What is a Psychological Thriller?

The difference between a horror film and a thriller is that a horror is repulsive and full of gore whilst a thriller will hold your interest in suspense.

The definition of a psychological thriller is a thrilling narrative which emphasizes the unstable psychological states of its characters. Psychological thriller conventions often overlap with conventions of mystery, drama, action and horror.

I have mad a mind-map exploring the different paradigms within a thriller genre. It includes costumes, lighting and props.

Girl on the train research trailer anaylsis

The production company logo and the film company logo are shown right at the start of the trailer to attract an audience. As the companies have had previous successful films, this will entice an audience to see this film as they will expect it to be just as successful.

The main settings within the trailer are a train and a housing estate. These settings are likely to be common in the audiences everyday life, making them connect and relate to the events. The use of a train for location emphasises isolation and separation from the real world, which is another common thriller convention.  Isolated locations also infer a lack of safety.

Non-continuity editing creates confusion and intrigue for an audience making them want to view the film. This is a typical convention for the thriller genre as it gives an incite to all of the film without giving anything away.

A montage is used towards the end of the trailer to build pace and tension. The montage is made up of lots of short and fast clips from different parts of the film. This is a very common convention used mainly in dramatic films. Intense music is often played over the top of the montage. and the suddenly stops to allow a rememberable last scene. For example '... I'm afraid of myself..'

Some of the trailers are set at night. This is a typical convention in thrillers as it plays with the very common fear of the dark among audiences. 

Close-ups of the main female character are used a lot throughout the trailer to express her distress and worry in reaction to the events we are being shown. This could link to the stereotypical convention of using a vulnerable female in a thriller.

There is some nudity in the trailer, which is sexually suggestive of the female characters. Naked body towards the end, covered in bruises and cuts which connotes violence and abuse. Sexualising female characters in films is stereotypical of the thriller genre as they are known for making women appear vulnerable and weak.

The voiceover is the main character giving a vague explanation of events which also intrigues the viewer into wanting to understand the full context. 

Intertexts are used throughout the trailer. They are written in a black type writing font on an off-white background. The intertext are sentences that fill in areas of narrative for the audience without giving the plot away.










The music cuts out for important moments in the trailer, creating an uncomfortable silence for the audience. The song that is used over the trailer sounds like someone is singing 'heartless' which links to the images we are being shown. (Woman's hair being pulled).

The type of audience that would consume this text would be active audiences. This is because they will have to think about what is going on and follow the storyline. A passive audience may struggle with psychological thrillers as they will be looking for a film that is easy to watch and understand.

The trailer does not follow Todorov's theory of narrative as the trailer holds a disequilibrium atmosphere all the way through.

The Snowman Trailer anaysis

Film company logo fades in.

Production company logo fades in from black.

An establishing shot of snowy rooftops and a shadowy figure walking across the screen fades in. Church bells ring in the background.

A long shot of a woman, on her phone, walking towards camera is shown. Off centre, right. Dark lighting and mysterious mood. Footsteps sound effects.

Centred mid-shot from behind of the woman. She gets a snowball thrown at her from off screen. A sound effect of a snowball being thrown is used. She turns around slowly.

Cut to black. Very loud crashing noises. Audience don’t know what it is, can be confused or intrigued.

Intertext fades in. 'Based on the terrifying best-seller'.

A loud gong sound is used as an establishing shot and a voice over fade in. The establishing shot show an icy mountain and a body of water. A voice-over starts by saying 'A woman vanished last night...'

Long shot of a dark, winter scene, creating a suggested spooky atmosphere. The background contrasts to this as pretty lit up houses are used.  A man on a truck, stands up and looks around.

Mid-shot of a man in a shed full of snow. He is looking around with a torch. The gong sound effect is still ringing in the background which builds suspense and brings an eerie atmosphere.

The voice-over continues '... we just found the body.’ A left to right pan of an outdoor shed/ garage is shown with a body lying on the floor. The victims face is hidden to keep the narrative vague.

Close up of a briefcase being opened and a shiny mental hammer being revealed. A sound effect that sounds like heavy machinery is used as well as another gong.

An over the shoulder shot fades in. Two men are looking at looking at each other. One is wearing a smart suit and the other is wearing an outdoor coat. The main in the suit says 'Prince?' It looks as if they are in a bar or a party event because of the colours and the man's attire.

Shot reverse shot editing is used to show the other man’s face. A mid shot is also used to help us see his concerned expression as he shakes his head.

A close up of a black-gloved person, holding a weapon and activating it.

The black gloved person stretches out some wire.

The same figure holds the weapon downwards and turns the trigger to make a clicking sound. The voice-over continues ' ...and the head...'

An extreme close up of a beaten woman lying on the floor, looking distressed. Her hair falls over her face but we can still see her eye and some bruises and scratches are visible.

Cut to black

The voice-over continues '... is missing…'

Mid-shot of dark, shadowy figure, leaning over someone. He pulls the weapon up quickly. Loud wearing, machine sound effects are used again.

Cut to black.

Establishing shot of hills and a misty sea scape fade in; a fish flops around on the sand.

Crosscut editing is used and we are shown an establishing shot of a very snowy hill with lots of trees. A small house and a car are centred in the middle. The gong sound effect is still being used.

Fade to black.

An over the shoulder shot from behind a snowman is used to show a fearful expression on the man in front. A low angle shot is used to create an almost point of view shot from the snowman. The voiceover continues 'He calls himself The Snowman Killer.'

Shot reverse shot editing is used and we see the snowman's face looking back.

Centred shot of a drawing on an icy wall. The drawing looks quite immature as it is of a stick figure snowman with 'Hello Mister Police' written above it.

Mid shot of a man in a shed facing sideways looking towards the camera. He is wearing an outdoor coat. The voice-over continues 'He's completely insane.'

Crosscut to a mid-shot of a young girl in the snow. We think this technique is to introduce the characters.

long shot of dark village, focusing on a truck with its lights on. Creepy dramatic music starts. It sounds like a woman's voice singing about front doors being left open. This song and sounds have creepy connotations. Leaving your front door open in horror films connotes vulnerability.

Long shot of house windows, where we can see inside. A mum is with her daughter who is dancing and being childish. The scene is dimly lit.

Close up of a hard, holding and lit cigarette. lured background/short depth of field. This should suggest this man is one of the main character as we are forced to focus on him. The voice over continues 'I think that he is going off to women that he disapproves of'.

Fade to black.

Mid-shot of woman talking. She looks worried and as if she if briefing someone on the murder cases.

The man puts out his cigarette in some snow.

Mid close up of a woman sat in bed, reading a book. She looks like she is in comfortable clothes and she is relaxed in her own home. The scene is layed out so that a window is behind her. Minimal lighting. Someone throws snow at her window and she jumps, turning to face the sound.

Cut to black

Fade into a snowy forest like area. A man and a woman, both dressed in big coats, look terrified as the camera pans and zooms in towards the girl.

Cross cut to an odd looking location, could be an abandoned shed or a barn. The setting is very dark and moody. A man stands on the higher ground, looking down, pointing at something with a torch. The camera pans down into a black area of the barn.. The voice-over continues 'The only thing we know for sure...'

Cut to black. The music stops.

Voice over continues '… is that he is playing games with us.'

Fades into a dark scene where you can’t see anything. A bright light is suddenly shone on a dead body that looks like it is wrapped in snow to immediate a snowman. The light looks like the trucks head, lights for the begging of the trailer. Crashing metallic sound effects are used as the shot cuts to black and the release date appears.

The intertext title reads 'This October' in a white and red colour. Strong font.

Upwards pan of city buildings. Two buildings with their lights on with trees in the middle. at night-time. Looks like Christmas but is very dark and creepy this creates conflicting messages and atmospheres.

Mid-shot of woman in the snow, wrapped up in a coat and scarf. Looking down and having a worried expression. The background is blurred but you can still make up a church and Christmas lights which is an example of Christmas iconography.

Shot reverse shot editing is used to show what the woman is looking at. We are shown another snowman by the road. As we have already been shown a human head in a snowman. This snowman suggests there is also a head inside it.

A man walks past shop windows wearing a hazmat safety suit and a gas mask. Voice over continues 'We need a way to lure him out'.

A woman in a red room (connoting blood and danger) pushes a plant pot along a shelf to reveal and camera. She is wearing fancy and expensive revealing looking clothes. Black lace.


Mid-shot of her getting undressed. this suggests she is trying to entice the killer.

Cross cut to a snowy hill where lots of birds hang around pecking at something suggesting hidden body.

Low angle of an with bruises looking worn out and like he is mid-battle. Voice over continues ' Be careful, we don't know what we’re dealing with…’

Man stands at top of mountain holding a gun in the air. high angle shows very misty and foggy below he fires the gun

jump cut to a snow man on a hill, looks like a similar location.

following shot through a tunnel into some snowy hills.

Crosscut a seascape with hills in the background again. Very icy, a figure is dragging himself across the floor the left of the screen whilst someone is walking after him on the far right of the screen. The man on the floor resembles the fish from the beginning of the trailer.

Mid-shot of man opening a big wooden barn door.

Mid shot of man through a frosty glass window, trying to open the door. Very dark interior with a snowy white outside. The voiceover continues 'He has been watching us the whole time'.

A mid-close up of the same two men from a previous scene in the trailer. An over the shoulder shot is used from behind the man wearing a suit. He is looking at the man in the outdoor coat as he speaks.

Pan, close up of a snowman wearing gloves. outside the window. The snowmen are all white ass snow and white is often used to connote innocence. this element could be done on purpose to confuse an audience to if they should trust the snow or not. The singing from earlier returns to build pace.

A really quick shot of a man holding and aiming a gun at something off screen is used. The mood is dark and suggests dangerous moment. The slow voiceover contrasts against the quick cuts.

A birds eye view of a snow covered car is shown where the camera is focused on a snowman imprint on its roof. This is the killer’s signature suggesting there’s been another murder. The voice over continues ' Building snowmen, cutting things up into small pieces.'

A close up of a hand holding a piece of paper with drawings on. The drawings look like bodies with pieces detached. Fade to black



Scene fades in to woman in the foreground who is blurry with a window behind her and a face in the window. The voice over continues ' he is taunting us'.  When the woman turns around the face disappears.


A shot lasting half a second showing someone with their hands tied on a sofa. They’re faceless and it is a very vague and quick scene.

Mid close up of man looking up, concerned.

Jump cut to a mid-shot from behind so we see what he’s looking at. He is looking at CCTV. Suggesting is searching for information about the murders. The voice over continues 'If we don’t find him, this is never going to stop.'

Extreme close up of hands writing a name on a blue envelope.

The man with the gun, points it at a mountain, the person he's aiming at runs away. Shot reverse shot editing is used to then show his frustrated reaction to this event.

A man on top of a mountain wearing all black, shouts 'Come on' in a frustrated way as if he is struggling with his hunt to find the killer. There are lots of snowy trees in the background which could be a idyllic scene or location used in a different film. The settings and context within this film is very contrasting.

A quick montage is used which shows:

·         The front of a house with party lights,

·         A busy room full of nicely dressed people,

·         The female investigator with some champagne,

·         A man standing at a black fence looking out at the white background,

·         Black gloved hands inspecting a needle of some kind,

·         A woman in a red room with a man touching her,,

·         A female investigator walks into a lab, a voice over says 'another missing woman'

·         A woman walks out of the shower, high angle pointing at the floor showing snowy footprints. voice over continues ' there’s something were not seeing'

·         The fast pace montage continues with a man taking  a picture of a woman at the party,

·         A bright projector lights up an audience of people. The voice over continues: 'what matters most is that we celebrate the way this has brought us together'.

·         A dark shadowy figure looks at the person in hazmat suit,

·         mid shot of fancy guy making a toast (him saying voiceover part)

·         long shot of someone looking injured running away in snow, gets trapped by bear trap, its blonde woman from earlier, close up of her panic face of terror as she falls to the snow high pitched scream edited to go through you- like machinery

·         birds eye view of red car spinning out of control

·         dark figure facing fire outdoors in snow

·         two dark figures in dark room looks like man just threw girl on floor

·        Voiceover 'anyone can see that he is trying to hide something' man lying on floor looks dead                  and a girl sits on him stroking his head

·         people at party raising their glasses

·         over the shoulder shot of main girl talking

·         investigator man opens garage door looks in pain

·         little girl looks in horror screaming no

·         dead woman (mum) strapped inside red car, water slowly rising up her body

·        'you can't force the pieces to fit' -main guy close up      of his face framed to the left of screen directing    speech to camera

·         mid shot of someone wearing pig like animal mask, peering round corner in someone’s room

·         investigator girl on her bed looking vulnerable, looks scared low angle on her face

·         voiceover 'we could have saved them' 

·         she says 'no' jump cut to main guy with gun in snow

·         Jump cut back to girl looking distressed and shaking back and forth bent over, maybe being raped? clip not lasting a second

·         voiceover 'I gave you all the clues'

·         investigator looking angry and sweating and bruised

·         shot of writing on ice 'I'm doing this for you mister policeman' -childish writing

·         fire burning down shed blowing up in smokes, cut to main man screaming intense fire lighting scene

Very intense music helps keep the pace feeling fast and dramatic throughout the whole montage.

Cut to black (end of quick montage)

(Music stops)

Fade in ideal looking house

Investigator woman presses button to towards camera to open garage door.

Long shot of garage door opening.

Inside we see someone is waiting for her.

Close up of step ladder/stool with blood dripping on the floor.

Cut back to woman’s face as she gasps.

Cut to zoom in on garage door sliding up and snowman killer stood there with ice on his head looks like a reverse of the previous murders we’ve already seen.

She turns and runs away.

Close up of centre framing showing man’s body with snow man’s head with eye holes.

Zoom in closer to icy head.

Loud violin.

Cut black and blue writing says the snowman in icy font.
Footprint sounds and says 'October' official website and Production Company.

Trailer Research: Monster

The official trailer, for Monster, is 1 minute 50 seconds.

Editing techniques: Fast pace, cross-cutting, lots of fades and cut to blacks, animated futuristic inter-texts, CGI and night-cam elements.

Two main soundtracks are used in the trailer. In the beginning, there is a quiet soft string instrumental which builds and changes into loud dramatic tension building techno beat.

The trailer for Monster includes 90-100 shots.

There are two main characters and some alien monsters.

The trailer has 13 inter-text titles. They included some vague narrative explanations (eg. 'now they're residents). 

The trailer includes a billing block, ratings, name of the film and 'coming soon'.

The target audience for the film would be males 14-25. The BBFC certified the film as a 12A.

The trailer is not in chronological order.

The trailer features 10-15 locations/ settings, including the shipyard, a lake, a train, a war zone, a village, an army base, a house, long empty roads, tranquil historical rock, a forest and a swamp.

Very apocalyptic vibes.

As an audience, we don't get to see what they're running from properly, which makes you want to go and see the film to find out.