The Lodger - 1927
After a series of murders take place in London, all victimising women, a landlady begins to suspect that her lodger is the killer responsible for the killings. One of Hitchcock's earliest and most famous films, 'The Lodger' is regarded as one of the world's first thriller films, incorporating mysteriousness and terror but, notably, lacking the degree of violence which was first introduced by Hitchcock in 'Psycho' , and remains constant in most thrillers.
Psycho - 1960
Directed by Alfred Hitchcock, 'Psycho' was initially received sceptically by audiences and critics, however it eventually received outstanding box office returns and is now regarded as a pioneer in the evolution and development of thriller films. The explicit nature of the film set new boundaries for violence and sexuality in film. A majority of this film's success has, however, come since the death of Hitchcock in 1980, with a TV show, multiple sequels and spin offs, and a remake of the original movie all stemming from the 1960 version. The dark and realist nature of the film was previously unexplored by film makers and directors alike, which optimized the effectiveness of 'Psycho' as its thrilling and horrific connotations attracted audiences. The production of 'Psycho', and its success among certain audiences, acted as a catalyst for thriller films' induction into the mainstream film industry. Following its success, several thriller films were produced, with varying degrees of success, many of which boasted aspects which strongly emulated aspects of 'Psycho'.
Jaws - 1975
Directed by Steven Spielberg, 'Jaws' depicts the story of a coastal U.S community which is plagued by the terror of a great white shark. Growing increasingly, a policeman, a marine biologist and angered fishermen set out to stop it. The film incorporates a variety of camera shots and editing techniques, most notorious of all is a reverse zoom shot which singles out a parent on the beach, almost immediately after a child has been eaten by the shark. The realism of the shark, along with the camera shots used and, pivotally, the iconic ‘Jaws’ theme tune, contributed to the cultivation of a previously unparalleled sense of terror, which was subsequently continued throughout the sequels to the original film. This film, largely adheres to the common conventions of thriller films, however it did challenge the generic idea of the protagonist and antagonist as, in this film, the antagonist is a shark and the protagonist is the community at the centre of the story, rather than an individual. Other than this, ‘Jaws’ boasts many of the remaining conventions of thriller films, including a location which allows for some sort of problem, and an eventual solution to this problem.
Goodfellas - 1990

Set in the gang-run city of New York, 'Goodfellas' is the story of a gangster who, after years as part of the group eventually turns on the mafia. The story also follows the other members' attempts to escalate to the top of the extremely hierarchical mafia.
Reservoir Dogs - 1992
Following the failure of a jewellery heist, the remaining group of criminals begin to cast suspicions over the legitimacy of one of the group, claiming that he is a police informant. Set in the U.S city of Los Angeles, the film is perhaps most famous for its use of contrapuntal music, in a scene where one of the criminals is torturing a policeman who he has captured. The scene is of a man with a knife in his hand, and as he is about to torture the policeman, 'Stuck in the middle with you' by Steeler's Wheel comes on the radio. This is contrapuntal as the positive connotations of the song strongly juxtapose the terror of torture. This was arguably the most famous and effective example of contrapuntal sound, with the first memorable example being the opening of 'The Shining'.
Se7en - 1995
Se7en is the story of two detectives, who hunt a serial killer who selects his victims according to the seven deadly sins. One of the detectives, William Somerset (Morgan Freeman), is a veteran and the other, Mills (Brad Pitt), is a rookie. Moreover, Somerset begins to befriend Mills' wife, (Gwyneth Paltrow), who is heavily pregnant and is becoming increasingly concerned at the possibility of her child growing up in a crime fuelled city. The film succeeds in incorporating the conventional features of a thriller film with slightly darker aspects, which may be associated more commonly with horror films, and also scenes which may be associated with action films. The film does, however, succeed in locating and situating itself among the somewhat 'mid ground' between action, which is often regarded as the fundamental idea of thrillers.
The Black Swan - 2010
The story of a dancer (Natalie Portman), who successfully gets the part of a swan in a ballet performance. However, this delight is soon contrasted with terror as a series of strange and harrowing events cause her to 'lose her mind'. Despite its contemporary aspects such as the quality of camerawork and editing, the film also integrates more traditional factors, all of which revolve around the fundamental basis of ballet.

Summary
In summary, I would say that the evolution and development of thriller films has been quite gradual, with certain films breaking the mould of conventional thriller films and, in turn, creating new conventions. For example, Alfred Hitchcock's 'Psycho' and 'The Lodger' both pushed boundaries of traditional thriller films, by introducing darker, more violent themes. Hitchcock, who is widely regarded as being instrumental in the development and increased popularity of thriller film. Despite the occasional fluctuation, and occasional more severe changes, the fundamental conventions and themes of thriller films have remained constant. The idea of a thriller film requires finding a careful balance between action and horror. I believe that the development of technology has enabled an improvement in the effectiveness of sound, camerawork and mise-en-scene and, in turn, provided film makers and directors with the ability to construct a new sense of terror, which is now synonymous with thriller films. I would say that these advances in technology have been instrumental in the progression and development thriller films in general and have also allowed for certain, more iconic, moments in certain films.

OSCAR JOHNSON