Research Essay

Why do people watch films?

People of different ages and genders watch films for different reasons. They also watch different genres of films. Girls for example, may watch a film because of a certain emotion or situation within it that she feels that she can relate to. A boy, on the other hand, may watch a film for the adrenaline rush that he can gain from it. These, however, are typical stereotypical views on male/female film interests. Some girls enjoy an action or horror film as much as a guy may enjoy a romantic comedy. Another reason a person may watch a film is to relax. Many say that watching a film with someone or even on their own is a good way to relax because they can loose themselves in the storyline of the film. The actors and actresses within a film play a big part in who watches a film. If a certain actor/actress is in a film some people say that they would watch it just for them. Boys and girls alike have said that if the lead character is attractive their want to watch the film is greatly increased.

A professor of psychology called Susan Burggraf once looked into why people watch horror/thriller films. She had several theories on why people watch horror films. One of her theories was called the “relief theory”. This explored the idea that the relief at the end of the film made the mood of the person lift in a way as to make them empathetic towards the protagonist. This made them see the character as a “friend in distress”. She also stated that the film can create a feeling of excitement that causes arousal once the fear of the situation has worn off. It was called the “snuggle effect”, this is supposedly why films of this nature are a favorite choice for dates among males. These ideas seem to add up, their fundamentals can be easily examined by creating a questionnaire to gather people's opinions. However, these results may be subject to age and gender. The older a person may be the less active the “snuggle effect” may be. Also, female viewers may not want to initiate the same effect the way that male viewers might. This is because girls are typically seen as the more emotional and shy sex and in many ways seem to live up to these views. Her other theory was called the “continuous reward theory”, this was split into two main categories; the “arousal theory” and the “social theory”. The “arousal theory”, like within the “relief theory”, would see the sensation of excitement caused by the film to create a heightened sensation which would often lead to arousal. Burggraf states that this is most common within adolescents because they crave a sensation such as this. The “social theory” is an interesting exploration of how people react to a horror film when they are in a group compared to how they react on their own. The study showed that the gender roles are often played out. (Girls are the emotional ones while boys are the braver audience.) It also showed that the influence of the people around the viewer within the situation makes a large difference in how they react. If the viewer is in a group of friends they may use them to distract themselves from the film. They may talk to the people around them; look at the others to gage their reaction in order to see how they should be reacting. People within a group audience also appear to not feel the fright as much as they would if they were alone. A typical film that this effect could be seen with would be “Scream”. After watching the film, many of the people who I asked said that they would have reacted differently alone than they did in a large group. This is because the feeling of safety is enhanced when there are more people around you, while you are on your own, you feel vulnerable and are easily scared.

When asked, many people said that they watched films simply because it was something that they enjoyed doing. They said that they enjoyed getting engaged within the storyline of the film and being able to relate to the characters. This tied in with the fact that out of the nine females asked, six of them said that their favourite genre of film was a romantic comedy. Out of those six females, four said that they watch them so that they can relate to the emotions of the characters and maybe even feel something completely different to what they were originally feeling. Two of the six said that they enjoy romantic comedies for the basic story line. How the characters interact with one another and the story of how they live their lives in parallel before they intertwine in “such a beautiful way”. This relates back to Burggraf’s “relief theory” where females are more often the shyer and more emotional sex. They relate to films such as romantic comedies easier than men because it is thought that men find it harder to think about their feelings. The other two genres that were most popular were action and comedy. Both came up between males and females and yet the men that I spoke to liked action more than the girls.

Another reason for watching a film that came up was to get a broader knowledge of other cultures and ways of life. This was an evenly split point between males and females. They use films as a basic information source about other people’s lives and cultures. How different countries would deal with a given situation. An example of this would be a film called “In Bruges”. It is an action film set in Belgium. The main characters are ‘hit men’ and they are lead by a merciless boss. The film is able to explore the lifestyle of these people while keeping a certain distance. It is able to show how people within this profession aren’t always heartless and sometimes do feel guilt for what they have done.

I asked the nine men and the nine women whether they would watch a thriller film. Four out of the nine girls said that they would and seven out of the nine men said that they would. This is a close representation of the male sex being seen as “strong” and “brave”. I then went on to ask what effects thriller films have on them. I grouped the results collectively and all eighteen of the people questioned said that thriller films make their adrenaline levels raise a great deal. They also said that the suspense and fear tie as the second strongest emotions. Other emotions that were said to be present were excitement and “jumpiness”. After doing some secondary research I was able to find out that these emotions are said to be the highest rating when people were asked the same question. Other emotions that were gained through secondary research were; sadness, happiness, nausea and terror.

In conclusion I feel that the main reason for watching a film varies on who is watching the film. For girls and boys it is different, females tend to lean towards the emotional side of a film while men tend to lean towards the action side of a film. I also think that while Susan Burggraf’s theories may hold up to in some areas, others are widely questionable.

Hitchcock Essay

To What Extent Is ‘Psycho’ A Typical Thriller?

Thriller films can be split into many subgenres. However, all of these subgenres would include the codes and conventions that make them, noticeably, a thriller film. Codes and conventions for this genre typically include quick cuts between frames, the quicker the cut the more action is going to be happening on screen and more of an atmosphere is made. Camera angles also help make the genre what it is, by switching between high, low and ordinary angles the audience is able to recognise what is going to happen within the film. The music that the film uses to create tension is a clear signal of a thriller film and the music is always made up of stringed instruments. The lighting within a typical thriller is usually dark and contrasting, half bright and half shadows. The use of shadows is a strong theme within the thriller genre, so is the use of mirrors, corridors and staircases to create a tense atmosphere or help build up to a key sequence within the scene.

The thriller genre is completely separate from the ‘horror’ genre even though they are often confused with one another. The horror genre uses a lot of gore and the violence within the films is substantially greater than within thriller films. Thriller films focus on giving the audience a sense of tension, to build up to the action rather than have it all there straight away. The focus of a thriller film is specifically that; to thrill the viewer, to make them scared using psychological techniques. A psychological thriller is a subgenre within the main genre. There are many other subgenres within thriller including; disaster thrillers, crime thrillers, supernatural thrillers and horror thrillers.

One of the most famous horror thrillers is Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘Psycho’. It shows all the codes and conventions of a successful thriller film and from start to finish follows a stable plot line. There is, however, a twist. Like many thriller films, what is laid out in front of the audience isn’t always what it appears to be. The title sequence of ‘Psycho’ is the first clue we get as to what the film is going to be like. The music that introduces us to the film is the same string section that is used when tension is trying to be built up. The simple black and white text that is used doesn't give us a distraction which means that the music is able to hold our attention. The bars that are used to bring in and take out the credits could be hinting towards the disorientation of the mind that is evident in the film.

Psycho is a good example of a thriller film that plays with our expectations of what is meant to be, in real life. The policeman within the film appears to be edgy and suspicious. This distorts the way in which we, as typical people, think of police officers; as a figure of authority and reason. The camera angles and the editing helps to add to this effect. The panning movements of the camera make it seem like he's watching the woman (main character) and the sharp cuts between these long scenes to build the tension even more. He also follows her in his car which is another typical trait of a thriller film as well. It helps to build up the plot and is another way of building up the tension of the scene. By disorientating our senses the films makes the audience edgy, at which point they try to predict what is going to happen in order to make themselves feel comfortable again.

The main, and most famous scene of the whole film is quite early. This seems to be a trend within thriller films. For example, in 'Scream' the “worst” part of the film is right at the beginning. The shower scene is the most iconic scene in thriller history and many films have copied elements of it since. The stringed music plays a great part in the build up of tension; as do the camera angles. The scene uses a high up angle on the woman's naked shoulders. This makes the main female character appear vulnerable to the audience. The silhouette that can be seen on the outside of the curtain gives a huge boost to the build up of the scene and makes us able to guess what is going to happen. Sharp, fast cuts are used within this scene from all angles. This makes the action seem more intense and the tension is brought to it's peek. Even though the knife doesn't actually make contact with the woman's skin the fast cuts that are done in editing mean that this isn't important, the effect is all in the editing.

Psycho is a genre defining film. It was made in the 1960's and films even today are using it as a source of influence. For example, 'No Country For Old Men' uses a scene that is shot from a high angle, looking down on a sink where the murderer is washing his hands. This scene was also used within Psycho and is just one of the many examples of modern thrillers using Alfred Hitchcock's influences.

After studying Psycho in detail, I have come to the conclusion that it is definitely a typical thriller film and one that has paved the way for modern thriller films. It contains all the codes and conventions of a typical thriller and definitely thrills the audience.