Research on Psycho-Thriller

These are the definitions according to Wikipedia:

Psychological – Elements that are related to the mind or processes of the mind; they are mental rather than physical in nature. Sometimes the suspense comes from within one solitary character where characters must resolve conflicts with their own minds. Usually, this conflict is an effort to understand something that has happened to them. These conflicts are made more vivid with physical expressions of the conflict in the means of either physical manifestations, or physical torsions of the characters at play.

Thriller – Generally, thrillers focus on plot over character, and thus emphasize intense, physical action over the character's psyche. Psychological thrillers tend to reverse this formula to a certain degree, emphasizing the characters just as much, if not more so, than the plot.

Psychological thriller – Characters are no longer reliant on physical strength to overcome their brutish enemies (which is often the case in typical action-thrillers), but rather are reliant on their mental resources, whether it be by battling wits with a formidable opponent or by battling for equilibrium in the character's own mind. The suspense created by psychological thrillers often comes from two or more characters preying upon one another's minds, either by playing deceptive games with the other or by merely trying to demolish the other's mental state.

Psychological Thrillers are much more intense and deep which makes them more serious. This could actually contradict the fact that people want an element of humour according to our questionnaire results; however it is clear that psychological thriller is the preferred sub-genre. Personally, our favourite is psycho-thriller so we have more knowledge of it.

Psychological Thrillers are very much focussed on the characters and their minds. They often just focus on one or two characters as to comply with the psychological element the audience must have an incite into the main character's mind. The plot has less focus, unlike average Thriller films.

Themes of a psycho-thriller:

Reality – This is where psycho-thrillers can become confusing -  the characters usually have uncertainty on what is real and what is not - characters are taken out of their normality and the comfort of their minds. The audience experiences this with them.

Perception – As we focus on main characters, particularly if it is in first person narrative, we see their perception of the world. This links to the idea of an unreliable narrator. How does the audience know they can trust the narrator

Mind – The human consciousness; the location for personality, thought, reason, memory, intelligence and emotion. The mind is often used as a location for narrative conflict, where characters battle their own minds to reach a new level of understanding or perception.

Existence/ Purpose - The object for which something exists; an aim or a goal humans strive towards to understand their reason for existence. Characters often try to discover what their purpose is in their lives and the narrative's conflict often is a way for the characters to discover this purpose.

Identity - The definition of one's self. Characters often are confused about or doubt who they are and try to discover their true identity.

Death - The cessation of life. Characters either fear or have a fascination with death.

Literary devices and techniques

• Stream of consciousness - a literary technique which seeks to describe an individual's point of view by giving the written equivalent of the character's thought processes. In psychological thrillers, the narrative tries to manifest the character's psyche through word usage, descriptions, or visuals.
• First-person narrative - a literary technique in which the story is narrated by one or more of the characters, who explicitly refers to him or herself in the first person, that is, "I". This direct involvement that the characters have with the story in turn makes the reader more involved with the characters themselves, and thus able to understand the mechanics of the characters' minds. This technique is often paired with the concept of the unreliable narrator.
• Back-story - the history behind the situation extant at the start of the main story. This deepens the psychological aspect of the story since the reader is able to more fully understand the character; more specifically, what the character's motivations are and how his past has shaped his current cognitive perceptions.