I have looked into other thriller films as I want to see how they lay out their trailers. Below you can see three different thriller trailers in which I have Print Screened vital parts in which the tension is being built and moments in which you can see, without the need for any sound or other parts of the film, something dramatic is about to happen.
Inception
By just having this shown on the screen it shows it must have great importance to the film as it is the sole item on the screen with all the audiences focus on it. It builds tension as no-one knows what it is or what it does and it stays on the screen for 3 seconds with nothing else being shown.
I found this clip very interesting as it is an over the shoulder shot of a man looking out of his window and seeing all the chaos in the street below. All the people are running towards them building tension as we believe they are coming towards him.
This very simple reaction shot builds tension as we see the expression very clearly on his face. When a trailer has these in the audience is able to see characters feelings without them actually having to say or do anything else.
This last shot I picked out from the trailer is one where we see both characters but in different ways. The girl at front shows a emotion of fear/confusion where are the man in the background is more dominant even though he is further away from the screen.
The Shining
This is one of the first shots that are shown in the trailer and straight from it, it builds tension as the one man sitting in the huge space is suspicious as it just seems wrong.
The clip of a hospital with no one there also causes this suspicion as hospitals are seen as busy places. It builds up tension as well as the audience wonder why there is a hospital being shown and link it with the man in the house.
This shot is very sudden as before all other shots are of just empty rooms. And it is quite near the start of the trailer as well causing us, the audience, to wonder what he is going to do.
This mid/close up shot of the boy screaming and looking scared builds the tension up dramatically as we do not know what he is screaming up but guess it is to do with the man with the axe.
This shot is very famous because it shows the reaction of the character so well as you can see the menace is his eyes and because he has broken through a wooden door it makes is more dramatic.
The Sixth Sense
The opening shots are that of traffic with ambulances and police men all around. Straight from the start we then see that something terrible must have happened.
This basic shot of a red balloon floating up can be concept to mean a lot more, the red indicates danger/death/blood and because it is a balloon which is normally associated with children and fun causes tension as the audience wants to understand more.
This close up shot of a child's face crying and looking scared causes the audience to feel for the child and wants to know why he is crying.
This scene is cleverly done because although puppets are seen as a child's toy many people are scared of them. So to put a child in a room with lots of them causes fear for people.
By looking at these three trailers I have become more aware of what is needed in a thriller trailer but also what is not needed.
