Thriller Genre Forms & Conventions

Leon Watkin-Williams

ENEMY OF THE STATE‘Enemy Of The State’ is a thriller that has incorporated typical elements that belong within the genre.

The film consists of typical characters such as the innocent citizen, the corrupt government/police as well as others like hit men.

The film also consists of typical thriller themes such as corruption, paranoia and betrayal.

Iconography is typical within the film towards thriller as it contains typical props such as guns, fast cards and high tech gadgets as well as their locations.

The audio and visual styles consist of a typical thriller as it has typical shots like low/high angles, incidental music and etcetera.

ENEMY OF THE STATEThe character within ‘Enemy of the State’ consist of characters like:

Hit men – This was seen at the opening of the film where the corrupt leader of the government hired a hit man to deal with one of his old workers that refused to help him. This is typical in characters within thriller as it is murder.

Corrupt Police – This was shown throughout the film where members of the government were going against the governmental policies and for instance trying to frame the death of Will Smith’s ex after the government killed her. This is typical of thriller as it is common to see corruption within a storyline.

The innocent citizen – This was typical within the film as we had Will Smith’s ex-wife killed just so they could make people think negatively about him. She was essentially used as bait for a trap because the government knew it would harm Will’s reputation. This was also shown where the innocent duck watcher who had a tape of the killing got killed running from the government.

Characters

ENEMY OF THE STATETypical Helpers (Messengers) – These are typical in ‘Enemyof the State’ as it consisted of the characters Brill played byGene Hackman in which he was a man who knew how touse the governments technology and use it to his advantage. Not only this but it was shown that he helped Will in the film as he removed all the trackers from Will’s outfit so he couldn’t be detected by the government.

Typical Female – What I mean by this is that alike most thriller films, women show no positions of power. The only women we mainly see within the film are shown as typical lovers or past ex’s who in the end are used to make characters like Will feel as if he has lost his life/family because they turn against him.

Gangsters – These were a crucial part of a thriller as it is typical of a thriller and it was seen as the start and the end of the film where a mob ended up having a shoot out with the government and ended up in everyone bad dying. It is typical because they are always there to distract you from a main purpose.

Characters

ENEMY OF THE STATECharacters (Mood Board)

Typical Helpers(Messengers)

Typical Female(No Position Of Power)

Corrupt Government/Police

InnocentCitizens

Mob/Gangsters

Hit Men

ENEMY OF THE STATEThe themes presented in ‘Enemy of the State’ consist of themes such as:

Corruption – This was represented throughout the film as thegovernment were going against the law such as when they tried to frame Will Smith for murdering his ex.

Trust – This was a key theme within the film as trust was used to develop the entire. Without it, nothing would have changed from the beginning. For instance, if Brill didn’t trust Will then Will would of most likely still had trackers on him in which he may not of escaped. Trust is used as a motive within the film for it to develop the plot.

Betrayal – Betrayal was represented throughout the film as it was linked to the idea of corruption and blackmail. In the opening scene, the politician was killed because he didn’t do what the governments main antagonist asked him to do. This was considered betrayal as the two people were friends and used to work together but because one didn’t comply with the other, they were killed.

Themes

ENEMY OF THE STATEThe themes presented in ‘Enemy of the State’ consist of themes such as:

Blackmail – Blackmail was used a variety of times within the film as it is the governments way of getting information or something from you. For instance when the politician at the start of the film disagreed with passing the law so the government were allowed to spy on everyone. Therefore because the politician disagreed with what the law Jon wanted passed he was killed. Hence, It was blackmail as he was to pass the no-privacy law or he was to be killed.

Paranoia – This was a key theme in the storyline as it was the idea that nobody could trust each other but they had to. It was the thought of being paranoid about something you don’t know but you think about it differently. For instance when Will was trying to go after Brill, he assumed that Brill was following him as if he was part of the government but it turned out he was the mystery man who he was trying to find. This is paranoia as Will was suspicious of the character but didn’t actually know whether he was trustworthy or not.

Themes

ENEMY OF THE STATEThemes (Mood Board)

Paranoia

Corruption

Trusting each other

Betrayal

Blackmail

ENEMY OF THE STATEIconography was the crucial visual elements in the film thatmade the film a thriller.

Urban Setting – This is typical in thrillers such as how in this filmwe had a city because it shows that no matter where you are , you are not safe wherever you go. This is shown in the film all the way through as Will is trying to hide in a ginormous city yet he still couldn’t escape the government.

High Tech – This is shown in the film as they used trackers and advanced gadgets. This is used in the film to make the villain seem stronger and more powerful than the antagonist. For instance, when the government used a super computer to analyse Wills bag to determine whether he had the recording of the killing or not.

Fast Cars – Things like fast cars make the thrillers iconography what it is as in the film for instance they use them to show that they are always on track and keep up with everyone else. For instance when Will was in the ambulance the government used fast cars to catch up and stay on track with his position at all times.

Iconography

ENEMY OF THE STATE

Weapons/Guns – Props used in the film such as knifes and guns. These are used in the film as it creates the idea thatsomeone is going to be murdered. This is important in films such as this because it presents the idea of how they can be used for both good and bad. For instance when the Mafia and the corrupt government had a showdown.

Costume (Uniform) – This is important in the film because instantly we judge a character by determining what he is wearing. For instance when we see that politician at the start he is dressed in a creamy white colour. We assume from this that he is pure and safe as we associate bright colours with good people or events.

Iconography

ENEMY OF THE STATEIconography (Mood Board)

High Tech

Weapons: Guns andknives

Urban Setting:In a city

Fast Cars

Costumes:Uniform

ENEMY OF THE STATEThe Audio/Visual Styles within ‘Enemy of the State’ consist of things like:

Diegetic Sound – This is sound that is naturally placed in the film. For instance if there was a gun fire, you would hear the sound of the gun being shot.

Non-Diegetic Sound – This is sound that is not naturally placed in the film. For instance if there was a car chase scene going on you would hear tense music in the background (Sound manually placed on through editing).

Incidental Music– This is music used within the film to create an effect of mood or atmosphere. For instance in the Hotel chase scene where incidental music was added on to create an affect.

Fast-Paced Editing – This is when the shots the audience are seeing keep changing at a quick pace. This is used to make the scene feel longer than for what it is such as when the innocent citizen was running from the government.

Audio / Visual Style

ENEMY OF THE STATEThe Audio/Visual Styles within ‘Enemy of the State’ consist of things like:

Close Up’s – This was used in the film to show the expressionof the characters and see their reaction to certain events. An example of this was when Will noticed her ex was on the floor dead and his clothes were implanted all over the yet to be crime scene.

Tracking Shots – This was used in the scene where the innocent man was running away on his bike from the government. The effect this creates is that it makes you feel as if you are there and can give you an adrenaline rush such as when he was hit by a fire-truck.

Angled Shots (High/Low) – These were shots used to make the antagonist and protagonist look either puny or powerful. This is shown in the film where the antagonist Jon is on the phone there is a low angle shot. This is used to make him seem powerful and outstanding as he is in a position of looking down on everyone.

Audio / Visual Style

ENEMY OF THE STATEAudio / Visual Styles (Mood Board)

Close Up:To show the expression

High Angle Shot:-Makes Will look powerless

Tracking Shot

Fast Paced:From one shot to another