History of thrillers

First Thriller Film

Rescued by Rover (1905)

• Based on a dog saving a stolen baby.
• Directed by Lewin Fitzhamon.
• Includes individual shots as small pieces of a larger jigsaw.
• It's a silent film that lasts six minutes.
• It created excitement that was unprecedented at the time.
• 400 copies were ordered which was very successful for that time.
• It was influenced by D.W Griffith who thought of parallel cutting.
• The boat scene creates tension as it shows him struggling to get across therefore making the audience anxious.

Alfred Hitchcock Films

Hitchcock is known as a major director for thriller films and his films have certain themes and trademarks that make Hitchcock and Auteur.

• Guilty Secrets and unhealthy relationships
• Sex and death
• Blonde female that often get killed of quickly and are portrayed as weak.
• Sick jokes
• Rubber-necking crowds
• Cameo appearances (Hitchcock playing a small character in the background/an extra in each one of his films)

The Lodger (1926)

• Hitchcock's first thriller film
• His first critical and commercial success
• It draws heavily on the German expressionist
• Includes angular sets, high contrast lights but also low key lighting to create exaggerated shadows
• He made the main female character die her hair blonde
• The film was almost not released due to the horrific scenes
• He made a cameo appearance with his wife in the film
• Silent Film

Blackmail (1929)

• This is Hitchcock's first full-length sound film
• It became a major triumph for Hitchcock in the film industry
• It use of sound in the knife scene became iconic. The word 'knife' is emphasized when the woman is talking by making it louder than the other words spoken, therefore its all we really hear. Hitchcock has done this because it shows that the female character is feeling guilty over stabbing and murdering a man who was attacking her and that it all she can think about.
• It is the film that confirmed Hitchcock as the most admired British director
• It included female vulnerability and male sexual aggression that Hitchcock is known for including in his films
• The film featured a heroine who enters a dazed or 'fugue' state which is emphasized in the knife scene
• There was a also a silent version of this film that was released
• The main female character was polish and once sound was introduced into the film industry so unfortunately was not cast in many films. In Blackmail, Hitchcock even replaced the polish actresses lines with a British woman voice. So even though the actress acted in the film, it is not her voice we are hearing.

The 39 steps (1935)

• Was voted the best film of 1935
• It was loosely based in 1925 adventure novel
• It had a $60,000 budget
• Hitchcock cast Hollywood actors and actresses in a British film so that it would reach USA as well as the UK
• In the film the protagonist is killed of quickly which is a well-known Hitchcock trademark
• There is also a cameo appearance from Hitchcock and a blond female character

Other famous thrillers films (not Hitchcock)

Brighton Rock (1947) directed by John Boulting

• This is a well-known gangster film
• The American gangster films emerged in the 1930's depression
• The film included certain themes such as suicide and manipulation.

The Third Man (1949) directed by Carol Reed

• Included zither music
• The consecutive shots in the film revealed the contradictory aspects
• The lighting in the film is fairly bright but bright enough to be harsh
• Holly Martins is in almost every scene.
• The female in this film develops her character from being fragile to becoming quite active in the plot.