Conventions of a Thriller - Leon; The Professional

Conventions of a Thriller

Thriller movies are mainly based on good and evil, with the main characters normally being the “good guy” and the “bad guy”. The beginning of Thrillers the setting and narrative is usually peaceful, or seems like an everyday situation to create a sense of peace before the storm. The peaceful setting is then gets disturbed; and then from this a series of bad events begin to unravel which engages the audience. Typically at the end of a Thriller Movie the protagonist (the good guy) restores the peace and justice, and defeats the antagonist (the bad guy).

The first convention of a thriller is the characters and how they are portrayed. The protagonist is typically a male, and is given a very brave character. They typically are set out to save an innocent female, or someone that appears more innocent or in danger than he is. The Antagonist isn't always obvious, as in a lot of thrillers this character is a mystery, for example this could sometimes be a young sweet looking little girl. In each film the antagonist is different but they are all similar in the reasons they behave in that way which becomes clear towards the end of the film, (it is usually because of revenge). The characters dress depends on the plot of the film but conventionally the male characters wear something that would show off their muscles, proving how strong and empowering their character is, whereas girls are typically dressed in a more seductive way to express their vulnerability.

Another Convention of a Thriller is the Themes. The story-line of a Thriller is often relatable by the audience because the director of the film bases the story-line on something that society fears. This enhances the level of fear and makes the film more gripping.

Shots commonly used in Thriller films are the Tracking and Pan shots. These are used a lot at the beginning, particularly showing a group of people that should be in the audience’s interest. The most typical shot that is used is the close up because this builds up suspense and makes the characters and events seem more mysterious. Long shots are also used quiet a lot because it shows the audience where exactly the events will be taking place.

Commonly in thriller films the high camera angle is used a lot, mainly to show the powerful position a character has. For example when a character is towering over somebody and the camera angle mimics it, it shows that they have control and have the most power.

The Editing for Thrillers conventionally use a lot of jump cuts. This is used a lot because the film is very fast moving so there are multiple things all happening at once. The jump cuts allow the audience to see all the different events that are happening and let them make assumptions as to what is going to happen next with the events and the characters. The cutting rate always seems to speed up as a climax in the story is reached and then slows down towards the end or when the story becomes more settled.

In Thrillers they typically use a lot of non-diegetic sound which helps create a certain atmosphere. For example the music playing in the background can make the scene very tense. Silence is also typically used a lot in Thrillers as it builds up tension, which is one of the strongest conventions in a thriller film.

Leon; the Professional

Leon, by Luc Besson uses many of the thriller conventions that build tension and create suspense.

At the very start, the Camera does a wide landscape shot of the city which introduces the audience to where are the events will take place, and portrays that what will happen is going to be on a very big scale.

The audience are then introduced to the characters of Leon, Mafioso and Tony through extreme  close ups which doesn't show exactly who they are, creating suspense from the very star, typical of this genre.

In Leon the setting is used as a convention of the thriller genre by disorientating the audience on the spiral staircase. In this scene high angle shots are also used to make the man look like he is at Leon’s mercy and shows him as vulnerable.

In the second scene Leon helps Matilda became her family has been murdered. This fits the conventions of the protagonist character, as he is ‘saving’ the vulnerable female character... although Luc Besson didn't create Leon in the stereotypical Protagonist way as he is an assassin. The Vulnerability of her family and the control of the gangsters have been shown by the high angel shots during their deaths.

In the scene that Leon trains Matilda to kill people uses a lot of different conventions from the thriller genre. At the start it is quite slow going and there is silence in the building (apart from the diegetic sounds coming from Matilda and Leon), showing how deserted and alone they are and putting all the focus on them instead of the audience concentrating on sounds or action coming from somewhere else. The editing picks up and becomes very fast a long with a fast piece of music playing a long side the editing. This could be to show how much of a routine what they are doing has become and how quick Matilda went from an innocent young girl to an assassin; this thrills the audience because it is unusual. In the This scene the camera uses close up angels mainly, showing exactly what Matilda is doing and how repetitive and precise it is, this shows how natural it has become and makes the audience feel part of the routine. Involving the audience is important in the thriller genre because the more they feel as if they feel involved with the character or what is going on the more they want to watch it. The fast paced editing and music then stops when they arrive at a certain door, this tells the audience immediately that something big is going to happen ad instantly makes the scene tense.

 In the very last scene it uses some stereotypical thriller conventions. There is barely any lighting and the scene is shot underground in a tunnel, which is somewhere, that stereo typically things go wrong. All the diegetic sounds had been taken away and replaced by a delicate piano piece that had a sad tone as if somebody was going to die. The editing is now flicking between Matilda and Leon, this connotes that their lives are fast becoming separate. In the end the camera focuses on Leon being followed in the tunnel. The camera looks straight down the gun and then as it shoots the camera falls down with Leon. This is quite typical to the thriller genre as it has put the audience in the place of Leon and involved them as if they are a character. The diagetic sound started to fade back in as the gun shot, this makes it seem as if this was the most important part, as if once Leon was killed everything could start again.

-From a landscape shot to an extreme close up on Leon's eye is an extreme shot change, it is exiting for the audience.

- The Lightning is quite dark, this adds to the mystery of his character.

- He is wearing sunglasses, the audience can't see his eyes, yet that is the only part of the face they get to see. This adds an atmosphere to the film from the start because the real focus is hidden.

•  Spiral Staircase disorientates the audience as you get confused where Leon is.

• The Camera angle goes up high to find Leon looking down on the man. The angle that looks down on the man shows his vulnerability, and the power that Leon has over him.
• the stair case is very empty and silent, this adds to the tension because they are so alone.

• the way the camera is looking into the gun makes the audience feel as if it is pointing directly at them.
• the fact that he is sweaty on his forehead and that he is dishevelled makes there look as if there has been a lot of action and that he is quiet frantic, there must be real intention of coursing harm.

• The way he is looking up but with his head down is quite demon like, as if he really means business. He makes it obvious to the audience that he is the antagonistic character.

• He is looking down at Leon showing that he has the upper hand. The camera angle shows that he is in the position of superiority.                                                                       
• The way he is looking down on him  makes him look as though he is god  like, passing judgement on Leon.                                                                 
• It looks as if he knows he will win, when actually as the scene moves on, Leon has the last word and there is a big unexpected explosion coursed by Leon pulling the ring off a bomb. This fits with the Thriller conventions because it is a real twist, all though Leon is a bad guy, he is a hero and the hero always wins, even though he is going to die.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

• Matilda is looking up to Leon, and imitating him with her arm, this suggests that her character may become something like his
• The only real light is from the window, the curtain and chair look quiet old and dirty, this shows that it isn't a very well kept or looked after place; it could have a lot of trouble in it.
   
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8Mc8s0CeMo