Themes and Symbols used in Thriller films

Generally, thrillers show justice or injustice (or good or evil) fighting against each other, with an overall feel of suspense. The story of a typical thriller film will usually be shown from the protagonist's point of view, following events that the hero must overcome. This point of view allows the audience to become more involved in the events themselves and therefore closer to the characters. However, other points of view are sometimes included in the telling of the plot. Often they will be short clips from the villain's side, allowing the audience to see how the antagonist acts by themselves or how they used to. -For example in a flashback which creates empathy for the villain and possibly allows the audience to understand why they have become the evil party.

Most typically, events covered by the film are important to the films progression and lead directly on from a previous scene. There are usually lots of action scenes between the characters, which keeps the audience guessing what will happen next and how the characters will interact with each other.
During the scenes where the characters are simply talking to each other, the audience generally understands what is happening but never gets the full explanation of the plot or the events taken place, which allows the film to retain its mystery. Usually the motive of the antagonist and their relation to the hero is shown at the end or near the end of the film and the audience is then able to understand why the characters have acted in this way they have. If the motive is left unrevealed, the film will end on a sense of suspension and confusion which keeps the audience wondering what might have happened.

The typical setting in a thriller is in an Urban City. Thrillers can also be set in quiet country areas, where everyone leads poor and simple lives; often the villain will come from a small village. Usually only a range of colours will be used, the main being black or grey if it is set in a city environment, to show how normal and mundane life is. However other strong colours are often used at particular plot points; for example if there is a lot of blue we can assume that someone has or is going to die (but not always) and if there is a recurring theme of red (E.g. alarms) then we figure out the characters are in danger.

The camera shots are usually very steady or move around a lot. If there is a scene with a lot of dialogue, the camera will be still and focus more on the characters than the background. If there is more than one character in the shot, the cameraman will use for example, an over the shoulder shot, using the 180 degree rule to show the characters relate to one another. If the camera is moving around a lot then an action scene is typically taking place; the increased cut rate allows the audience to feel more involved in the action and keep them on the edge of their seat. More camera movements are also used to portray vulnerability or to show that something has gone wrong, which increases the suspense. Usually the lighting is dim and hides parts of either the characters or the environment, which makes the audience wonder whether there is more to the characters than they originally thought. The props used in thrillers are usually either large or easily identifiable. For example, knives or swords.

The main identifying theme of a thriller is often based around something that occupies a lot of what society thinks about and is worried about; these can be anything from kidnapping and isolation to terrorism and its effects. Most often the point of the narrative will be from the hero's perspective and the perpetrators of the crime will be established as the villain.