A few Favourites: Psychological Thrillers

I'd really like to start writing a few posts about different genres of films I love and some of my top picks in each, film is a big passion of mine so I want to share that passion with anyone who wants to listen or in your case read.. So to start this off I thought I'd go with Thrillers.

Thrillers are awesome. I revel in the suspense, the guessing games and the type of plot revelations that make you want to rewind back immediately in an attempt to pick out any subtle clues you may have missed at first glance. 

Psychological thrillers are a sub genre of Thrillers that focus heavily on (you might have guessed it) the psychological motives of its characters, as you can imagine then there are some really dark and twisted films under this umbrella and often films of this nature will additionally fall under the title of 'Psychological Horrors'.

Below are a few I would highly recommend you giving a go if you haven't,  the first one in particular is considered a classic of its genre. Avid film fans will no doubt have watched these all before but for any newbies to the genre I'd recommend giving any of these a whirl if your looking for something gripping to watch.

Silence of the Lambs

This is my most recently watched psychological thriller and its already made the cut as a favourite. I think that shows how much its impressed me; I watched it just a week ago and I already want to go in for a second viewing There are so many reasons to love this film- the casting, having 2 incredibly warped serial killer minds at the focal point of the story (Hannibal and Buffalo Bill), the dialogue which is sharp and often creepy. However, none of these are the reason why I love this film so much. For me, what makes it work so well is the dynamic between the protagonist Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) and Hannibal (Anthony Hopkins); the interaction between the characters and way in which these two sterling actors shape each others performance is brilliant. This is a classic not to be missed. 

Plus, this song is awesome and is the accompanying music to the strangest part of the film for me- serial killer Buffalo Bill, dressed as a woman and prancing around in front of a mirror uttering the words "would you fuck me? i'd fuck me".

Memento

I couldn't not mention this film, for a while when I was about 14 I think this was my favourite. If your unfamiliar with the premise- Guy Pearce puts in a superb performance as a man suffering from an acute memory loss, trying to track down the murderer of his wife by developing his own bizarre system of remembering potential clues. The story line follows a non linear narrative , its split into two, one moving forward the other backwards whilst alternating with one another. It's not as complicated to follow as its sounds and this method works beautifully as a parallel to the foggy disjointed mind of the films unreliable protagonist. For me, this is up there with Christopher Nolans best.

The Talented Mr Ripley

This ones worth checking out for the beautiful Italian scenery alone. Ascetics aside it's a film that seems to bring out the best in all its leads- Jude Law and Matt Damon really prove their A lister worth in this complex and elegant adaptation of Patricia Highsmith's novel. Matt Damon plays the psychotic Tom Ripley and puts in a superbly unsettling performance as a man who lusts after a a better life and a new identity. His wish is granted when hes sent from New York to Italy by a rich shipping tycoon to retrieve his extravagant playboy of a son Dickie Greenleaf (Jude Law) and bring him back to America. Ripley instantly becomes enamoured with the lavish lifestyle and deeply infatuated with Dickie himself. The film is a fascinating character study devilling into themes of identity and lust as we watch Ripley fall deeper and deeper into his web of lies. Some may find this film slightly over long and I may have to agree that it could be cut down a tad towards the end but over all I love the pacing. Superb performances and slick cinematography secure this film firmly on my list of favourite psychological thrillers, check it out if you haven't already.

That's it for now, this is by no means a top 3 for me, just a few of my favourites and I'm sure I'll be revisiting this sub genre to share a few more in the near future. If you've made it this far I'd love any recommendations too, new or old.

Women on the small screen

I love a badass female character in a television series, especially when they're in a cast made up of equally badass men and they aren't reduced to simply playing the demure pretty type. Sure, these women too can be pretty but that's not all there is to them, they have many shades to their character and that's why I love 'em. Big props to the following shows creators, these characters have brought me many hours of entertainment and food for thought. So I thought I'd compile and mini list, now in no particular order lets dive in.

1) Snoop (The Wire)

In a large cast that's heavily dominated by headstrong and often relentless characters this lady certainly holds her own. The acting and casting throughout The Wire is impeccable and Snoop is no exception to this. Played by an actress of the same name Felicia 'Snoop' Pearson, Snoop is primarily a brutally violent drug gang enforcer. She's definitely the least likeable character to appear on my list, being the cold blooded killer that she is. However, despite her complete void of sensitivity I still can't help but love her. After all if the master of terror himself  (Stephen King) was quoted as saying "perhaps the most terrifying female villain to ever appear in a television series" you know that the characters doing something right. 

2) Buffy Summers (Buffy The Vampire Slayer)

This ones a funny one, y'see I was never into the show when I was younger, I think I thought it looked a bit naff or I was maybe just slightly too young to really get a lot of the tongue in cheek wit that's sprinkled throughout. Thinking about it now, I may have to do a post dedicated soley to the show Im THAT much of a convert but anyway I digress, back to the leading lady- Buffy. This is how you do a female TV character, shes tough yet sensitive, witty and tenacious, the list goes on... With 7 whole seasons to explore this character you see her at her weakest and her strongest and even though her character is a demon/ vampire fighter/ saviour of the world, you relate to her because shes has slip ups and occasionally makes some questionable decisions, most notably when it comes to her love life. Most of all though, I love her for her sharp wit and playful charm.I think thats about enough gushing and geeking out don't you? Ok onto the next..

3) Margaery Tyrell (Game of Thrones)

I'm going to assume that anyone reading this knows who this character is, after all every man and his cat have seen Game of Thrones, but in case your not familiar Margaery Tyrell is a young lady of the house Tyrell, one of the many houses featured in the GoT world. She cleverly poses as a sweet innocent maiden to use her femininity and charm to win over powerful male figures, ultimately to gain power for herself and her family. Margaery is very self aware and tactful in order to get where she wants to be and it makes for great television, especially when she's up against other strong willed female characters such as Cersei. But unlike Cersei who I find very dislikeable there's something very charming about Margaerys character, yes she does trample over others to get to the top and yes she does use her sexuality as a tool to do so but she has enough sass and sweetness to make her a lovable screen presence. A master at manipulating peoples emotions and a brilliant game player, she just gets better and better to watch. I'm really hoping she doesn't get killed off any time soon, but this is Got were talking about, no character is safe. Just as a side note here, nope I haven't read the books, so this is just purely the TV version of her I'm waffling about. To put it plainly the tv adaption of Margaery rocks and the show wouldn't be the same without her.

I could make this list much much longer but for now I think I leave it here, 3 is the magic number or more- 3 is the amount I can write without this turning into a foot long essay. Im all girl powered out, til next time...