Wade's Media Portfolio: Detective Genre Research

Background

The Detective genre has been around in the media for well over 150 years, with roots dating as far back as the 1840s. Over the years subgenres like Noir Detective, Police Procedural, Vigilante and Thrillers have given the impression of new stories, but they still share a lot of common elements.

Content

Over the decades the detective genre has taken many forms, but at their core they all have two common elements. The first is that the story follows some of an investigation. While the second is that there is a protagonist(s) that is actively working to solve a mystery. This protagonist provides a window for the viewer into the investigation. While it’s common for a government group to serve as investigators in the movie, that isn’t a requirement. Movies such as Chinatown (1974) and Knives Out (2019) follow private investigators or regular people that are working to solve a case separate from the police.

Chinatown (1974)

A common goal for the protagonist is to uncover the identity of the antagonist. The conflict between the protagonist and antagonist can be seen as a battle of wits, as each party attempts to out smart the other. Clues and red herrings help develop this conflict, and the story as a result. To add to the mystery some stories have multiple suspects. It’s often that these investigations are sparked due to a murder. What often differentiate the good detective movies with their lesser counterparts is how the investigation is unfolded. A simple story telling technique is Chekhov's Gun. This is a principle that suggests that certain details or plot elements will contribute to the overall story. In the case of detective movies, certain suspects or clues are set up early in the story, so that when the reveal is made, it clicks for the viewer. When the evidence is provided to the viewer, they’re able to make their own assumptions; this creates a much more interactive viewing experience. And this is also why good detective movies have rewatchability, so that if a viewer missed clues the first time they can watch again to see it all cleverly unfold

Though movies such as The Silence of the Lambs (1991) and The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2011) have tried to expand the idea of who a detective could be with their inclusion of female leads, a majority of detective stories still follow male protagonists. The investigations in these stories are often meant to test a detective’s masculinity and perseverance.

The Silence of The Lambs (1991)

Production Techniques

Being a genre that relies on the conflict between protagonists and antagonists, choices are made to convey who may have the upper hand. Low angles and High angles are simple yet effective methods that work to convey power. Many of these productions explore the darkness of some individuals, so to mimic this, it's common for these films to be dark or harshly lit. This is especially evident in scenes of high drama or tension. During moments of high intensity, the sound of the scene can be manipulated to create stress. And set design itself can also guide the viewer’s emotions. In Zodiac (2007), Chronicle’s Newsroom is established as a safe space. To visually convey this the room is big, and well lit. While in other scenes, where there is more tension the room itself is tighter and much harder in its lighting.

In Zodiac, the Newsroom is a lot more comforting than the darkly lit house.

This helps add tension when its needed.

How are Detective movies marketed?

Being that these films heavily rely on male leads, they’re typically marketed towards men. These stories focus on the characters that have to be smart and emotionally strong, solving stories about murders or scandals. In recent decades, detective movies have tapped into the genre of thrillers. And around this same time, the thriller genre has become a powerhouse. With that in mind, marketing teams heavily rely on marketing their films as thrillers.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c44kam_8N3I

The Snowman (2017) was a detective story marketed as a thriller. The trailer is linked above.

Prisoners (2013) Sample

Prisoners follows Keller Dover (Hugh Jackman) and Detective Loki (Jake Gyllenhaal) as they both look for the person that kidnapped Dover’s child. While they’re both working to find the culprit, Dover feels that Loki and the police are too slow, so he decides to take matters into his own hands. With two active detectives working towards the same goal against one another director, Denis Villeneuve is able to blend the subgenres like Police Procedural and Vigilante. This story adds to the classic conventions of protagonist versus antagonist, by adding in another protagonist and creating competition. The film also falls under the usual focus on masculinity, by having two men working to outdo the other; Dover wants to take a more hands on and physical approach while Loki focuses on the usual process of putting clues together. The film also uses production design and lighting to convey mood. Some scenes of suspense or uncertainty use harsh lighting on their subjects when they’re in dark spaces, and tight spaces.

Se7en (1995) Sample

Se7en is an early film from director, David Fincher, who would go on to make many more detective and mystery movies. The story follows Detective William Somerset (Morgan Freeman) and David Mills (Brad Pitt) as they work towards finding a serial killer who targets people who represent one of the seven deadly sins. Similar to Prisoners this film also has a dynamic between the two leads. Somerset is a detective who is close to retiring while Mills is newly transferred. They work together, but Mills is more emotional than Somerset. The story unfolds as they go to investigate each murder; clues lead them to believes the killer has a pattern. The film also uses low light to create tension and well lit environments to create a safe space, but this isn’t true to the whole thing. Towards the end, the filmmakers use sound to create a busy and stressful atmosphere. The violent nature of the film also made it easy to market towards adult males.

Other Detective Stories