This document provides an analysis of several scenes from the film "War of the Worlds" and discusses how they build suspense and tension. It examines shots that depict characters hiding from aliens and the fear of being caught. It also analyzes scenes that slowly reveal threats, like a tripod emerging, to gradually increase suspense. Further, it discusses scenes without visible attackers that heighten unease and shots where characters react to unseen dangers. Overall, the document discusses how the film utilizes various cinematic techniques commonly found in thriller movies to construct suspenseful moments and engage audiences.
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2. In this scene from war of the worlds we are shown the
humans hiding from the alien camera snake, this is one of
the most nerve racking scenes in the film as they are less
than a foot from being caught and imprisoned by the alien
ship, this help us know that war of the worlds is a thriller as
the level of suspense is extremely high.
In this shot we are shown Rachel from Rays point of view
when he is trapped in the ruined car by the alien, this scene
is symbolic as it represents the broken relationship between
daughter and father also due to the fact she is stood on the
ridge with darkness behind her shows us her vulnerability
and this leads to intense and higher levels of suspense.
In this scene when Ray first sees the alien tripod, a low
angle shot is used to show that the tripod was the
character in power we see all people start to panic and
run although the tripod has shown no sign of aggression
at this point this shows the fear that humanity has in the
unknown this helps build the suspense of the film and
shows the audience that humanity is the weaker race
3. In this next clip Ray is running away from the the tripod
once it has started going crazy n destroying buildings and
killing people, this is slightly different for a thrillers as
usually the violence is subtle where as in this certain film
its very open conflict and destruction.
This shot of the tripods emergence trailer before it has
actually been seen is a very good way of building up
the suspense as the tripod has not just jumped out and
started killing, it slowly rises and scans its surrounding
before it starts killing. This is a useful technique used by
film creators in thrillers as it builds suspense and
wonder.
In this next shot we see Ray laid out on the floor
after he was knocked down by a shock wave, in
this scene we are then shown the tripod for the first
time from an eye line match from what Ray is
looking at as he camera moves slowly we have
time to see the expression on Rays face and then
the tripod this all builds suspension.
4. In this scene we see the highly destructive stage of the
film this is a good shot that is used in most thriller films
as we are not shown where the attack is coming from
although it is a highly destructive attack which will
have a very high death count.
In this scene we yet again have a shot of an
attack without the image of the attacker this
helps us understand the humans feelings as
they don’t know what or why is it attacking them.
This is commonly used in thriller movies.
In this scene we see all the people fleeing from the fleet
of tripods and trying to get onto the boat, we see the
ships captain looking down on the crowd as he is the on
in power and is the one who chooses who basically lives
and dies this is a commonly found situation in thrillers
where a minor role makes a decision that effects the full
story line and film.