Characteristics of a thriller - Themes and characters

In this post I will look at the characteristic of a thriller, to do with themes and characters. Common themes and methods in crime thriller include, revenge, heists and and kidnappings. Whereas in mysteries thrillers, investigation and the whodunit technique is used. In psychological thriller common themes used include, mind games, stalking, and obsession. Then finally in spy thrillers, conspiracies, spies and threat to a country are all used themes.



The primary elements of the thriller genre:

• The protagonist faces death, either his and/or her or somebody else's.
• The force of the antagonists must initially be cleverer and/or stronger than the protagonist's.
• The main storyline for the protagonist is either a quest or a character that cannot be put down.
• The main plot line focuses on a mystery that must be solved.
• The film's narrative construction is dominated by the protagonist's point of view.
• All action and characters must be credibly realistic or natural in their representation on screen.
• The two major themes that underpin the thriller genre are the desire for justice and the morality of individuals.
• One small, but significant, aspect of a thriller is the presence of innocence in what is seen as an essentially corrupt world.
• The protagonist and antagonist may battle, themselves and each other, not just on a physical level, but on a mental one as well.
• Either by accident or their own curiousness, each character is dragged into a dangerous conflict or situation that they are not prepared to resolve.

Very common characters in a thriller include, stalkers, Innocent victims, psychopaths, and characters with dark memories. Often the main characters are originally normal people susceptible to danger, or events. One common way that suspense is created using characters is that two characters often are preying one each others minds, by either toying with one another minds or playing deceptive games.