Suspense and shock

Shock is when there is a sudden upsetting or surprising event.  There are many examples in movies however there are a few in North by Northwest and The Birds (by Alfred Hitchcock).

Shocking scenes in North by Northwest include the plane crash as we did not expect the plane to fly into the side of the truck and cause an explosion.  Other things that we thought would have happened would be that it would fly away from defeat or it would have actually killed Thornhill.  Another scene which shocked audiences was the fake shooting in the restaurant.  It was expected that Thornhill and the villain would have had a big discussion or argument in the middle of the restaurant, however when Eva pulls out the gun and shoots Thornhill it was very unpredictable. This scene was then able to build suspense for the next scene when the audience finds out that Eva was in on the shooting all along.

Throughout The Birds the audience are shocked multiple times.  Scenes include the party scene and also when the birds enter the house through the chimney.  In both scenes we did not expect bird attacks because of the atmosphere in them.  When the party was being held everyone was happy and having a good time but when the children are attacked it is horrifying for the audience.  Also, as the characters have just recovered from a recent attack we do not expect another so soon.  So when we hear the noises of the birds it causes more shock.

Suspense is also a big factor in thriller films.  Suspense is a state or feeling of excited or anxious uncertainty about what may happen.  There are also examples of this in North by Northwest and The Birds.  

In North by Northwest suspense is created when the villains take Thornhill to the house and start to question him and accuse him of being someone else.  This builds suspense because the audience wants to know what they want with him.

In The Birds suspense builds when the mother walks into a house and starts to find things are broken around the house.  It builds suspense because the audience doesn't know what has happened and if it was another bird attack.