Iconic Directors Of Psychological Thrillers

Alfred Hitchcock

This first name that springs to mind when thinking about psychological thrillers is the late Alfred Hitchcock. He was a British film director and producer, and was regarded as the master of thrillers

After becoming a success in England, Alfred decided to move to America to broaden his horizons and it was over the length of over half a century that he gained a reputation for himself as a for himself a distinctive and recognisable director. He carefully framed shots to maximise anxiety, fear, or empathy, and used innovative film editing.

The end of Hitchcock's films often have twist endings and thrilling plots including violence, murder, and crime. On the other hand, he also made many movies that were meant only to serve extremely complicated psychological examinations of the characters. Hitchcock's films also borrow many themes from psychoanalysis and feature strong sexual undertones Through his distinct way of film-making, he became a cultural icon.

"Unquestionably the greatest filmmaker to emerge from these islands, Hitchcock did more than any director to shape modern cinema, which would be utterly different without him. His flair was for narrative, cruelly withholding crucial information (from his characters and from us) and engaging the emotions of the audience like no one else."

 The Daily Telegraph

David Lynch

David Keith Lynch is an American director, who also has a distinctive style, which has been dubbed "lynchian” He is also a television director, visual artist, musician, occasional actor, and is renowned for his surrealist films. The violence he incorporates into his films tend to disturb, offend or mystify" their audiences, making them all the more effective.

In the course of his career, Lynch has received three Academy Award nominations for best director and a nomination for best screenplay as well as many other awards in various countries.

One of the key themes that they noted was the usage of dreams and dreamlike imagery within his works, something they related to the "surrealist ethos" of relying "on the subconscious to provide visual drive".

Lynch also tends to feature his leading female actors in multiple or "split" roles, so that many of his female characters have multiple, fractured identities.

         "the most important director of this era"

        The Guardian