Our target audience for this film will be young adults, and the certificate will therefore be a 15. The main genre is Thriller, with a psychological sub-genre that determines our psychotic male character, Gilbert.
The film opens with a man preparing for a normal day at work. He then goes into another room, turns on the light and then reveals a wall covered in photos of a girl (Sky Harrison). At this point, the audience realises that this isn’t a normal situation, so the camera cuts to the Sky, tied up in a dark room. The audience then sees the same man wiping knives clean, before laying them out on a surface. Knives are typical props used in thriller films, intended to instil panic and fear into the audience. The visual effect of juxtaposing a shot of a man cleaning knives and a shot of a girl tied up in another room implies that something terrible is about to happen to her. The camera then returns to the dark room where Sky hears the sound of boots descending the stairs, and so the camera cuts to a close-up of the man's boots. The audience hears the man walking across the floor, and then a bright light illuminates her, showing her vulnerability and making her disorientated. Using a light in this way, isolates the character and instils a sense of panic in the audience. The man has drugged her beforehand to keep her quiet, and so when she calls out, her voice is slightly slurred. In response, the man steps boldly in front of the light, revealing all but a black silhouette. Typically in thriller films, 'bad' characters are dressed in dark colours to represent their evil personalities, which is why this is a good way to present the man to the audience.
The film opens with a man preparing for a normal day at work. He then goes into another room, turns on the light and then reveals a wall covered in photos of a girl (Sky Harrison). At this point, the audience realises that this isn’t a normal situation, so the camera cuts to the Sky, tied up in a dark room. The audience then sees the same man wiping knives clean, before laying them out on a surface. Knives are typical props used in thriller films, intended to instil panic and fear into the audience. The visual effect of juxtaposing a shot of a man cleaning knives and a shot of a girl tied up in another room implies that something terrible is about to happen to her. The camera then returns to the dark room where Sky hears the sound of boots descending the stairs, and so the camera cuts to a close-up of the man's boots. The audience hears the man walking across the floor, and then a bright light illuminates her, showing her vulnerability and making her disorientated. Using a light in this way, isolates the character and instils a sense of panic in the audience. The man has drugged her beforehand to keep her quiet, and so when she calls out, her voice is slightly slurred. In response, the man steps boldly in front of the light, revealing all but a black silhouette. Typically in thriller films, 'bad' characters are dressed in dark colours to represent their evil personalities, which is why this is a good way to present the man to the audience.
Following this, the girl's brother, Ben Harrison, is introduced, along with Sky's family, who believe the girl is on holiday abroad with friends. Unknown to Ben, the Sky's friends received a text from her mobile telling them that she cannot make it. Meanwhile, Ben notices there are things in his sister's bedroom that she would never leave behind, and is therefore certain that something is wrong. With no support from family members, he sets out to find her himself. During a frantic search of her bedroom, he finds her latest photos on her laptop and notices a similar figure in the background of each one. Almost immediately, he recognizes the stalker as Gilbert Anderson, and tracks him down to a house nearby. Unaware of the exact location of his sister, Ben waits for the stalker to leave the house, and then breaks in to find any kind of evidence that might lead him to his sister. In the midst of his snooping, he discovers the room filled with photos of Sky and too late hears the stalker re-enter the house. Slightly disturbed and anxious to remain unseen as he is the only one aware of his sister’s true whereabouts, Ben hides and leaves at the first opportunity, determined to go to the police. Once again, this relates to the theme of the thriller genre, because on of the main characters is commonly about to embark on a quest, either to seek revenge, or to justify a bad character with no sense of morality.
Sometime later, Ben returns with the police, who take a look around the basement, and find nothing. Again, unknown to Ben, Gilbert heard him leave the house, and immediately moved Sky out of the basement. The police leave, and Ben steals up the courage to break into the house alone again. He knows the police won't help him now, and so he must resolve the situation alone. A taxing fight scene ensues, another typical element of a thriller film, intended to instil panic and a sense of 'thrill' into the audience, and ultimately the fight leads Gilbert's death. Ben saves his sister, and Sky is taken to the hospital to recover.
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