Key Elements of a Thriller

After watching North By Northwest, I feel as though I am able to recite the main elements of a thriller.
The first of these is a MacGuffin. A MacGuffin is a device used to allow the story to progress. The MacGuffin, however, is normally an item that is irrelevant, with regards to the plot. Moreover, the MacGuffin is usually something that is sought after, especially during the opening few scenes of the film. The importance of the MacGuffin withers as the movie progresses, with the characters coming to the forefront.
In North By Northwest, the MacGuffin is the microfilm that is stashed away inside an antique. The microfilm, while ambiguous as to its definition, is Vandamm's reason for success and money. While the characters fight it out to gain hold of the microfilm, the story behind the scene becomes lost within the action and chaos.

A second element is the red herring; a red herring is a device which distracts the viewer, subsequently knocking them off of their train of thought. The red herring is practically a decoy, which fools us into believing what we have seen. The truth is then revealing later in the film. In North By Northwest, the Red Herring is the scene in which Eve Kendall shoots Roger Thornhill with a pistol. We believe that Miss Kendall has actually shot our protagonist, however, we soon find out our focal character was not shot. This device is useful, and helps maintain the viewers interest and attention.

A fundamental part of a thriller is suspense. Without it, thrillers would be highly ineffective. Suspense enables the viewer to experience a wide range of emotions and be involved in the film. Suspense runs hand in hand with tension, and Hitchcock was a master of creating both. Tense scenes within North By Northwest include the Auction scene, and the famous Crop Duster scene.

A further element is the villain. The villain plays a main role in creating the plot; the villainous character generally is attempting to gain some sort of power or money. They create a problem, and pose a threat to either society as a whole, or to a handful of people. A hero is then found, and they try to halt the plans of the villain. On the whole, without a villain, there would be no plot. The villain could be either a person, a corporation, or even some alien race. The villain can be pretty much anything. In North By Northwest, the devious character creating problems is Phillip Vandamm, who originally poses as Lester Townsend. The villain is generally mysterious and enigmatic; Vandamm's mistaken identity corroborates with my previous point.