
Very conventional music is used throughout, ominous beats and clicks with deep bass crescendos, which clearly conveys the thriller genre of the movie.
The title sequence in "The Untouchables" is fairly unsophisticated compared to some other films, however the stylization complies with the crime genre, whilst innovating with more recent effects.
The title sequence is comprised of off-white serif type fading in and out in the lower half of the screen, with unrecognizable shadows traveling across the screen. The presentation of the title sequence is good, the typeface used is very relevant to the time period that the movie is set in.
A grain effect is also used in the title sequence, which makes the graphics appear less flat, and also provides an effect reminiscent of the movie technology available in the 1920s/30s time period.
Near the end of the sequence, the camera pulls back from the close up of the shadows, revealing the main title text. This text is similar to the credit text shown below, however is greatly contrasted as it is black, signifying to the audience that it is very important.
The large 3D text is pulled away from the camera, and fades into the soft brown background, and the sequence fades to black.
Whilst the title sequence for "The Untouchables" is not the most memorable, it certainly is appropriate for this genre of movie and prepares the audience for the style in the film to come.
