the third man - generic thriller conventions
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The Third Man Thriller Generic ConventionsTRANSCRIPT
“ T H E T H I R D M A N ” B Y C A R O L R E E D ( 1 9 4 9 )H O W R E A D U S E S , D E V E L O P S A N D
C H A L L E N G E S T H R I L L E R G E N E R I C C O N V E N T I O N S I N T H I S I C O N I C N O I R
T H R I L L E R . By Thomas Cutmore
H O W G E N E R I C C O N V E N T I O N S O F A T H R I L L E R A R E U S E D I N T H E T H I R D M A N
The scenery used in the mise-en-scene to create a
nightmare/dystopia as the buildings around Holly make him
look small and lost as the buildings are all different sizes
and heights.
Also another thriller convention is used where the streets
are shiny, which, linking to a nightmare, make Vienna
unreal, and as if Holly was in a completely different world.
The way that the whole city is shown in the buildings and
streets make Vienna seem as a labyrinth that Holly cannot
get out of, and that it seems he’s locked inside a nightmare
which he can’t escape
EXAMPLES OF ‘NIGHTMARE’ V IENNA
Makes Holly seem small and lost as everything is ‘out of proportion’ and bigger than he is, making it seem like a nightmare
The buildings of Vienna look gloomy, gothic and crowded, making it seem that there is no way out for Holly
OTHER CONVENTIONS USED IN V IENNA SCENE
In the scene, vanishing points were used to give
the audience an idea that there was no way out and
that they were trapped with Holly in a Labyrinth in
Vienna. This is used as it creates an idea of the city
almost acting as a nightmare as you feel closed in
and lost as the buildings create a claustrophobic feel
and the vanishing points act as a ‘path to no where’
as you can’t see where they go/around them.
THE VANISHING POINTS USED
THE USE OF TILT
Another generic convention of a thriller that Reed
uses is the use of tilt. This is used to show that
things ‘aren’t real’ or that it’s twisted or evil as it
plays with the audience’s vision because of the angle
causes them so see the area in a different
perspective, such as low down, venerable or
confused, making them feel that things are not right
or that the actor is twisted as you see him on a tilt
(for example, when Harry Lime is seen briefly by
Holly)
THE USE OF TILT
THE CHARACTERS
Holly Martens – Holly is a very naive character as he sends
himself out to Vienna, a divided city and somewhere he’s
never been to find his brother, who appears to be dead until a
series of events lead him to finding him. He is also seen as
naïve as he does not understand any of the language spoken,
which in the film leads him to trouble as he is accused of
murder, and as they speak in Austrian, and he doesn’t
understand but ‘pushes them away’ and it turns them on him
more. He is also seen as a humble and innocent character as
if he is just there to find his brother and not cause any trouble
INTERTEXUAL REFERENCES WITH HOLLY
MARTENS
An intertexual reference with Holly Martens would be
Truman Burbank out of ‘The Truman Show’. Holly Reminded
me of Truman as they are both ‘innocent’ people as they want
to just live a happy life and not cause any trouble or hassle
with anyone. Another feature that the two characters share
are their names; Holly Martens and Truman Burbank seem
like two humble names, making the people seem as if they
were ‘average’ citizens and don’t hold anything about them
that can change their character i.e. unlike Harry Lime where
he is a player on people and that he ‘wears a mask’ to hide it
Both characters are seen to be ‘innocent’ and trust worthy, but also ‘unattractive’ to the audience as they hold nothing different about them, they are just ‘average’ characters
THE CHARACTERS (CONTINUED)
Harry Lime – Harry Lime is a binary opposite to Holly
Martin as Holly is seen to be innocent and ‘average’,
while Harry is seen to be sly and sleek and also towards
the women, better looking than Holly. Harry is seen to
be ‘wearing a mask’, hiding his real self as he wants to
act calm and easy because of his confidence in his work
as a black market seller and does not want to look
obvious. He also tends to act as an illusion, as if he was
never there as Holly sees him for the first time in a
doorway when the light turns on and Harry’s face is
revealed, but when it turns off he ‘vanishes’, this shows
he is enigmatic and that no one knows the real him.
INTERTEXUAL REFERENCES WITH HARRY
LIME
Harry Lime reminded me in his character and
personality of the Joker out of The Dark Knight as
both characters are seen to be ‘careless’ and don’t
take reality seriously as they have a cool attitude
towards everyone. Harry also reminds me off the
Joker as they both play with people’s minds and also
one off the other as they use them to get to the next,
not caring what happens to them, and uses them for
the benefit of themselves.
The ‘why so serious?’ impression in both of the characters that give the audience an idea that they are sly and sleek in being in situations involving themselves and others, for example, The Joker in Prison with Batman and Harry Lime being spotted can spiral off into chaos between the characters, but they don’t seem bothered
THE USE OF ENIGMA WITH CHARACTERS.
Another generic convention that Reed uses is the
use of enigma in the characters such as Anna and
Harry Lime. These two characters are ‘hard to read’
and are difficult to see the ‘real them’.
This generic convention used to this causes the
audience to wonder and think the true personality
behind the character and wonder how and who they
really are.
INTERTEXUAL REFERENCES BETWEEN
ANNA AND HARRY
Anna: - The way Anna is enigmatic and that you
can’t see who she really is/the personality within her,
her character almost links to the Mona Lisa Smile
painting as you can’t tell the real meaning behind
the painting and the smile.
Harry: - Harry Lime however still links with the
Joker as he is seen to be wearing a ‘mask’ which
hides the real him with his confident personality.
ANNA AND THE MONA LISA SMILE
The ‘un readable’ face
HARRY AND THE JOKER
The ‘mask’ they both wear to hide their true emotions