The Matrix Trailer Analysis

A strong sense of genre is created from the beginning of The Matrix trailer with the green Warner Brothers logo, giving an almost alien feel to the film before any footage is even shown, which represents the sci-fi genre. Futuristic sounding music is playing in the background as a large city is shown with an establishing shot, and this setting is a typical convention of a sic-fi film. Text is used to begin explaining the plot to the viewer and this is again in green writing to continue the feelings the original logo created. 

The footage itself in fact, particularly the party scene, is green tinted, giving the feeling that something is not quite normal about these characters we are seeing. Despite the hints towards this, the writing lists normal everyday things that both these characters and the audience do which makes them relatable, making the 'secret' about to be revealed a shock to the audience and also inclining them to watch a film in which they can understand the characters on a personal level. There is then a cut which is edited to look like it is being interrupted by a different signal almost, which tells the viewer that this film is not going to be about everyday, boring lives at all and introducing the action element to the film.

The trailer then changes tone a lot, with quicker cuts showing strange and inhuman going ons, which relates strongly to the sci-fi genre and will appeal to people who already enjoy these style of films. There is a monologue in the background of these clips which explains a bit more about the story and induces a huge sense of curiosity and interest which will encourage people to go and watch the whole film. After the speaking ends, fast paced music kicks in which relates back to the action elements of the film and also excites the audience greatly. This is accompanied by characters talking about the matrix, which the audience is going to be very interested in and also showing characters which will present a problem to the protagonists, further deepening the curiosity the viewer feels. 

The shots start speeding up again and guns, helicopters and fighting scenes are shown which brings in a strong sense of action films, however this is accompanied by speaking which talks about the characters super human abilities, which makes the viewer excited and also reminds them that this is not simply an action film. As the transition between shots speeds up, so does the music until this is all there is and this shows the audience small parts of the most exciting part of the film, encouraging them to go and see it just before the trailer ends. 

The title then appears, again in green and also in a font which seems technology related, reminding the viewer of the sic-fi elements of the film.

The Shining Genre Analysis

In class we have watched The Shining original trailer, and then a recut in which the genre has changed completely. It goes from a horror film featuring music to build tension and the main character manically laughing and running around with weapons to a romantic comedy style film with the main character fostering a child and writing a book. This huge change in genre is does purely through editing.

Both clips begin with lots of short clips from the film which are played one after another, but not to quickly as the audience will be able to clearly understand what has happened in that clip. This could be done to set the story for the people watching and give them a sense of the type of film this will be. This is done with the music heard in both trailers, as in the original trailer the music is incidental and eerie, creating an ominous feeling to the dialogue the audience hears. The recut, on the other hand, has upbeat and almost comical music behind the commentary.  The voice in the original trailer is that of one of the characters, and while the parts of the film that we see on screen changes this voiceover continues over the top of it. This helps confirm to the viewer that this is a horror film, as it is a scary story and the viewer sees the main character with an axe, which mirrors what the commentary is saying. This tells the viewer something is going to go dramatically wrong, and that something is not quite right about this character. In the recut, the person changing the trailer has created his or her own voiceover to aid the storyline he has created. This voiceover is cheery, and introduces both the main characters. This straight away removes any mystery surrounding the character, which is created in the original trailer, and therefore makes it clear this genre is less dark.

In the recut, there is then even more upbeat music and it gets louder as clips of the father and son together are played. This created a feel-good feeling to the trailer and shows that this film will be based on these two characters and their relationship. In the original trailer, the cuts begin to get shorter and introduces other characters, the main characters family, which creates alarm for the reader who has just heard that the last man who lived there killed his family. This implies where the story is going to go and what is going to happen. The music also increases in volume as this happens, which creates more tension and fear for the reader.  

The selection of clips shown is also a huge factor in how genre is created as the original trailer shows blood and weapons in a quick montage at the end of the trailer, creating fear in the viewer as they hardly have time to process what they are seeing as the quick cuts almost mirror their increasing heart beat as the fear and excitement grows. In the recut, the speed doesn’t necessarily increase, rather a montage of clips showing humorous situations and the characters being happy together are shown, which furthers the idea that this is a romantic comedy style film and will end happily. In both trailers, the name of the film then appears on screen, however in the recut there is happy pop music in the background, while in the original trailer there is a sting of music as the climatic sequence of scary scenes ends. This if followed by the main character hysterically laughing to the camera, breaking the forth wall and making the reader feel involved in the film, which heightens the fear they feel, and then there is a short shot of him putting an axe through the door.  In comparison, the recut simply ends as it does not aim to shock or scare the viewer.

  

The Silence of the Lambs Trailer Analysis

The Silence of the Lambs trailer sets the genre of the film as a horror straight away through the establishment of the main character being a police officer and a voice over explaining the murders that have been occurring. This character is introduced as being brave as she says she doesn’t scare easily, and this makes the audience believe she will be able to solve this murder. This could also be an early hint at the genre which develops as the trailer goes on. The crime aspect of this film is particularly developed during this part of the trailer. Nearer the end of the trailer, someone driving implies she is scared, which tells the reader that something horrible must have happened and that it must be very scary, which builds on the genre. The setting is also established in the opening as we see Anthony Hopkins character behind prison bars and the audience knows he is a ‘bad’ character as he has been arrested. The whole trailer focuses on this character, building him up as strange and someone to fear through both the way he speaks and what others say about him, which reinforces the horror genre and creates fear for the viewer. Even more fear is created because although this character is a ‘psychopath’, we don’t know who the murderer they are looking for is, creating tension and also adding elements of a crime genre to the film. The structure of the trailer is key in creating this sense as wider event within the films re hinted at in the trailer.

The build up in this film is when the audience gets to know Hannibal Lector, and also explains the relationship between the detective and the murderer through a voiceover, which gives the audience a basic idea of the plot that will be followed in the film.  During this section of the trailer, there are quick cuts to other parts of the film so the trailer does not follow the chronology of the film. These flashes are conventionally used in horror trailers so again it reminds the viewer this is a horror film, but it also adds confusion for the reader as they are unexplained and make the audience wonder what they mean. 

The ‘problem’ is also explained by the voiceover, which tells the viewer that the detective will have to team up with Hannibal Lector in order to catch the new murderer.  This introduces the base relationship for the film, and also causes the viewer to start thinking about what could go wrong. There is also the problem of there being a murderer, which is almost another storyline, and the fact that this trailer focuses more on Hannibal Lector implies that he may be more important to the film, but also adds a sense of mystery around the new killer which sparks the fear of the unknown in the audience. Dialogue is key in creating the sense of Hannibal Lector being a scary character, particularly others comments about him. The voice over does however also focus on explaining the other murders character to an extent, telling the viewer the gruesome way he kills. This use of dialogue creates much more fear for the viewer as they know the horrible things this man is capable of but not who he is, furthering the sense of mystery and the fear the viewer has.

By the end of the trailer there are much quicker cuts and short parts of scenes from throughout the film are shown, which build excitement and tension. Nothing is given away about the ending or any real events that happen within the film however it creates a sense that things will go wrong and that the film will be packed with action and scary parts. You see the female character with a gun, which shows her fear and panic and that she is in danger in some way as she needs to defend herself, while this hints at the fact things will go wrong, it does not tell the audience what and therefore encourages them to see the whole film. The fact it is a female lead character will also appeal to a female audience, as often in horror films male characters are the brave ones and stereotypically females play victims.

The title of the film appears at the end of the trailer, so the audience is intrigued by the events of the film and then the title appears and will therefore stick in their mind. The word ‘silence’ appears in red before a quick cut to Hannibal Lector before the whole title appears. This again implies his character will be key to the plot and is someone to fear, and the close up to his face makes him appear sinister and unhinged. The fact the color red is used also connotes fear as red is often linked to blood and anger, both negative connotations.  

After this, the names of the actors in the film appear and the director (Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Scott Glenn and then Jonathan Demme).  This is because they’re well known people, and will further encourage people to go and see the films as they have a reputation as good actors and have a fanbase, which to a certain extent shows use of Dyer's star theory. Jodie Foster is known for appearing in The Blood of Others and The Accused, both of which will have attracted people who will be interested in this film and give her background in appearing in horror and crime films. Anthony Hopkins has gone on to star in other Hannibal films, which means this film is still appealing today as people are fans of his work in more modern films.  Scott Glenn also gives this film modern appeal as he has starred in The Bourne franchise, which is very popular, as well as working many films prior to The Silence of the Lambs.

Film Genre

To start getting ready to create my film trailer, I have researched genre in films. I looked at romantic comedy, and other people in my class focused on different genres and then presented their findings to us.

Horror
Horror films are known for their tense music, gore, jump scares and for generally manipulating the audience to feel fear. The roots of horror comes from literature, such as Mary Shelly's Frankenstein which is also a film. The first horror films were silent films, which then became a popular genre and Universal were known for their horrors. In the 1960s psychological horrors became more popular with Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho and The Shining. Nowadays, supernatural films are considered scary, whereas monsters used to be the main feature of horror films. There are also hybrid genres which are very popular, such as horror with comedy, teen, monster and slasher. Popular examples are The Rocky Horror Picture Show which is comedy, horror and musical and Unfriended which is teen and horror. Throughout the years, many film have been considered revolutionary such as The Blair Witch Project, then Paranormal Activity and more recently, Unfriended, which brings modern technology into horror films.

Action and Adventure
The action and adventure genre itself is a hybrid genre, combining action films with adventure films. They can both be combined with many other genres, for example Kill Bill combines action and kung fu and Mr and Mrs Smith which is romance and action. They feature fast moving plots, action, a good vs evil pollen, a male protagonist, exotic settings, special effects and they have high budgets. The first action and adventure film was The Great Train Robbery, but in the 1960s James Bond style films became popular and the action and adventure genre took off. In the 1980s high budget action and adventure films were created and in the 90s sequels to already existing films. Tim Burton's Batman progressed into the comic book sub genre which is very popular today, for example The Avengers films. In 2000 women began starring in films to widen their appeal, such as the Tomb Raider franchise, however the target market still remains with teenage boys and young males, who would use the films for escapism and to identify with the characters.

Crime and Gangster
Gangster is a sub genre of the crime genre, and generally focuses on organised crime such as gangs and the mob. These style of films tend to focus on he empire itself rather than the violence. Crime films on the other hand are much broader, and can follow the criminal, the person tracking down the criminal or both. They can also have an air of mystery where either the audience or the characters don't know who has done what, and they can also be inspired by real life events. They are set in big cities, as this provides the opportunity to show the 'criminal underworld' (seedy bars, florescent lights etc are trademarks of this genre). The Musketeers of Pig Alley is the first crime and gangster film, and has set the path for other films which are deemed classics, such as Guy Ritchies Snatch, Scarface and The Godfather. Crime and Gangster films are often criticised for 'glorifying' violence, but this violence makes them appealing to their target audience of males.

Film Genre - Romantic Comedy