Crime Thriller Movie Analysis Introduction

The genre of film i will be analysing is Crime Thriller, which is the genre we have picked for our movie. I will be analysing different aspects of the movies such as titles, mise en scene, shot types, sound, language etc, to help pick up ideas and inspiration for my own groups movie. The five films I have chose to analyse are Reservoir Dogs, No Country For Old Men, The Usual Suspects, True Romance and The Departed. These five films are films which are similiar to what we would like to create as our final piece, so from analysing and comparing them I can help give feedback to the group on what ideas I can put in.
 

TRUE ROMANCE
Directed by Tony Scott, Written by Quentin Tarantino, Distributed by Warner Bros.

Titles- The titles are swift blue which change quickly, which defines the pace of the movie and the high action intensity. The titles interchange over derelict run down areas of Detroit in the background, a city notorious for crime which also tells the viewer what to expect upon viewing this movie. The titles could give us ideas if we were to create a swift high action crime thriller, with a run down area of our own city in the background. The idea of swift changing titles to give the viewer an impression of high intensity correctly follows the codes and conventions of a crime thriller movie.

SHOT TYPES
When conversation takes place in True Romance, the shots are simple over the shoulder, shot reverse shot, close up or two shot, which is fairly normal but when action takes place the pace of the shots change, they switch quickly to different shots of gunfire and action. There are also long shots of shabby areas of Detroit present to reflect the crime life of the movie. This clearly reflects the codes and conventions of a crime thriller movie.

SOUND
The music present in True Romance are upbeat songs which dictate the action present in the movie, such as 80s glam rock like Aerosmith, or Billy Idol. Songs from True Romance include:
Aerosmith- The Other Side
Hans Zimmer- You're So Cool
Billy Idol- White Wedding
The voiceover and narration of the movie is one of deep topic which explores the main themes in the movie, such as crime, life in Detroit, drugs and gangs. This provided an idea for our group in which we could possibly have a voiceover which gives the viewer an insight on the themes of our own crime thriller movie, as well as a high intensity song played, like Aerosmith.



Mise En Scene- The setting of the movie is in Detroit, Michigan. Detroit is a city known for crime and gang warfare, which represents the main themes of the movie, drugs, violence and crime. The clothing involved is cheap fashion as the characters are not well off, which could also act as inspiration for our own storyline, involving a lower class character involved in crime. Props involved are obviously guns, cigarettes, alcohol  and drugs. The mise en scene from the movie clearly follows the codes and conventions of a crime thriller.

Language- The language present in True Romance involve topics such as crime, violence, romance and drugs, the main themes of the movie, as expected from a crime thriller movie, which follows the codes and conventions accurately. The deep emotive language provide an insight to the characters and let the viewer become in touch with the characters, empathise with them and relate to them in a way. There are subtle hints of comedy in the movie, to take away from the tension which is an intelligent idea that our group could possibly use.

Target Audience- The target audience for True Romance is ultimately fans of crime thriller movies, late teens early twenties, and beyond. The film is not suitable to younger audiences due to the themes involved, but the movie does a fine job in presenting the movie to the desired target audience, a crime thriller movie would not be aimed at children, so obviously follows the codes and conventions.

RESERVOIR DOGS
Written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, distributed by Mirimax Films

Language-  The language in Reservoir Dogs features two main themes in the movie, crime and violence. There is also a lot of talk about the failed diamond heist, with much profanity used to stress the tension an the angst atmosphere of the movie, this follows the codes and conventions of a crime thriller movie. There is often comedic references in the film to lighten the mood, and the smart dialogue and language used in reservoir dogs could inspire our own video.

Storyline-  The movie depicts the events before and after (not during) a failed diamond hesit. There are 8 characters who only know each other by a colour eg. Mr White, Mr Pink etc, but not each others names. The characters begin to suspect one of them is a police informant.

Shot types- The shot types of Reservoir Dogs whenever conversation takes place are nothing unusual and nothing specifically intended to emphasise the genre of the film, such as shot reverse shot, over the shouler shot, close up, two shot, steadicam etc. Whenever action is taking place, however, there are long shots during gun battles, two shots during fight scenes, with rapid changes between shots to emphaisse the high intensity of a certain scene. At one point of the movie, during a car chase, there is a camera positioned in the corner of the car and allows the viewer to see everything in the car, a slowly dying man in the back and a driver going insanely fast to avoid being arrested, which is a very smart camera shot and a possible idea for our own groups video. I believe the shot types in Reservoir Dogs accurately follow the codes and conventions for a crime thriller movie. Whats special about Reservoir Dogs is that there aren’t many shots, the film kept it simple and prevailed.

Mise en scene- The setting of the movie takes place in Los Angeles, which is a city often assosiated with crime. Most of the film, however, takes place in a run own warehouse, where the characters planned to rendezvous after the heist. This setting provides inspiration towards our own groups piece as we wish to have a smiliar area. The clothing involved is upper class, the characters are suited and booted and the props involved are guns, weapons, and lots of blood. The mise en scene in Reservoir Dogs follows the codes and conventions for the crime thriller genre.

Sound- The songs used in Reservoir Dogs are songs from the 60s to 80s, an uptempo variety of songs which dictate the pace of the movie. Songs involoved include: 

Stuck In The Middle With You- Steelers Wheel

Hooked On A Feeling- Blue Swede.
In this particular scene, the contrast of a happy song is clashed with the gruesome reality of the movie.

Titles- The titles of Reservoir Dogs are sharp and very quick, and there are only a few, this gives the viewer a preview of the swift and intense nature of the film, and it is clear it is a crime thriller movie before watching.

Target Audience- The target audience of Reservoir Dogs are older males, alike most crime thriller movies. The profanity and violence involved in the movie proves the film is not suitable for younger audiences.

THE DEPARTED

Directed by Martin Scorsese, Distributed by Warner Bros.

Titles- Once again, the titles of The Departed are swift, just like the other crime thriller films analysed. They are blue blocked capitals with a voiceover of life in Boston in the background, which gives the impression the film is about crime in Boston, which it in fact is, so this successfully follows the codes and conventions of a crime thriller movie. 

Language- The language in The Departed is at times profane to reflect the seriousness and tension from the movie. The topics of dialogue are when the 'good' people are involved, drugs, violence, gangs, rivalry, and whenever the 'bad' people are involved, the topic is the police.

Target Audience- The target audience of The Departed is the older audience, as it is not suitable to children due to the violence and unsuitable language at times. The target audience varies from males ages 18-50, and with Jack Nicholson involved as an actor in the movie, the older audience could watch.

Storyline- Two undercover men from opposite sides are hired to carry out investigations on each other, one the police, and the other a Boston gang. Both men attempt to discover each others real identity before there cover is blown.

Sound- The songs involved in The Departed are uptempo songs, ranging from genres such as hip hop, rock, punk rock and pop. These uptempo songs reflect the nature of the movie during shoot outs, but as the movie is a slow burner, slow songs are also involved in the film, to build tension. 

This song involves topics such as crime and thieving, key elements of the movie.

Shot Types- When action takes place in The Departed, the shot types involved are long shots, and in the final face off a long shot to fit all of the characters in, and swift camera shot changes to emphasise the speed of the scene. During conversation the camera shots are simple, with shot reverse shot, over the shoulder shot, close up and two shot all present.

Mise En Scene- The setting of the film is in Boston, a city associated with gang violence, a main element of the movie. This follows the codes and conventions of a crime thriller movie as you can not place a crime thriller movie in a peaceful country village. The clothing involved in The Departed involves police-wear, and in the gangs case, scraggy clothes and bandanas etc. Props include weapons, drugs etc.

THE USUAL SUSPECTS
Directed by Bryan Singer, Distributed by Spelling Films International