Evaluation

EvaluationJake WisemanHow does your media product represent particular social groups?

CharactersOur thriller film represents many different social groups. However, due to the genre and the length of our opening sequence we werent able to represent all social groups. We had a teenage girl, running away from the detectives, who represents teenage social groups and her suspicious behaviour also links her to the stereotyped hooded adolescent figure. The other main characters in our crime thriller, Silencer, are the two detectives. The two older male characters represent people with authority and control.

LocationsThe location of our thriller was primarily a large woodland environment. This was to create a sense of vulnerability in a relatively open area. The large shadows cast by the low level sun through the trees added to the sense of darkness through the film. The warehouse was used to create a sense of eeriness. The crumbling walls and bricks scattered across the floor represent destruction and damage overtime, linking to the psychological damage caused overtime by the death of the detectives wife.

Actors/ActressesWe decided to cast a younger looking girl as the murdered victim. This was to add to the portrayed vulnerability that is linked with young females. We also decided it would be good to have two male characters as the detectives as stereotypically the male gender are said to be more powerful. The two detectives were also slightly older looking than the other characters which made them seem like very authoritative characters.

MusicThe music in our thriller is a fast soundtrack that uses a variation of drums and string instruments. The tension it creates sets the pace and the emotion for the rest of the film and many other thrillers use this technique to instantly show the audience what the film aims to do. Along with the low pitch sound in the soundtrack we also used a contrasting high pitched sound to create moments of panic and tension. Sound played a vital part in the production of our thriller although it does not portray any stereotypes of social groups.

SpeechThe only speech in the opening of Silencer is the two detectives when the chase scene ends in the warehouse. The exclamation of FREEZE by D.I.Wiseman shows the authority the detective character has and the line put your hands where we can see them shows how the detective backs up his colleague in the tense moment. We think the fact that the female characters dont speak in the opening sequence shows the genders lack of power in the film and reflects on the helplessness of the detectives wife when she was raped.

LightingThroughout the opening sequence of Silencer we used a lot of natural lighting but used the shadows to create different atmospheres in the various shots. We also used the natural light to highlight key areas or distort and hide some aspects of the opening sequence. The fact the lighting is natural also conveys the idea of truth and contrasts with our overriding theme of hidden lies. We used back lighting through the door in this shot to create silhouetted figures when entering the warehouse.

BehaviourThe behaviour of the characters in our thriller Silencer was a key aspect in the films production. The suspicious hooded teenager represents the stereotypical troublesome teenage social group and her behaviour in terms of running away from the detectives and trying to hide adds to the mystery of who she is and why shes trying to get away. This stereotype means the audience will instantly think this character has done something wrong and that maybe she is the killer. On the other hand, the detective who shoots the teenager has a strange behaviour that the audience wouldnt expect to see from a detective inspector, this therefore adds to the curiosity the audience have about the characters and about their true identity.

ClothingWhen planning our thriller we thought carefully about the clothing our characters would need to wear. The victim had a skirt and a white strap top on when she was killed. White often symbolises purity adding to the innocence of the young girl. We used the young female social group as the victim as it is a common thriller convention and works well with the story of our protagonist with his psychological problem. The detectives had white shirts and black ties and coats. This smarter attire gave the upper class social group a look of power and authority which we thought was key in our film. The most recognisable clothing was worn by the teenage girl. Being suspected as the killer and being stereotypically seen as troublesome we decided she should have a hoody on and the hood should remain up until the end of the chase when she is stopped in the warehouse.

Now You See Me Louis LeterrierNow you see me is a crime thriller about a set of magicians who commit crimes in their magic shows and always seem to be one step in front of the detectives and agents trying to stop them. Silencer has similar aspects to this film because the detectives in both films are left confused and mislead by the characters they are chasing. The chase scene is also something that features in our film and the Louis Leterrier film. Social groups also match in our films because the older and more experience characters get out done by the younger characters. I think this is something that works well because many films would include the idea that the more experienced the character is the more advanced they will be, we challenged this conception.

Comparisons with other films

Memento Christopher NolanAnother film that Silencer has strong links with is Memento. Similarly, both films are crime thrillers and in this one a man with a psychological problem of short term memory less finds himself seeking revenge after his wife was raped and then brutally murdered. This links to our film because the protagonist in our film loses his wife after she gives birth to a product of rape. Also, the psychological problems begin after the incident in both films. D.I.Wiseman in Silencer and Leonard (played by Guy Pearce) in Memento both find them selves in dangerous situations when on the hunt for revenge. Male protagonist characters who have lost a loved one is a social class both films share and therefore they have a strong link.

Law Abiding Citizen Gary GrayThis action packed crime thriller, starring Gerard Butler, features a lot of different aspects that are similar to those included in Silencer. The male protagonist, Clyde Shelton (played by Gerard Butler) has his life taken away in front of his eyes when his wife and daughter are brutally murdered in their own home. Shelton then hunts down the men that killed them and puts them through brutal torture and records the whole thing on his camera which he later sends to the lead detective on the case Nick Rice, (played by Jamie Foxx). The protagonist in our film also seeks comfort through murder after his wife dies through horrible circumstances. Both D.I.Wiseman in Silencer and Clyde Shelton in Law Abiding Citizen are good guys gone bad. This social group of good guy gone bad is reflected in both films and shows how a characters identity can change so quickly. Furthermore, the two films both use a soundtrack with drums and strings to build tension and suspense in the opening sequence. Our film uses a chase scene to give a representation of the pace of the film and also to show a change of location, Law Abiding Citizen also uses chase scenes to produce moments of high tension and this is something that links it with our film.