Sub-Genres (Hartt)

Sub Genres

Conspiracy Thriller:

• Consists of some sort of hero or heroine who stereotypically journalist or armature investigators.
• Enemies who try to keep the secret organisations alive through lies and propaganda.
• These companies are brought down by the protagonist character.
• This type of genre plays with the identification that good overrules evil.
• These types of thrillers often play with the secrecy of governments and major organisations in history

JFK Plot: A mixture of fact and speculation surrounding the death of U.S. President John F. Kennedy on 22nd November, 1963. New Orleans District Attorney, Jim Garrison, re-opens the files on the investigation and takes a critical look at the facts given by the F.B.I. His persistent questioning and poking his nose where it shouldn't be causes his and his family's lives to be at risk. But he keeps on the trail and soon uncovers a lead which points to the war in Vietnam

This links in to the conspiracy thriller genre as it has a hero who tries to take down the President John F Kennedy.
 

Crime Thriller:

• Crime thrillers often focus on the criminals and their activities leading up to the crime.
• Crime thriller usually emphasis the action over the psychological aspects.
• There is also a psychological part to this particular genre.
• Central topics of the crime thriller consists of serial killer and murderers, robberies, chases, shootouts, heists and double-crosses.

        











 

Inside Man plot: From a cell, a man tells us he has planned the perfect bank robbery; he invites us to watch. An efficient gang enters a Manhattan bank, locks the doors, and takes hostages. They work deliberately, without haste. Detective Frazier is assigned to negotiate, but half his mind is occupied with the corruption charges he is facing. The bank's president has something to protect in a safe deposit box, so he brings in Madaline, a high-power broker with a hidden agenda. With an army of police surrounding the bank, the thief, the cop, and the plutocrat's fixer enter high-stakes negotiations. Why are the robbers asking for a plane, if they are so competent and they know they won't get one? Why aren't they in more of a hurry? If the job's perfect, why is the thieves' leader in a cell

This links in with the crime thriller genre as the man is planning of committing a robbery which is a criminal offence.

Disaster Thriller:

• This particular genre follows a certain group or persons survival in conflict with natural or artificial disasters like floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, volcanoes etc.
• Many disaster films also have disasters from human activities that has brought mankind to the brink of distinction.
• This type of genre plays with what the future is going to bring if such disasters were to happen.

2012 Plot: Dr. Adrian Helmsley, part of a worldwide geophysical team investigating the effect on the earth of radiation from unprecedented solar storms, learns that the earth's core is heating up. He warns U.S. President Thomas Wilson that the crust of the earth is becoming unstable and that without proper preparations for saving a fraction of the world's population, the entire race is doomed. Meanwhile, writer Jackson Curtis stumbles on the same information. While the world's leaders race to build "arks" to escape the impending cataclysm, Curtis struggles to find a way to save his family. Meanwhile, volcanic eruptions and earthquakes of unprecedented strength wreak havoc around the world.

This links with the Disaster thriller genre as the world is faces with a natural disarter threatening to end the world. There are only a few survivers.

Mystery Thriller:

• This particular sub genre relates to a lot to crime thrillers.
• Focuses of the efforts of a detective or a private investigator in order to solve the mystery.
• It looks at the circumstances of the mystery or the crime itself in order to figure out what the clues are.

Shutter Island Plot: It's 1954, and up-and-coming U.S. marshal Teddy Daniels is assigned to investigate the disappearance of a patient from Boston's Shutter Island Ashecliffe Hospital. He's been pushing for an assignment on the island for personal reasons, but before long he wonders whether he hasn't been brought there as part of a twisted plot by hospital doctors whose radical treatments range from unethical to illegal to downright sinister. Teddy's shrewd investigating skills soon provide a promising lead, but the hospital refuses him access to records he suspects would break the case wide open. As a hurricane cuts off communication with the mainland, more dangerous criminals "escape" in the confusion, and the puzzling, improbable clues multiply, Teddy begins to doubt everything - his memory, his partner, even his own sanity.

This links in with the mystery thriller genre as the main character wants to take up an assignment on the island.
 

 Political Thriller:

• The sub genre looks into the stability of a government and the reliance of a hero or heroine who must insure the stability of the government that employs him in order to prevent bad things from happening.
• commonly use scenarios are the US presidential elections and the preventions of world wars occurring.

State of play plot: A petty thief is gunned down in an alley and a Congressman's assistant falls in front of a subway - two seemingly unrelated deaths. But not to wisecracking, brash newspaper reporter Cal McAffrey who spies a conspiracy waiting to be uncovered. With a turbulent past connected to the Congressman and the aid of ambitious young rookie writer Della Frye, Cal begins uprooting clues that lead him to a corporate cover-up full of insiders, informants, and assassins. But as he draws closer to the truth, the relentless journalist must decide if it's worth risking his life and selling his soul to get the ultimate story

This links with the Political Genre as it looks into the stability of the government.
 

Psychological Thriller:

• The is the quintessential sub-genre of thriller that is implemented into all the sub-genre.
• It plays with the audiences minds and produces suspense in films because it reflects on the main characters conflict being mental or emotional hindered.
• It show the mentality of the characters and the thought processes that they go through which makes the sub-genre so suspenseful.

Psycho Plot: Phoenix officeworker Marion Crane is fed up with the way life has treated her. She has to meet her lover Sam in lunch breaks and they cannot get married because Sam has to give most of his money away in alimony. One Friday Marion is trusted to bank $40,000 by her employer. Seeing the opportunity to take the money and start a new life, Marion leaves town and heads towards Sam's California store. Tired after the long drive and caught in a storm, she gets off the main highway and pulls into The Bates Motel. The motel is managed by a quiet young man called Norman who seems to be dominated by his mother

This links with the psychologcal thriller genre as it emphasis the murder of the main femal character and tries to discover who the murderer keeping the audience in suspense.

Religious Thriller:

• This sub-genre connects the the plot closely religious objects,institutions and questions.
• Many religious related films usually unravel the good and bad points about religion in particular the catholic belief.
• This connoting the good and how it overcomes the bad in films, through a quest to finding out the truth.

The Davinci Code Plot:Symbologist Robert Langdon is thrown into a mysterious and bizarre murder. Alongside Langdon is the victims granddaughter and cryptologist Sophie Neveu, who with Robert discovers clues within Da Vinci's paintings. To further find the truth, Robert and Sophie travel from Paris to London, whilst crossing paths with allies and villains such as Sir Leigh Teabing and Silas. Wherever their path takes them, their discovery which is about to be revealed could shake the foundations of mankind.

This links with the Religious thriller genre as it connects to a religious plot.
 

Supernatural Thriller:

• Supernatural thriller often brings the unworldly element that shows something out of the ordinary happening to the protagonist that has to overcome this powerful factor.
• This genre is also mixed with tension and suspense in addition to also having unsuspected twist during the film.
• The protagonist or villains usually have a supernatural gift that helps them get to the source of the problem.
• This sub-genre is very closely linked to the religious thrillers as usually demons entering the human body, alien life form, apparitions or possession of pivotal character is a element of supernatural thriller films.

The Others Plot: A woman named Grace retires with her two children to a mansion on Jersey, towards the end of the Second World War, where she's waiting for her husband to come back from battle. The children have a disease which means they cannot be touched by direct sunlight without being hurt in some way. They will live alone there with oppressive, strange and almost religious rules, until she needs to hire a group of servants for them. Their arrival will accidentally begin to break the rules with unexpected consequences

This links in with the supernatural force as it has unworldly experiences.

Techno Thriller:

• Techno thrillers look into that manipulation of  sophiticated technology playing a prominant part in taking over the world giving the new world order where mankind is over run by robots.
• This particular sub- genre is mainly based on fictional speculations on life that tends to follow a science fiction trend.
• Common themes linked in with this sub-genre is world wars, action and science fictional occurances like aliens taking over with new technologies.

I Robot Plot: Set in a future Earth (2035 A.D.) where robots are common assistants and workers for their human owners, this is the story of "robotophobic" Chicago Police Detective Del Spooner's investigation into the murder of Dr. Alfred Lanning, who works at U.S. Robotics, in which a robot, Sonny , appears to be implicated, even though that would mean the robot had violated the Three Laws of Robotics, which is apparently impossible. It seems impossible because.. if robots can break those laws, there's nothing to stop them from taking over the world, as humans have grown to become completely dependent upon their robots. Or maybe... they already have? Aiding Spooner in his investigation is a psychologist, Dr. Susan Calvin, who specializes in the psyches of robots.

This links to the techno thriller genre as it has robots that cause a world wars, action and science fiction occurrences.