Welcome to the Punch (2013) and Headhunters (2011) are both films of the Thriller genre and therefore share certain similarities, however they both follow conventions of other sub-genres, and with that means that they also have key differences in how they attract their audiences and engage with them.
One similarity with the 2 films would be that they both share the genre of crime thriller, however it is more prominent in Welcome to the Punch as the protagonist is a police officer. They both follow the conventions of a thriller which include, low or cool lighting, quick cuts and tension building music. All of these aspects combined are designed to keep the audience focused and engaged on the action on screen. The dark lighting also helps to make action more mysterious, which is effective as often not all of the answers to the audience's questions are given throughout the film until the very end, which again helps to build tension. For example in Welcome to Punch for the majority of the film the 'enemy' or antagonist is mostly unknown until near the end were we find out that it is Max's boss is leading the crime ring, equally in Headhunters the audience are led to believe that Roger's wife, Diana is involved with the antagonist, Clas Greve, it is only at the end where it is revealed it was actually his mistress, Lotte who betrayed him.
Betrayal is also another common theme between the 2 films, as well as corruption and insecurity. The theme of betrayal is highlighted in Welcome to the Punch when Max's boss, revealed he was also involved in the crime ring as part of a scheme to provide funding for the police. This theme is important in a thriller as it provides the important aspect of a plot twist.
Betrayal is evident in Headhunters when Roger finds out his mistress, Lotte was actually a pawn in Clas Greve's plan to take down the rival business, this betrayal then became more clear when she then tried to kill Roger, but was subsequently shot by Roger anyway. They also share the genre of action as both have scenes of violence and car chases which follows the conventions of an action thriller.
Corruption is common in these films because both show the police force being corrupted, once for reputation and the other for funding. In Welcome to the Punch corruption is clearly evident as a plan is devised and carried out by the top members of the police force to create a knife crime epidemic, so that a particular politician would be elected and would provide funding for the police to have suitable weapons. Similarly in Headhunters, the police are shown to be corrupt as at the end when Roger and Diana attempt to tie all of the loose ends in their crimes so they can continue their lives, there is a clip of the Chief Detective throwing away evidence stating that the body of Ove could not have been killed by Clas as it had already been there for two days. However to maintain his reputation the detective choses to hide this information and is then hailed a hero for catching the supposed serial killer.
The final common theme between these films is insecurity. Both protagonists in these films are insecure about themselves or their work. It is more evident in Headhunters as in the very first line Roger, says 'I am Roger Brown and I am 1.68m tall…' it then becomes evident to the audience that Roger makes money and commits the crimes he does, to provide money under fear that his wife will leave him if he does not provide. This line is particularly effective in showing the growth of his character as at the end he repeats the line but saying 'My name is Roger Brown and I am 1.68m tall, and that's good enough for me'. In Welcome to the Punch the protagonist Max is also insecure as we see in the beginning of the film he chases after Jacob Sternwood but is shot in the leg instead. Through the rest of the film it is clear that he has lost his gumption and on several cases choses to stay quiet instead of speaking out on the decisions of his co-workers.
One difference between Welcome to the Punch and Headhunters is the lack of backstory behind the protagonists. In Welcome to the Punch, the audience know very little about him, this may have been done to focus the audience's attention on the plot, as it is complex, however without a deeper knowledge of the character the audience is unable to engage or empathise with the protagonist, which subsequently distances the audience from the characters. In comparison, Roger Brown from Headhunters, we find out immediately his name, his height, we are introduced to his wife, and we find out about his reasons for having so much money, for his wife. By having this extra knowledge about the character it allows the audience to justify their decisions and engage with them by relating to them on a personal level. In relation to connection with the characters, Headhunters was more effective.
Another difference would be the representation of women in each film. Both character's have 3 female characters, in Welcome to the Punch they are , Max's partner, Sarah Hawks, Jane Badham the campaign manager, and Iris Warns, Dean Warns grandmother. Sarah Hawks, the most prominent female character is seen initially as a headstrong character, intent on pushing Max to be better than he is acting, but then the perspective changes and after seeing a 'moment' between herself and Max she is then seen as his love interest. After this change of perspective, when Sarah tries to act on her own initiative, and goes to see the shipping yard, she is quickly killed by one of the assailants. She is then only mourned by Max as the others see her as a casualty of the cause. This gives the lasting impression that Sarah most important function was being the love interest of Max, because as soon as she ventured out of this genre, she was killed. The other female characters are either seen as the villain, the campaign manager who orchestrated the whole system, or as completely vulnerable, like Dean's grandmother and furthermore they are all associated or could be labelled as an object of one of the male characters- Max's lover, Dean's Grandmother, Robert Wiseman's campaign manager.
In Headhunters the women are also represented negatively, but in a different way. Again there are 3 female characters, Diana, Lotte and Natasha. All of these women are introduced to the narrative as sexual objects. When Diana is introduced, she is completely naked and is being admired by Roger, we do not see her face she is dehumanised. Similarly when we meet Lotte, she is having sex with Roger again implying to the audience that women's only purpose is to be used as sexual objects by men. Finally when we meet Natasha she is completely naked and is shooting BB guns at Ove, we later find out that she is a prostitute. As well as being paid for her services it is then revealed that Ove films her to show his friends at his office, once again passing her off as an object which can easily be passed around between men. Both of these films have poor negative representation of women and race, as between the 2 there is only 1 named Black character.
In Headhunters the women are also represented negatively, but in a different way. Again there are 3 female characters, Diana, Lotte and Natasha. All of these women are introduced to the narrative as sexual objects. When Diana is introduced, she is completely naked and is being admired by Roger, we do not see her face she is dehumanised. Similarly when we meet Lotte, she is having sex with Roger again implying to the audience that women's only purpose is to be used as sexual objects by men. Finally when we meet Natasha she is completely naked and is shooting BB guns at Ove, we later find out that she is a prostitute. As well as being paid for her services it is then revealed that Ove films her to show his friends at his office, once again passing her off as an object which can easily be passed around between men. Both of these films have poor negative representation of women and race, as between the 2 there is only 1 named Black character.
To conclude, I personally preferred Headhunters to Welcome to the Punch, despite the poor representation of anyone that isn't a white male. I think the plot of the story was more engaging, and had more high tension moments. I think the plot in Welcome to the Punch did not reveal enough information throughout which made it quite confusing, as well having a shallow protagonist me as an audience member not much to grip onto and finally I think the plot twists were a bit cliche. I think also the fact that Headhunters was not in english, made me have to pay attention more, because if I lost focus for a moment or missed a slide of the subtitles I would risk missing crucial information in the story. Both films however were successful in following the conventions of a thriller and were recognisable instantly which is perhaps the most important factor in drawing an audience into watching them.
