Elements of a Thriller

                          Suspense and Shock

Alfred Hitchcock was a the master of suspense whose films came to be the benchmark for psychological thrillers.

Alfred's famous quotes about suspense in thrillers:

• " There is no terror in the bang, only in the anticipation of it."
•  " If i's a good movie, the sound could go off and the audience would still have a perfectly clear idea of what was going on."
• " always make the audience suffer as much as possible"

       Suspense 'Thriller' - Hitchcock model

under the strong influence of Hitchcock, thrillers often begin with a crime and the accusation of  an innocent bystander. The accused contacts the authorities, no doubt the case could be promptly solved, but instead the poor bystander runs from the law thus further jeopardizing life and limb       - Rick Altman -

For example:

• 'The 39 steps' - 1935
• 'North by Northwest - 1959

"in 'The 39 steps': abandons both thrills and suspense when the falsely accused character finally reaches safety" - Rock Altman - 

Suspense refers to the audience knowing what the character in the film doesn't.

shock refers to an immediate event that occurs without warning: