Empire magazine analysis

This is the magazine I liked best, I am going to use a similar layout to this magazine cover. I like the simplicity of the image and it's background. The main image is in back and white which makes the image look more detailed, the audience is not distracted by the colour in the image and will look at the shadows and shading in the image.
Another reason I like the idea of a black and white image is because it makes the colour of the title really stand out and obvious. The title lays beneath the main image, making it obvious that the main image is what's important and makes the film look more dominant.
The only sub title on this cover is the title of the film that is featuring in this months magazine. The rest of the writing is the release date, price and month of the issue.
The barcode is in usual place and also blends in with the black and white theme of the magazine cover.
The plain white background makes Bond's black suit really stand out against the white. But I do feel like it's a bit boring, maybe if it had some sort of shattered glass effect or worn paper effect.

Total Film magazine analysis

The title of this magazine is in the biggest font on the cover, making it obvious that it's the title. The other thing I noticed is that the 'film' in the title has been experimented with and played with to fit in with the main image and the background. Even though the text blends in it's still noticeable and stands out from the rest of the background.
The next biggest font is a sub title of what's featured in the magazine, Inception. Total Film has labelled it at the top 'The mind blowing issue', this is also relevant to the sub title Inception. Inception is a film based in people minds, a team enters an individuals mind with a task to gain information. The sub title Inception lays on top of the main image but not covering the face or any key part of the image.
There is also a circle shape that has an effect as a sticker, this also grabbed my attention, separating itself from the rest of the cover. It's another sub title explaining that there is information of a new film coming out in the magazine.
The barcode is in a typical place, barcodes always seem to be in either bottom corner of the magazine, keeping out the way of the main image, sub titles and any other information on the cover.

Horror magazine analysis

The title of the magazine stands out from the rest of the text on that page because of the purple background and the red outline on the black text that states 'Fangoria', making it eye catching and obvious that it is the title of the magazine.
There are also lots of sub titles on the front cover, introducing what is going to be inside the issue of the magazine. The most important sub title is the text above and below the title of the magazine. "Fangoria - presents, Best and Bloodiest Horror Video" this text is also as important as the title of the magazine because it explains that this magazine is a limited edition magazine about the top rated Horror Video. The texts front range in style but the magazine title is on a separate background making it obvious it's the title.
This magazine also uses three little pictures besides the main image in the middle of the magazine. These images are example of what other films are up for the title of "Best and Bloodiest Horror Video". The main image grabbed my attention, straight away I knew this magazine was a Horror based magazine. The main image is Freddy Krueger from A Nightmare on Elm Street, the image captures his burns and his aggressive expression seeking for revenge.

Representation of Women in Horror films

For this task I will be looking at how women are represented in horror films, women are usually seen as a weak character in horror films, unable to fight or escape from the killer. But there are two theories that support and oppose this. The 'male gaze' theory and the 'final girl' theory.

The final girl theory was created in 1992 by Carol Clover. The theory consists of a female character that survives the massacre in horror films particularly slaughter films. The character is usually the last person out of the cast that is alive and would confront the killer and lives to tell the tale. Usually a female character in Horror films would often be seen a the weaker character who can't defend or look after herself and is usually the first to die. But in the final girl theory the female is stronger willed and tends to dress quite masculine.
Wendy Christensen portrayed by Mary Elizabeth Winstead from Final Destination is a great example of the final girl, she is innocent and sensible, does not wear cloths that show any flesh off and does not participate in any sexual acts during the film. Wendy figures out what is happening and why her and all her friends are dying. Wendy had vision at the beginning of the film, seeing her and her friends going on a roller coaster ride and the coaster coming lose, and they all die. She causes a scene and her and her friends are taken off the roller coaster, cheating death. Wendy is the last one to survive out of the group making her the final girl. She figures out what's going on and then tries to prevent it from happening. Without realise her and the next friends to die (Julie and Kevin) are all on the same train, she figures out that they are about to die and tries to stop the train, but it's too late. The train crashes leaving the friends to die tragically. She is the only one alive. Until, she finds herself stuck on a train track with a trapped leg, she cannot move and sees the next train coming. She dies in the end but she still follows the role of the final girl.

Here is the last scene. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5sxvSqv7LEQ

Unlike two other girls in this film, Crystal Lowe portraying Ashlyn Halperin and Chelan Simmons portraying Ashley Freund who are in the 'male gaze' theory. These two girls dress to impress the males and grab the male audience attention in their tanning scene. As you can see from the pictures above and below there is a major difference in the style of clothing the girls are wearing, both girls below are wearing pink and yellow, typical girly colours and also they are both wearing short skirts to give the males something to look at. In the picture above Wendy is wearing blue and red, more masculine colours, they also seem to be covering her whole body, not revealing any flesh. She also seems to be holding a camera consciously making her seem innocent and shy. The scene where Ashley and Ashlyn die support the male gaze theory, they are both in the tanning bed wearing nothing but bikini bottoms. A shelf from above one of the tanning beds comes loose and fall, trapping the girls in the tanning beds. Previously one of the girls brought a drink in the room, placing it above the control box that controls the heat of the tanning beds, dripping on to the control box the tanning beds start to increase the heat, until they burn alive.

Here is the scene of Ashlyn and Ashley supporting the male gaze theory, and their deaths. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaz73KCiKaM

The 'male gaze' theory was brought up by Laura Mulvey in 1975. Mulvey noticed that in some cases women were used to grab male attention and sell the film or advert. The women would wear tightly fit revealing clothes, or in some situations hardly any clothing what so ever. The camera tends to focus on the woman's curves and figure in scenes of the male gaze women. In adverts made to sell products this theory also comes into action, women are used more an object or prop to help grab the male audiences attention and convince them to buy whatever is up for sale.

Other examples of the 'final girl' theory would be Shelley Duvall who is portraying Wendy Torrance in The Shining. She escapes and survives her husbands madness and slaughter also with her son Danny. Although she is the only female in the hotel at the time and for the majority of the time, she still follows the theory. She wears masculine based clothing that always cover her whole body, she is generally a quiet and shy character as we find out during the film. She protects herself and her son, using a bat and knife. In the scene I have posted below this picture Wendy has confronted the horror character and stand up for herself, she hits Jack around the head with a bat, and Jack falls from the top of the stairs to the bottom knocking him unconscious. Wendy and her son escape leaving Jack outside stuck in a maze, Jack freezes to death.

 

Here is the scene of Wendy supporting the Final girl theory. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n47U-v3v1-Q

 

Horror character analysis - Freddy Krueger

The horror character I have chosen for this task is Frederick Charles also known as "Freddy" Krueger. Freddy is the horror character from the A Nightmare on Elm Street series of films. There are 8 A Nightmare on Elm Street films including a 2010 remake of the original 1984 film, also Freddy shares a role in Freddy vs. Jason. Freddy plays in 9 horror films ranging from 1984 to 2010 making him a well known historic horror character.

The A Nightmare on Elm Street series are American slasher films that consist of Freddy stalking teenagers and then killing them in their dreams, but it was not just a nightmare, what would happen in their dreams would affect them in the real world.

The background of Freddy is very disturbing but explains why he does what he does. The reason behind Freddy stalking and killing teenagers is for revenge. He kills the teenagers of parents that once burned him alive. This storyline was expanded during the television series and each episode had a different individual plot. Novels were next written but didn't follow the series of films or television series. The original film and storyline was written and directed by Wes Craven.

To look at Freddy is very scary, I think the outside of Freddy is meant to be the flesh and muscle that lays beneath the skin, from when he was once burned alive. Seeing someone without any skin or hair is surreal and unnatural, which we find frightening. The horror character always has an iconic mark on them that makes them known as the bad guy from the start, this can range from a sinister looking scare on their face to having nails sticking out of their head/face, like Pinhead.

Freddy also has a metal glove with blades on the ends of the finger tips that he uses to kill his victims. Having blades attached to your fingers would make killing victims much easier, there's nothing to hold and there is nothing to drop. One sweep or claw with the hand would slice through the victims making the glove horrific and something to fear. Every scary horror character has an iconic prop they use to kill their victims for example, Ghostface from the series of Scream films uses a hunting knife, Leatherface from Texas Chainsaw Massacre uses a chainsaw, Jack from The Shining uses a axe to kill his victims. All these weapons are just tools are sharp objects anybody could buy or find, Freddy's glove is very unique and rare, the idea of it is simply genius and they are impossible to find or buy, by the looks of it he had made it himself which means he is smart and is always thinking about killing. Freddy has invented a killing device which is on another level of evil, making him more sinister and making the audience fear him.

Freddy wears normal everyday clothing which may be a disguise to try hide his appearance whilst stalking the teenagers in the real world. The trilby hat and striped jumper have now become iconic clothing which is recognised almost worldwide, this basic iconic outfit has also become a typical Halloween costume.

Here is the original 1984 trailer for A Nightmare on Elm Street. - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdb_HSvf2Zk

Here is the 2010 remake trailer for the same film. - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZuYoEtEI_go

The 2010 trailer shows you Krueger's death and reason behind why he's stalking and killing these teenagers. I couldn't find a 1984 trailer that did the same, I haven't watched the 1984 film either so I'm not sure if it shows and explains why Krueger is doing this. I think it is always crucial to show the reason behind why the killer is seeking revenge because it is more understanding to those who didn't look into the film plot.

It is obvious straight away the Freddy has changed, he is more animated now in the 2010 film, making his flesh and wounds seem more realistic and believable. The glove in the 2010 also looks different, it looks more modern and mechanical, also I noticed the blades on the end of the fingers are sharper and bigger.

Overall, Freddy is a legendary horror character, attacking his victims in their lonely dreams where they are unable to get anyone's help or stop Freddy from what he is doing. His glove is iconic and a horrific genius invention, doing what Freddy has set out for, killing the teenagers of the parents that burned him alive. The storyline is terrifying and amazing as well as the film.

Role of the Production Company

The production company plays a huge role in the release of a new film. They are in charge of the complete production and control the organisation for scenes are hiring people for that scene and the script they read. It's fair to say that the production company are in main control over the film.

It all starts with an idea, the production company will read through a well written plot summing up the idea and storyline. The production company will discus if they think if it is good enough idea, if the genre and type of the film is good, will it be popular and if it fits in well with the current popular sub genre films.

Once deciding if they think it's a good investment the production company will then agree and stick with the film until finish.

Then will begin the production of the film, the Development is the first step to making a film, funding is started for the teams and experts needed to make this film up to professional standard, such as an editing crew, sound crew, lighting, marketing and many more.

Next will be the Pre-Production of the film, this basically is the start of the idea for some scenes and shots in the film. Also a key production team must of been assembled for this part, such as a manger and a head for each department.

Once teams are sorted and ideas have been made for certain shots or parts of the film the Film Making will then take place. This is the bulk of the process that could take the longest out of all stages, each shot needs to be perfect and approved by the production company or manager for it to be allow to go in the film.

The final step of this process will be the Post Production, this is where the clips are all edited together, music is added, titles are added and the film is completed. The production company advertises the film and then sends it to cinemas for viewing.

There are many ways production companies advertise there film, trailers would be made and played on television or on the internet, posters will be made and distributed to cinemas, as well as billboard posters. Sometimes audio adverts would of been made and aired on the radio, and the list goes on.

Here are a few examples of major production companies you may have seen before the beginning of a film.

Jaws poster analysis

The reason I chose to analysis this film poster is because of how basic and simple it is. This poster consists of the film title, and a drawn image of the moment before a shark attack. Straight away with combination of the title and image it's clear what this film is going to be about. The sea is huge, taking up the highest percentage of room on earth, the deeper the sea is the darker it is, and what we can't see in the dark scares us. This is why I think they have used this image in their poster, the shark looks like it's coming out of the deep dark sea and the shark is very well blended in, colour wise.

There is no slogan or any other information apart from the title of the film and the clue of the image they have used. The colour of the font is red, which is very common in horror posters because red implies danger and sometimes death. The colour red in this poster also stands out really well from the white sky and blue sea. The actual font looks quite cartoon based and not so sinister in my opinion. The image looks like it has been drawn which allows the artist to place the lighting and shading where it is most effective on the characters. Most of the lighting on the shark has been placed on the teeth as well as the outline of the shark and it's features that makes the audience notice it's a shark. The teeth look like they have been over exaggerated maybe to link with the film title or to make the shark look more frightening.

Friday 13th poster analysis

The thing I like most about this poster is that it has an empty feel to it. There is no slogan or any information given away. The only thing in this poster is a mask and the release date. These are the only two things in the poster which give no clue about the film, I like this because it seems mysterious.

Another form that encourages the empty feel in this poster, is the plain black background, there is no other colour or object of effect that makes it seem that there is anything there e.g. a doorway, shadow or light source. This not being about to see anything makes it more scary, there could be anything there behind the mask, someone could actually be wearing the mask but because of the lighting we are unable to see it. The darkness is the easiest but most scariest thing that you could use in a horror film, not being able to see what is there makes our minds wonder and imagine what could be there. Simple yet very effective.

The lighting on the mask is very well done, the lighting makes the mask look like it is fading away into the darkness, or coming out from the darkness. The lighting is hitting the mask at an angle which allows the scratches, dents and worn parts show. This old battered up and worn mask is typically a very scary prop, the scratches and marks hold stories of what the mask has been through, this gives off another mysterious effect that makes the audience fearful but curious.

Because of my film knowledge I know that 'February 13' is the release date not the name of the film, this poster is for Friday the 13th. It makes me wonder why they didn't add the title of the film but only the release date, but then I realised that February 13 would probably be on a Friday of that year. This subtle hint makes the audience think about the title and release date, making them remember it, and most probably look up about it or just go and watch it without looking into it. Another simple but very effective technique to draw the audiences attention.

Orphan poster analysis

The slogan is used to give an idea or reveal something about the film. “There’s something wrong with Esther.” This slogan implies that there will be trouble in the film, or that something bad will happen to Esther or something bad will happen because of Esther. The slogan leaves a cliff hanger, leaving the audience wanting more. This slogan runs along the top of the poster, and it's written in thick bold text to draw attention to it.
The background in this poster is really dull and basic. It looks like she’s just standing in front of a hospital/ medical related wall. It's dark which is common for slasher/horror films, hinting from first glance that it's going to be a dark film. The lighting has been fully focused on Esther’s face; the light has been made to give Esther evil looking shadows on her cheeks and eyes. The way Esther's face has been lightened shows that there is two different sides to her character in this film. The font used in this poster is naïve and childlike implying the film is based around or uses children. The font looks like it has been scratched out with a sharp object or weapon, which implies that it is a horror film. They have made the release date bigger than all the other text, but not as big as the title so it stands out. They add the release date onto the poster so they know when it comes out so they can go and see it, also adding it onto the poster makes the audience who liked the poster and read the poster, remember when it is released. Esther has  ribbons has black ribbons in her hair which is typically seen as something a young female would wear. Esther also seems to be wearing a ribbon around her neck with looks more sinister and evil. The clothing Esther is wearing is a blue dress which is more child typical and friendly, I think the light coloured dress and dark purple ribbon conflict each other, showing two sides of Esther.

Let the right one in film analysis

Let the right one in

Let the right one in is a Swedish romance horror film released in 2008. Directed by Tomas Alfredson, produced by Carl Molinder and John Nordling. This film is based on the 2004 vampire fiction novel Let the right one in by John Ajvide Lindqvist.

The film starts off by showing the background and lifestyle of the two main characters Oskar and Eli. Oskar is a young Swedish school boy, that's having a tough time at school because of the fact that he is getting bullied. Oskar also has separated parents and lives with his mother in a block of apartments. Eli is a young vampire girl, who looks roughly the same age as Oskar. Eli's father is helping Eli survive by draining the blood of humans into a container and feeding it to Eli. This prevents Eli from giving away her identity as a vampire to the public.

The first time Oskar and Eli meet is in the local park central of all the blocks of apartments. This happens at night time which is the only possible time of day Eli can come outside without burning to death. Oskar and Eli become close friends and end up helping each other out.

This follows Todorov's theory, Oskar meets Eli and becomes friends with her, this starts to make changes in his life, Oskar becomes more confident over the bullies and ends up hitting one of them round the face with a piece of wood. This jump from normal everyday life to the meeting of Eli and the changes it has on his life is a clear equilibrium. Oskar then finds himself in lots of danger, he discovers that Eli is a vampire and due to them becoming friends he tries to help her survive and keep any attention drawn to Eli away, this is recognition of the problem. Eli decides to move away which is her trying to fix the problem that she has created. This leaves Oskar in a vulnerable state and finds himself being dunked in a swimming pool. As Oskar thinks all hope is lost, the bully's body parts appear to be thrown into the pool, this turns out to be Eli who has returned to help Oskar. They are reunited and travel to a new destination, this is the final new equilibrium.

From the official trailer for this film, it's made obvious that it's a vampire film. Oskar asks Eli if she is a vampire and she reply's with "would you like me anyway?", Eli isn't denying she is a vampire and previous clips before this final clarification show Eli feeding on human's. The two main characters in this film are children, as they show in the trailer, this makes the film feel less frightening because children are younger and smaller than most of the audience who watched this film. Using a child as a horror character changes the stereotypical features of the horror character, usually the main horror character in a film will be a big, strong, aggressive male. Eli is disguised as a young girl but is actually an aggressive strong vampire when thirsty for blood. When the audience see that the horror character is a child they wont feel frightened, but when they see Eli in action feeding on humans they will know not to be fooled, horror characters can take any shape or form.

The reason this film falls into the horror genre is because of the blood thirsty vampire that hunts and kill humans. Vampires also posses superhuman strength and also the ability to fly and run extremely quickly. These abilities are frightening and in the use of evil; hunting and killing humans, makes theses films scary and threatening. Vampires are usually corpses been brought back to life or humans been bitten and transformed into a vampire, either way the victim - new vampire is no longer a living human. In this film Eli the vampire is a young girl, which means she was either bitten or a corpse been transformed into a vampire. This corpse that wonders the earth feasting on the living typically falls into the horror genre; the dead being brought back to life, killing.

The main characters and dominant characters in this films are obvious. The whole film is based round the life of the child Oskar, showing his normal everyday life, the encounter of him becoming friends with a vampire and the troubles it get's Oskar in and the solving at the end. I would say the main character is Oskar because the film revolves around him. But the dominant character would be Eli because she is the confident influential character. During the film Oskar takes control at one point when he stands up to his bully, this was majorly influenced by Eli.

In conclusion, this is a modern day vampire film, the genre and it's mythological creature was put into a realistic situation of todays time. This film follows Todorov's theory and the tradition of the vampire. This film is a typical horror film full with loads of lots of blood and jumpy scenes. The ending of the film takes a twist, when usually the vampire would die for it being the evil character, Eli survives and continues to live but just in a different location, which can lead the film on into a sequel if wanted to.

Here is the trailer for Let the right one in: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZJUgsZ56vQ

Saw 2 film analysis

Saw 2 film analysis
 

Saw 2 is part of a series of gore horror films, which put a group of people who have done wrong in a life or death situation. Gregg Hoffman has produced the first four Saw films; Saw 2 came out in 2005.

The opening scene is a taster of what you will see throughout the film. Although there are links the Saw films do not follow on from each other so the audience are able to start watching the films with any starting point.

This film follows both Todorov’s and Propp’s film theories. It contains a villain who is known as Jigsaw, a hero who is a police officer and father to the victim. The film follows all the stages of Todorov’s theory until the end when there is a twist, Jigsaw has captured his son and makes the father think he is in danger but it turns out the son is in a safe in the same room as the hero and villain the whole time. Another thing that uses Todorov’s theory is all the weapons Jigsaw uses to kill or threaten to kill his victims. The mask Jigsaw also uses falls into Todorov’s theory; the mask looks monster like and is surreal.

Because this is the second Saw film, the audience who have already seen the first Saw film already have set expectations. They already know that the movie contains horrific gore, it’s just the matter of how and creative the killing can get. The trailer for the film starts with what happened in the previous film, but then divides the trailer by adding a shot of Jigsaw on a TV saying “I want to play a game”. It then shows the group waking up in a house, and being told by Jigsaw that they are already breathing in toxic fumes. The audience may guess from the fact the trailer doesn’t build up, it just goes straight to the gore. This shows that the film will be intense and there won’t be any rest from the horrific situations.

Gore has rightly been categorised into the horror genre, because of its bloody violence and creative attitude towards murder. During the making of this film, gore horrors were at an all-time high in the cinema industry. Saw was not all that different from the other gore films being released in this time period, the only reason it was different is because of the already existing Saw film, which turned into a series. Although there are several Saw films out, the storyline does not continue straight into the next film, it starts with a whole new game but with a few links into the previous film. The Saw films do progress in the creativity of violent gore, which is probably why the Saw films still remain so popular, and were continued being made for this amount of films.

Later on in the film, after the first prisoner is killed, the other characters start taking on roles. Jigsaw revealed that the quiet and mysterious Obi was the person who helped Jigsaw capture all of the other characters and bring them to him. Once the group found this out they all turned on Obi and he became vulnerable, the group decided almost forced him to play Jigsaws next game, doing so he died. Amanda being a survivor of the previous Saw encounter, she becomes

The dominant leader in the beginning of the film is Amanda, trying to find safe ways out whilst still obeying Jigsaws rules. Later on Xavier becomes the leader of the group for a certain amount of time, until other group members start disagreeing with him. At one point he takes charge and decides who should play one of the games Jigsaw has provided. Xavier throws Amanda, who is secretly involved with Jigsaws game, into a pit of syringes. I think this is sexist, the male taking charge and sacrificing a female’s life to save his own. Amanda survives and continues to lead the group further and further into Jigsaw's game.

The twist in this film that did not follow Todorov’s theory was one of the prisoners actually being Jigsaw's prop, and secretly leading the rest of the group through Jigsaw's plan. She kept Daniel safe and prevented him from being put into any of Jigsaws games. She also let all the other prisoners die and not find the cure for the toxic gas they were breathing in the whole time.

In conclusion, this film is part of a series of the world most well-known gore horror films and sticks to its genre of gore throughout the series. It's creative but gruesome scenes have disgusted the audience, with all intention to. The characters follow Propp's theory, leaving the audience feeling like they can trust certain characters, but were proven wrong when the film twists at the end. The film ended with only two survivors, Daniel and Amanda, but Daniels father the police officer ends up becoming a prisoner to Amanda after he was trying to save his son. The enables the films to continue with the same storyline or a completely different storyline, leaving the audience excited to see the next Saw film.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43vIxz2SRVo Here is the official trailer for Saw 2.

The Shining film analysis

The Shining
The classic horror film The Shining was produced by Stanley Kubrick in 1980. The film is
based on the 1977 Stephen King novel, The Shining. Unlike most horror films, The Shining
decides to focus on building tension using fear and the characters emotional instability, which categories it as a psychological horror.

The film opens up as a long shot of landscapes which suggest that there is travel involved in the film. The camera seems to be following the car which turns out to be the main character driving to the main location of the film. As the opening clips and titles come to an end there is a final long shot of a hotel in the mountains, which we find out later on in the film that this is the main location, Overlook hotel.

After the introduction there is a meeting in which the story appears, the father Jack Torrance
takes on the job of staying and looking after the hotel over the winter season. Jack brings his family along, his wife and only son. It is hinted during the beginning of the stay at the hotel, that his son Danny Torrance has psychic abilities. The family end up trapped in the hotel due to a snowstorm. Jack starts to go mad and try's to kill his family, because of the supernatural presence that haunt the hotel.

During the film there are some artistic, supernatural shots to show off Danny's psychic abilities and the madness that is happening inside of Jack's head. These shots consist of Jack seeing people who are not actually there, talking to them and encountering physically touching them. Danny is wondering around the hotel and discovers twin girls, who he had seen previously seen in a vision he had in a bathroom looking into a mirror at his own parallel reflection. This too me seemed like Stanley Kubrick was suggesting something, at the time of this vision he is also talking to his imaginary friend Tony, imaginary friends are sometimes representations of our ideal self, as Carl Rogers theory states our ideal self is who we want to be. One of my favourite shots is the slow motion river of blood that comes from the elevators. This scene can be linked to so many different things, like the blood representing murder and madness. Focusing on the artistic side of this scene, it's surreal and simply an impossible thing to happen, but The Shining is a psychological horror so it shows the madness and insanity that is happening in the characters head.

Whilst watching the film I noticed that this films structure mostly followed all of Todorov's
Narrative Theory. The film's setting is in an isolated hotel that the family also get trapped in.
Due to the snowstorm that traps the family inside and the hotel being located in the mountains, the hotel is a struggle to get to, and if the family were to try and escape they would risk freezing to death. Until the chase scenes at the end of the film, the characters movements are slow and calm. But once Jack starts trying to kill his family, the movements are still slow to begin with but only because Wendy and Danny are scared. They are hiding and trying to be as quiet as possible, but once spotted, they run for their lives so the characters movement and the camera shots become fast and short cuts. The music they use for this film is orchestra based with other instruments edited and used as effects, they start off with quiet subtle instrumentals almost like an introduction, which then progresses to high loud instrumentals for the fast tense scenes. They only use music during these types of scene, the silence itself can create a great atmosphere for those scenes where the audience can notice Jack going mad. The Shining contains one of the most famous horror scenes, the 'here's Jonny' axe scene. From this scene it's obvious that it follows Todorov's theory, it contains a sharp weapon that is being used to murder someone. One thing that didn't follow Todorov's theory in this horror film which I consider a twist. Jack the villain ends up dying and the mother and son escape unharmed. Unless you would consider the mother to be the final girl, and the son to be the hero; possessing a psychic ability that he uses to keep them away from death.

In conclusion, The Shining is a perfect example of a psychological horror, it builds tension that keeps the audience on the edge of their seat, and most importantly keeps the view entertained and interested in the film. The film has a basic but strong storyline, and uses creative artistic shots to show how powerful the mind can be. The film contains puzzles that leave the viewer thinking, and linking to other parts of the film, which is what made me personally want to watch it again. The reason this film became so big is because of it's surreal and artistic play with filming, the off-beat and out of tune music that has the ability to make the audience feel uneasy and anxious.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3b726feAhdU Here is the official trailer for The Shining.

Dracula trailer analysis

Dracula trailer analysis

I chose to analysis Dracula because it is a familiar horror classic that everyone is aware of, if not the original then one of the remakes or similar based film. The original Dracula movie was made in 1931 and is one of the first vampire-horror films to record. This film Dracula was produced by Universal and is based on a 1924 stage play.
 

The opening clip is Dracula rising from a coffin but has titles over the clip saying "In all the annals of living horror..." from this text I have noticed that the word horror is in bold, and is  biggest font size on this clip, this informs the viewer straight away that it's a horror genre film. I also like the play on words "...of living horror" as Dracula is then opening the coffin and sticks his arm out so it is visible that he is alive. The next clip states "one names stands out as the epitome of evil!". Epitome means A person that is a perfect example of a particular quality, so in this case they mean that Dracula is a perfect example of evil and horror. I also notice that evil is in the biggest font and has an explanation mark to show as if it's being shouted and brings attention to the word. Straight after this clip there is a mid shot of Dracula by himself standing in the shadows because sunlight can kill a vampire, Dracula introduces himself "I am, Dracula". This clip then fades into a close up of Dracula and then the movie title "Dracula" appears over the clip. As there is a close up of Dracula and the movie title appears I noticed that the music increased and took over any existing sounds that were on the clip. The typography in the titles that have just been shown are very creepy and it looks like the colour in the text is bleeding down it and dripping off, or the bottom of the text has been torn and worn away. Either way the typography goes really well with the horror genre theme. Between all of these clips there was a slow fading to bring in the next clip, this is because trailers usually start off slow and then build up towards the ending of the trailer.
 

Throughout the trailer there is a voiceover explaining the background of Dracula and promoting the film. One thing the voiceover said that stood out to me most is when he talks about Dracula "lived after death, lived on human blood and took the form of a vampire bat" this tells you a bit about Dracula, and what you will be expecting to see in the film. For me the voiceover made the trailer less scary/frightening, I am aware that the year this was made, they didn't have the equipment and programmes we have now, but personally I think that just more text on clips would have been better. Throughout the trailer there is no blood or gore clips, I haven't seen the film but they may have left them out of the trailer because they were too gruesome or because there isn't any visible gore scenes. They used an orchestra for the music in this trailer due the date it was made when they didn't have sound affects or any other type of horror related music. I think orchestra music suits old black and white films because it's iconic and expected. Even though this is another thing that wasn't intended due to the year, I think that Dracula in black and white works because Dracula is often in dark places anyway, also because it makes it look more sinister. At the very end of the trailer on the last clip the title Dracula appears again, I've noticed this is the second time in the trailer; once near the beginning and once at the end, they also mention the name Dracula a lot in the trailer. They have done this so it stands out from everything else in the clip, and so there is no way of forgetting the film name.
 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UehobGtSnOk

Sinister trailer analysis

Sinister trailer analysis

I chose to analysis this trailer because it's a recently released film and has been recommended by some friends. Whilst watching this trailer first time round it generally gave me Goosebumps, it made me feel anxious and the ending made me jump.
 

The first thing which the audience will notice when the horror trailer begins is that there is a young child's voice which instantly gives the viewer a feeling of insecurity and vulnerability. It also gives the viewer a sense of the setting in the film, that the family have recently moved into a new house which also gives a feeling of the unknown. There is an equilibrium at the beginning of the film as the atmosphere is calm which is created by the slow editing and fades between clips. The trailer begins to become scary when the father of the family goes into the loft and discovers a large box. After watching a film reel where it appears the previous family are being hanged, the film gradually becomes more scary as the father investigates the story behind the film tapes. Once he begins to investigate the tapes in his loft he finds that they are all serial murders dating back to the 60’s, all containing a symbol from a man named Bogore who eats the souls of children and lives in images of himself, children who were exposed of the images would often experience Bogore’s wrath. He then discovers his children have seen the images and are being attacked by Bogore too. Once his children become exposed to Bogore’s tapes he notices they are acting very strange, drawing images on the wall and coming to stand stills for numerous periods, he realises they have seen the tapes too. Just before this happens in the trailer the text “Nothing can save you” which gives us the information that once you see the photos, nothing can save you. He also has Bogore’s symbol start to appear in blood all over his house.
 

At the end of the trailer you hear the tape reel turning over and over again in the background along with clips of the family being attacked by someone, with weapons such as axes and knives, also numerous illustrations of death around the house too, it then cuts to Ellison looking in his loft to find 5 children covered in paint, whispering to him as they watch Bogore, then to be attacked by him, the credits then show and leave the viewer on a cliff hanger wanting to know more.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtlAW-T0ScE

Chernobyl Diaries trailer analysis

Chernobyl Diaries Trailer Analysis

I chose to analysis this film because the storyline fascinates me and most importantly it’s realistic and believable which makes me as the audience more interested in the film. Chernobyl was abandoned over night after one of the four nuclear reactors exploded in 1986, “the reaction was worse than 400 atomic bombs” as it states at the beginning of the trailer. Using facts and figures grabs the viewers’ attention and makes the story line more convincing.

The title of this film is shown at the end of the trailer, I think they do this because it’s the last thing you see, so you’re more likely to see it and remember it. In this trailer you get most of the storyline and doesn't really give a cliff-hanger, only who survives and who doesn't . In the beginning you see some clips of the characters backgrounds, the reason is to show why they go on this trip, why they become stranded there and what is after them. In trailers they often show the most entertaining clip that is most likely to persuade the audience to go and watch the film. In this trailer they don’t actually show you a clear shot of what is chasing them, this makes the trailer much scarier. At the start of the trailer the clips are long, calm and slow, but towards the end as they start to show the action clips, I noticed the clips started to speed up and become shorter. I think they do this to make the audience tense up and feel uneasy, and if that works they are more likely to go and see the film. In this trailer they use alarms and sirens to build suspense with the clips. I also heard a child’s laughter a few times during the first encounter with what ever is chasing them, this made me tense up when I was watching it. A child is harmless and innocent, we love and care about them and trust them because they are our young. So when I heard the child’s playful laughter in a dark abandoned environment, it frightened me because the once thought innocent children, are not as innocent as it seems.

Straight away the setting in the trailer falls under one of the typical codes and conventions; the film is set in an abandoned and run down environment. At the beginning of the trailer the clips show off the group of friends in their normal everyday life’s before they encounter this surprise experience. The clips used in this trailer seems to follow a normal day routine; from morning to night. There isn't any mixing clips from different days or times of the day, this makes the trailer more of a short story than a trailer. The music used for the beginning of the trailer match the type of clips that are being shown, the music is upbeat and pop influenced, like something you would hear in the charts on the radio. The music then suddenly drops to a siren alarm when “Chernobyl” is mentioned, and the clips go from the group of friends to old footage of the Chernobyl disaster. I think another reason they’ve used a siren alarm in this trailer is because it is a typical sign of danger, and it makes us feel anxious when we hear it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pp9xuquibQc

History of Horror