Media Theory

Media theory
Nowadays, all the best thrillers follow two theories written by Levi Strauss and Roland Barthes. these two theories are Binary opposites, and Enigma codes.
Binary opposites
 Levi strauss was a french anthropologist  who lived in the early 1900s. He developed the theory that we understand certain words because of the different between them and their opposite, and not so much because we understand the word itself. He called it "binary opposites." For example, we understand the word villain because of the difference between it and its opposition in the word hero. binary opposites are used often in films, particularly the thriller genre. All the best thrillers will include binary opposites in the plot of the film. This will always be between a protagonist and an antagonist. For example in Batman, rise of the dark knight, we see Batman take on Bane after he has had his back broken. in this movie he is the underdog.

Enigma Codes
written by Roland Barthes are 5 codes explaining what makes a good thriller, these codes include; the Hermeneutic code, the Proairetic code, the Semantic code, the Symbolic code, and  the referential code. The hermeneutic code is when clues are dropped in a movie to the audience, that leave them with unanswered questions, this builds up suspense for the audience, and if these enigma codes are left unanswered the viewers will become impatient and fustrated. The proairetic code contains sequential elements of action within the text. The semantic code is when the plot to a movie has more than one meaning. these codes are commomly referred to as semes. The symbolic code stretches the differences within a film to present a larger meaning, it creates tension and drama in the development of the character. The referential code is when a character in the film has supernatural or scientific knowledge.

The hermeneutic code is dropped often in Thrillers, because thrillers are meant to give the viewers that off their seat feel. We see this in the medical thriller "Awake" where the main character Clay Beresford (Hayden Christensen) is under going surgery, and the surgeons  performing the surgery start discussing how they are going to kill him. In this film Christensen is awake during the surgery and hears his trusted surgeon and friend discussing how they are going to kill him, leaving him betrayed and confused about why they are doing this.

The proairetic code is used in the film "Awake" when we see Christensens subconcious body trying to desperately wake his real body up, going around the city that he lives in and realising that his attempted murder was set up by his Fiance and his close friend/surgeon (played by Terrance Howard) in attempts to get hold of his fortunes.

The semantic code is used in this film when because we see that the film isnt just about a realistic surgery errors that people may go through, but its also about betrayl from loved ones. We can see this when the surgeon Terrance Howard) and Clays girlfriend (Jessica Alba) are discussing whether the heart that is meant to be replaying Clays dying one has been injected with posion or not. and  and how a mother loves their child, as she takes her own life to give her heart to her son.

We see the symbolic code used in "Awake" when Clay starts to realise that he has been betrayed by his girlfriend and friend. He immidiantly develops a stronger, smarter personality and a direct understanding of what is happening.

The referential code is put to use when Clays mind leaves body and he is walking around. He is aware of what is happening but the people preforming the act on him are oblivious.

Character theories
Vladmir Propp had the theory that all narratives have 8 main characters that play all equally measured roles in the film, and that without them the film wouldnt be as good as it could be. These characters include:

• the villain - disrupted by the hero, often defeated by the hero after long battles.
• the dispatcher - lets the hero know of the villain, sends him on missions and teaches the hero how to beat the villain.
• the helper - helps the hero in the quest, digs the hero out of trouble when they are in need of help
• the princess - hero tries to win her over, but is unable because of unfair evil. The villain will use the her as a means of defeating the hero. Hero is able to save the princess and marry her when he has defeated the evil.
• the donor - prepares the hero, gives them the equipment required to be able to battle the villain.
• the hero - disrupts the villain, long winded battle with him, sponsored by the donor, wins the princess over.
• false hero - takes credit for what the hero has done in attempts to win over the princess, usually ends up helping the hero defeat the villain but dies or loses something of value.

the classic hollywood narrative:

• routine life - when the problem is introduced
• problem solving - the character logically works through creating a story
• problem resolved - end of the problem, life goes back to normal

The male gaze
the male gaze is the idea that in most films, female characters are sexualized by the camera in a way that heterosexual supposedly do. The camera follows female bodies, capturing every curve. Feminists see this as degrading to women, as they feel that they have been reduced to an object.