Research into the history of thriller films - Introduction Miss Georgiou

Research into the history of thriller films

1950s:
In the 1950s Alfred Hitchcock continued to produce thriller films adding to his collection already was 'technicolor'. In 1951 he produced a thriller called 'Strangers On A Train', this was about two strangers on a train who are both staged a battle of wits and traded muredrs with each other. Another was 'Dial M for Murder' in 1954 this was about a husband who attempted to murder his wife, another film was 'Rear Window' yet another film produced in 1954 which was about a man who was convinced his neighbour was a killer. Another movie by Hitchcock in this period was 'To Catch A Thief' in 1955 and 'Vertigo' in 1958. Other films that were made in the 50s were movies such as 'Niagara' in 1953 by Henry Hathaway this film starred the famous Marilyn Monroe, she played a character who plots to kill her husband. Other films were Robert Aldrich's 'Kiss Me Deadly' in 1955 and Charles Laughton's 'The Night of The Hunter' also in 1955 which was about a preacher who victimised two young children with a secret, finally Orson Welles' unique crime thriller 'Touch Of Evil' in 1958.
1960s:
In the 1960s Michael Powell produced 'Peeping Tom' in 1960, which was about a psychopathic cameraman, the film was released prior to Hitchcock's 'psycho' also in 1960 which was about a loner and a mother. J.Lee Thompson released a production called 'Cape Fear' in 1962 which featured a menacing character seeking revenge. Stanley Donens stylish thriller of 1963 called 'Charade' which had numerous plots and twists, it showed a pair of characters on the search for hidden loot which takes them to Paris. Roman Polanski in 1965 released his first film in England which was the frightening and surrealistic 'Repulsion' which featured a young woman who goes increasingly mad. Terrance Young's 'Wait Until Dark' of 1967 was a famous thriller of its release date which was about a victimised blind woman in her Manhattan apartment and an evil con man in search for drugs. Films such as 'Harry Palmer spy trilogy' were inspired by James Bond films.Other spy films soon emerged, these were 'The Spy Who Came In From The Cold' of 1965, 'The Deadly Affair' in 1967 and 'The Triple Cross' also in 1967.
1970s - 1980S:
There was a violent wave of thriller films that were produced in this period, such as 'Frenzy' in 1972, this was Hitchcock's first British film for almost 20 years and it was given an 'R' rating for its explicit content. Steven Spielberg's early TV movie 'Duel' in 1971. In this period it brought the first film about an individual being disturbingly obsessed with their idol, this came in Clint Eastwood's 'Play Misty For Me' in 1971. John Boormans 'Deliverance' followed in 1972. In 1973 director Nicholas Roegs produced 'Dont Look Now' this film contained a tale of despair in Venice as a couple grieving the death of their daughter. Other 1970s thrillers include Francis Fords Coppola's tense thriller, 'The Conversation' in 1974, Irvin Kershner produced 'The Eyes of Laura Mars' in 1978 and Brian De Palma's psycho-thriller 'Sisters' in 1973. The 1980s produced 'Dressed to Kill' in 1980, the assassination thriller 'Blow Out' and 'Body Double' in 1981.
1990s - Present:
The 1990s started with Rob Reiner's 'Misery' in 1990 which was based on a book by Stephen King, then in 1991 came 'Sleeping With The Enemy'. Cutis Hanson produced 'The Hand That Rocks The Cradle' in 1992, the plot was of a nanny who was seeking revenge against her dead husbands patient. Jonathan Demme's produced 'The Silence Of The Lambs' also in 1991 where a young FBI agent is in a psychological war against a cannibalistic psychiatrist named Hannibal Lector, David Fincher brought us 'Se7en' in 1995 which was about a search for a serial killer who conducted seven deadly sins. Films produced today may contain Eden Lake in 2008, Unknown in 2011, Hostage in 2005 and Firewall in 2006. Some other films that have been produced in the last decade may contain Saw in 2004 and Insidious in 2010.

The first film that I am going to look at and describe why the film has enticed more figures in terms of audience figures than others. The first film I am going to look at is Hannibal. Hannibal has received the most amount of money from lifetime gross and openings, through seeing this we can see that Hannibal is one of the most viewed films. Hannibal's narrative shows that one man, named Hannibal Lecter, is a serial killer, the film is a psychological thriller. I believe the film has become well known as it was a different type of thriller, I believe this enticed more people to view the film. They also used a serial killer as a main character, to show what is going through his mind throughout the film, I believe this shows that by having a main character like this it helps to create a sense of tension and suspense throughout the film from the audiences point of view. The target audience for this film would be those who enjoy thriller films.
The second film that I am looking at and describe is the film Seven. Seven is about the seven dealy sins that are being relived throughout the film. The film Seven is the fourth film that has produced the most lifetime gross and the opening money that has been collected, we can also see that the film Seven has produced one of the most viewed films and has collected a lot of money through making this film. The narative of the film was to show the seven deadly sins being reinacted at the expense of innocent people. I believe many would watch this film as it shows the police on a chase to catch the killer. This thriller film shows many different aspects of thriller films, this is why, I believe, many have wached this film because it has many different twists and turns.
The third and final film that I am going to look at is Natural Born Killers. Natural Born Killers is about a couple who have been labelled as killers. Natural Born Killers starts off with an introduction and then gets straight into the action. The characters are shown as natural killers throughout the film, this is a very enticing film as it shows many killings occuring. The target audience would be people that enjoy murders occuring and films that have many different aspects of thriller techniques.