The Machinist (2004) is a psychological thriller about a factory worker suffering from Insomnia, who's condition turned so severe that he lost a lot of weight and it affected his mental health. He then accidentally causes an accident on the job which severely injured another worker, further destroying his mental health. As the paranoia gets worse and worse, he blames it all on a mysterious figure, known as Ivan. A very interesting idea for a psychological thriller, but it was important to make sure it got to it's intended audience and well received by them. So how was it done?
Firstly, it is important to look at who is in the making of the movie, as certain production companies, actors, directors, etc. usually specialize in a certain genre, so when they are featured in a film of that genre, people who enjoy to watch that genre of film will be drawn in to watch it because they're expecting a quality movie. The Machinist was made by Castelao Productions, a smaller production company but one that makes a lot of horror/thriller films such as the REC series, and Fragile (2005). The director of this film is Brad Anderson, who specializes in horror and thriller films, which would make the intended audience want to see the film, as the director has expertise in the genre, leading everyone to expect a better film. The star of the film is Christian Bale, an actor known for his intense acting and extreme body transformations for his roles, for example, for this film he had to lose over 60 pounds to fit the role of someone mentally unstable and drastically losing weight. This alone is enough to interest viewers of the intended audience.
Another part of reaching your intended audience is making sure the film is advertised to represent what it is as well as possible. The trailer for The Machinist gave some context into what the film was about while also using thriller conventions discussed in the post titled "Diving Deeper into the Thriller Genre" to make the mood and feel of the movie apparent to potential viewers, for example the suspenseful music, low-key lighting, etc. so those who liked movies like that would be intrigued and drawn into watching it. The way the movie cover was made also has a similar effect that was discussed in the last post about titling, as it also does well to show the overall mood and nature of the film, and would appeal to those looking for a thriller/horror.
The reason I looked at The Machinist is because it is a psychological thriller similar to something we would like to do, as it is around a protagonist having visions of some sort and is in a scrambled mental state. I wasn't entirely sure of how we could show that through a simple title sequence, but through watching this I've noticed that setting the mood is the most important thing, while also doing something to suggest the main antagonist is the mind of the protagonist, which can be shown through the characters actions or how others interact with them, or by showing confusing imagery. For example in the trailer for The Machinist there is a lot of flashing transitions and sound bridges, slightly confusing the viewer, and there are insert shots of sketches and ambiguous looking writing on a sticky note, which is a common thing seen in psychologically based films. Confusing imagery and the overall dark feeling of the film is something I have been planning on doing for our title sequence.
The Machinist (2004) Trailer
Sources
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0361862/plotsummary
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0fuHY4U1UA
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