1. Q2. How does your film represent social groups?
Media Studies: Thriller Opening Evaluation

2. What does your film opening imply/say about social
groups?
Our Thriller opening has a complex representation of social, particularly in how social groups are presented
differently to stereotypical conventions. Within our thriller opening, we introduce social groups such as age and
gender differently to how other films may present them, challenging our audience to see social groups from a
different perspective, testing stereotypes of average antagonists/protagonists, as well as groups of age and
gender.
Our representation of the protagonist within our film challenges general conventions, as our actor Laurie has an
appearance that challenges the idea of a victim. His mohawk styled hair and general tall build present someone
that stereotypes may fit into a character that exhibits violence, usually the theme of opposition within Thrillers,
however rather than the antagonist, we have used Laurie to play our protagonist, challenging these stereotypes
and presenting him as a victimised character even though his appearance may present him as a villain. This
stereotype, stemming from the punk era, has meant that within Thrillers aspects of costume such as a dyed
mohawk has been interpreted to mean corruption and deceit.
Challenging this interpretation is something we have done to make the audience feel encouraged to sympathise
and understand a character who is stereotyped to be immoral, positioning them to see another side to the
stereotype. Because of this, our representation of this social group is progressive, as it presents them as someone
who can be victimised, instead of being the antagonist.

3. Gender
Our Thriller features both a male and female, who are both key characters to the plot, especially within our opening. The
characterisation of our male presents him as a victim, and he is emasculated within the opening of our film due to being
kidnapped. This presents the male gender in a negative light, as he is portrayed as weak and helpless, and unable to defend
himself. This is a progressive take on how gender is presented within our film, as males are most often presented as heroic
and strong, and within modern film often fit into either the stereotype of being the ‘knight in shining armour’ or the
antagonist. Our representation of our male protagonist immediately being shown as weak in the opening challenges this
stereotype, presenting a realistic representation of men to the audience, rather than stylised versions of the male gender that
present them as undefeatable.
Furthermore, the male gender is further emasculated due to the introduction of our female character, who on first sight is
introduced to the audience as the saviour of our male character, presenting an immediate change of roles often found within
film. Women are often presented as weak and dependant on males, a stereotype challenged within our Thriller due to our
male character being dominated by the female, and our female being characterised to show deviant behaviour that challenges
the stereotype of fragility and innocence. Because of this, our representation of the female gender is progressive, as it
challenges misogyny in this way. However, the characterisation of our female character is inspired by the classic femme fetale
found in film noir, meaning that like this iconic character, our own female character has been sexualised, creating a view of a
misogynist representation within her character too. Although within our film we have focused on her purpose and
characterisation of heroism, averting from the traditional representation of femme fetales being morally corrupt and intent on
evil, consequently allowing us to put our own progressive and contemporary twist on the character.
Within our film there is a clear divide within gender, as male and females have there own purpose, a binary opposition
between our characters because of their differences in what they want. However in our plot our two characters do join forces,
withstanding conflict within gender which is also a positive and progressive representation.
Overall our representation of gender is progressive, as we challenge stereotypes often within gender. The presentation of the
female saving the male establishes the difference in power between both characters, as our female character understand the
brutality of the world they are in, whereas the male is clueless, swapping the stereotypes often found.

4. Age
Our Thriller opening suggests that young people face hardships when living in contemporary Britain, as we show
that they are revealed to a world of immorality and crime, and our representations of young people show it can be
hard not to fall into this world when wanting to achieve. Even before our protagonist is exposed to this world of
crime, we have introduced him with a negative representation, our use of alcohol showing irresponsibility, perhaps
accentuating that it is difficult to live as a young person without aid of drinking recklessly.
Our Thriller also presents the younger generation as having a pessimistic attitude toward life. Our protagonist is
characterised as someone already at a low point in life, his attitude presenting him as negative through his posture
and our use of props showing he is drinking alcohol. These are factors that point towards this depressed and
hopeless characterisation, a cliché representation often found within young people in film.
This representation of the younger generation could be found relatable to our target audience, as they will be a
similar age to our actors. This could create fear among the audience, as these representations may touch upon their
own lives. This representation of younger people is very relevant within the modern age, as it is being more difficult
for that generation to find stability in their lives, perhaps leading to paths that involve crime and mistrust of the
older generation.
If our Thriller opening was a feature length film, then we could adapt these representations and show conflict
between the older and younger generation. We could explore why our protagonist is presented like this, perhaps it
being a consequence of distrust of the older generation, or neglection as a child.