The clip I chose is from the movie Jaws, the scene is called 'Chrissies last swim' within the clip she is eaten alive by a shark in the ocean. I will be analysing the conventions used within the clip to make it categorise into the thriller genre. Conventions are the elements that reflect a specific group or category. For example a convention of the thriller genre would be shock.
Within the clip a lot of suspense is used this is a very common convention of the thriller genre, as suspense connects the audience to the characters as they can feel the same anxiety. Suspense is used when the girl is swimming alone and slow eery music is played to raise tension of something bad that is going to happen. This makes the audience feel uncomfortable as they can sense a bad atmosphere however still get shocked when the shark starts to eat the girl.
The event of an attack is also another convention of the thriller genre as it creates terror and surprise, the film transformed a common, relate able task of swimming in the ocean into a frightening scene which may emotionally impact the audiences lives. The attack is a use of violence which is also the cause of the girls death, this shows how crucial the attacks are and this is used to make the audience fear the situation the character is in.
The use of a female victim also applys to the thriller genre as it shows how vulnerable and unprepared characters are targeted. The victim used is a young blonde attractive woman who has no chance of surviving the shark attack. This is relate able to the audience as they feel they would react in the same way as the woman did by screaming and swimming for her life, as she is an inferior human being compared to the man eating shark used as the villain.
Another convention the clip follows is the mystery used in regards to the villain, within the clip the shark is the antagonist however the shark is never shown when eating the girl. This raises mystery and adrenalin as you cannot predict what it will do next to the girl. Mystery is a very important part within thrillers as it puts the audience on edge and encourages them to carry on watching and find out what happens next.
Relationships between the audience and the film are built through the conventions by making the situations and characters relate able, by using a young, blonde, female actress the audience can relate to the vulnerability they may be faced with if they experienced the situation in real life. A relationship is also built through the convention of using death as the outcome, this is because within many different genres many characters survive the impossible due to an unrealistic approach. However within thrillers death is a common occurance which provides the audience with a sense of reality, as they know if faced in the same situations as the characters they would not survive.
You have shown a clear understanding of the conventions analysed and explained what they create for the audience clearly. You have structured your post well but need to inlude a summary of your research.
ReplyDeleteTo improve your post you need to:
1) Include the URL link and screen shots for each point
2) Explain how a relationship is built through the conventions used
3) Include a summary of your research
4) Read through and check spelling etc.
You have explained how the audience can build a relationship with characters through use of conventions and provided a summary explaining your findings.
ReplyDeleteYou could elaborate on your points further by explaining WHY; why is a certain emotion created? why do the audience feel a certain way as a result etc.
Double check spelling etc.
include URL link and screen shots for each point (or time is to do with sound)