Quote 493 of 495

There is a distinct difference between 'suspense' and 'surprise,' and yet
many pictures continually confuse the two. I'll explain what I mean.

We are now having a very innocent little chat. Let us suppose that there is
a bomb underneath this table between us. Nothing happens, and then all of a
sudden, 'Boom!' There is an explosion. The public is surprised, but prior to
this surprise, it has seen an absolutely ordinary scene, of no special
consequence. Now, let us take a suspense situation. The bomb is underneath
the table, and the public knows it, probably because they have seen the
anarchist place it there. The public is aware that the bomb is going to
explode at one o'clock and there is a clock in the decor. The public can see
that it is a quarter to one. In these conditions this same innocuous
conversation becomes fascinating because the public is participating in the
scene.

The audience is longing to warn the characters on the screen: 'You shouldn't
be talking about such trivial matters. There's a bomb underneath you and
it's about to explode!'

In the first case we have given the public fifteen seconds of surprise at
the moment of the explosion. In the second case we have provided them with
fifteen minutes of suspense. The conclusion is that whenever possible the
public must be informed. Except when the surprise is a twist, that is, when
the unexpected ending is, in itself, the highlight of the story.
		-- Alfred Hitchcock as told to François Truffaut in his book
           Hitchcock (1967)
		   http://www.hometheatersound.com/features/collectorscorner/cc_20020401.htm

Tags: god expression devotion oppression modesty intr piety powerlessness hijab queenrania raniaofjordan queenraniaofjordan