Poster Analysis: Life as we know it

Main Colours This poster is full of light and life; this is shown through the colours which are mainly pale but bright like yellow, white and green. The title is in a deep red which ensures it stands out vividly against the softer colours.

Main figures The entire background of the poster is an image rather than single image/s on a coloured background. The characters who appear to be a family catch my attention most and comedy is immediately conveyed through the obvious similarities between the grown man and the baby who appear to have the same costume, body language, actions and attitude. The woman following closely behind is smiling which suggests light-hearted humour. The title also stands out as I said before it is in a big, bold red, contrasting with its background.

Visual/Verbal Messages The amount of visual and verbal messages appear even but the visual message stands out much more as it is the entire background of the poster and it expresses humour the most as well as giving us an indication of what the film is about. The verbal message is shown through the tagline, ‘A comedy about taking it one step at a time.’ This mirrors the image which firstly contains a baby, therefore it could be the obvious fact that babies learn to walk one step at a time, but it could also be playing with it as a bigger meaning, such as life should be taken one step at a time. This is reflected in the grown man who could possibly apply it to his life and is dressed as a baby to show more literally him ‘taking it one step at a time’.

Audience The characters on the poster appear to be a family as their is a grown woman, man and a baby, so I automatically assume it is a family film, therefore aimed at an audience of most ages and either gender. It may be slightly more appealing to an older audience from young adults and above, and mainly people of a particular marital status -in a relationship or marriage. Although it does appear to be a comedy due to the man being dressed very similar to the baby with the woman running behind. Also, the text near the bottom informs us that it is a comedy, this should attract a bigger audience.

Persuasive Techniques There aren't any critics quotes reviewing the film, which is often quite persuasive as you have someone's opinion. The names of the main characters are displayed quite boldly at the top of the poster. They are both quite well known and are likely to be recognized. Personally, I didn't recognize them by there names but by seeing the image of them, but this did attract me to the poster. 

Conventions The conventions shown on the poster would lead me to believe it is a family comedy as there is the image of what appears to be a family, the image also contains irony and humor, the entire poster is full of bright inviting colours and the text at the bottom says "A comedy....". 

Text The text on the poster is all in basic colours but does stand out. The title attracts our attention most as it is biggest, boldest and in bright red against a pale background. The stars names are also fairly bold and in black to stand out which supports the persuasive technique of using famous actors/actresses to attract an audience. There is text at the bottom informing us of the genre and reflecting the image, "A comedy about taking it one step at a time", this could be referring to life or simply just learning to walk as there is a baby on the poster.


Effectiveness I think the poster is quite effective as the image immediately suggests it is a comedy, which is confirmed in the text at the bottom. The title is the most eye-catching, next to some of the casts names which are likely to be recognized by the audience. Supportive critics quotes could attract an audience further.

Poster Analysis: The Last Exorcism

Main Colours The majority of the poster is dull and lifeless apart from a small amount of text in dark red. It consists of black, grey and dirty, off-white. These colours all convey a lifeless but frightening sense of fear and evil which reflects the film.

Main figures The entire background is a whole image rather than a block colour with images on top but it still has a very clear focal point which is the girl in the corner of the room on the ceiling. She is quite simple but conveys a lot of emotion such as fear and wonder as her ratty, dull hair is draped down over her face and the slight glimpse of it we can see looks lifeless and evil but because it is mainly hidden it could transmit a fear of the unknown. She is wearing a simple, dirty, white nightdress, which suggests to me that she has been in this state for a long time in order to become this filthy. Her body language seems defensive but powerful, despite seeming to cower in the corner, this is contradicted by the fear she conveys to the audience and the fact she is up high and looking down on us. The title ‘The Last exorcism’ is also eye-catching due to the size and colour. It is large, bold and black on a white background. The font echoes the image of the girl as it almost a state as well, as if written in ink and smudged and blotched. The main word is ‘exorcism’ and is bigger and bolder than the rest to express the main idea of the film.

Visual/Verbal Messages The messages in the poster are mainly visual as the image, fonts and colours convey the most emotions but there is a small piece of text, or a tagline which can be understood alone but also applies strongly to the film, ‘If you believe in God you must believe in the Devil.’ This relates to the religious side of the film and the main storyline which is that the young girl is possessed by a demon.

Audience The image on the poster alone is fairly disturbing so it must be aimed at an older more mature audience of roughly 18 and above. Also for people who enjoy horrors, as this genre is clearly portrayed through the poster. It could also attract those who are religious, believe in god and/or the devil and take an interest in them.

Persuasive Techniques There are no critics quotes reviewing the film or popular actors mentioned to attract an audience. However, the writers and director are shown under the title but don’t appear to be very well known or to have won any awards, so the only real persuasive technique is how intriguing the image is.

Conventions The only horror conventions are in the colours as they are all dark, one being red. Also, the image is of a grim, dull room with a frightening character in a corner. The image also conveys a sense of abandonment as it is tatty and dirty, as is the girl.

Text The only other text on the poster is the release date for theatres and a website. This is in a similar font to the title, again in bold black to stand out but much smaller as it isn’t as much of an attraction but simply necessary information.

Effectiveness I think this poster is very effective as it conveys many aspects of the film, such as horror and religion. It reaches out to the correct audience and attracts them well, especially with the image. There could have been more persuasive techniques, such as critic’s opinions as the writers and director isn’t very well known.

Trailer Analysis: The Last Exorcism

THEATRICAL


The Last Exorcism Theatrical Trailer

Title 

The Last Exorcism, this isn’t shown until seconds from the end of the trailer and is presented in a red, ghostly font on a black background. Next to the title is a blurred image of what appears to be the shadow of a girl and a bright light with a hint of red, behind her. The color scheme for the title contains mainly black and red which are both stereotypical ‘horror’ colors and set the mood for the film. We are given a hint towards the title near the beginning, as some information is given in a typewriting font which gives an eery effect saying “Reverend Cotton Marcus has performed over 47 exorcisms” ... “This will be his last.” I have highlighted ‘exorcisms’ and ‘last’ as these words create the title. Each title/inter-title is accompanied by music which creates a frightening atmosphere. They are displayed in between disturbing clips from the film.

Genre

The Last Exorcism is a horror. This is shown through the frightening and eery music and sound effects, the information we are given at the start introducing exorcisms and mentioning the devil, a sense of the setting being deserted. Also, the ancient images and writing shown appear scary. Throughout the trailer, some of the footage is distorted or fuzzy and make a crackling noise. Dialogue such as “Go back where you came from” and “GO GO GO!” suggests a negative atmosphere. Close-ups are seen often in the trailer to convey emotions which are often of fear, sadness, worry and most importantly, of the young possessed girl, who is very disturbing. 

Starring

None of the actors names are given, but the main characters are shown in most of the clips, they aren’t very recognizable, although a small amount of viewers may notice them and be tempted to then see this film by that alone. The producer is named but, again, doesn’t appear to be very well known, although soon after we are told it’s by ‘the producers of Dawn of the Dead’ which is quite popular and may attract more of an audience. The writers and director are also shown, but again aren’t very familiar.

Action
The violence begins quite early in the trailer as a boy at the side of the road throws something at the car, before this, there is only a few basic clips to accompany the voice-over introducing some of the story. Most of the following clips appear to be quite calm, although the non-diegetic sounds and the dialogue are more intense and seem to be building up to something. The tension continues to build throughout the clips of the young girl as she panics and is worried about what is about to happen. This would draw an audience in as they would be anxious to know what is happening to her. The camera shots become indirect and frantic as the sense of panic and danger increases and we see breif shots of the girl, often in unusual positions or places. By the end of the trailer we are shown shocking clips of the posessed girl, accompanied by screams, which are violent and brutal.  In one of the final clips, the reverend is attempting the exorcism and shouts "I command thee to be gone!", this is followed by a raging fire which symbolises the danger and fear. 
Music

The trailer begins with the eery sound of women singing high pitched notes in the background, this seems religious but eery and reflects the dialogue, which mentions the bible, exorcism, god and the devil. The pace of the non-diegetic sounds increases as the trailer gets more violent and frantic. The music becomes less eery and more intense and frightening. Occasionally there is a sound which could intentionally be like a knife slashing across something, but seems computer generated. The sound effects reflect each action quite accurately and as the trailer becomes more overwhelming, the music becomes more frantic and dangerous. I think it sounds like an alarm at some point, which symbolises the danger. It suddenly cuts off to silent at the end as the title is shown.

Voice-over
There doesn't appear to be a voice-over, although at the beginning of the trailer, there's a male voice mentioning the bible, exorcisms, god and the devil, accompanying the clip of someone flicking through the pages of an ancient book and images of demons. I beleive this is dialogue from the film, but because we aren't shown who is talking, it could be a voice-over. The voice sound like an expert in the area, but also as though he shows real interest in what he is saying, as well as a sense of curiousity.
Pace

The pace throughout the trailer builds as the tension does, beginning calm and informative. Quite early on in the trailer, the violence begins, but as it does, so does the sense of confusion, worry and danger. As the pace builds, it increases how anxious the audience are. The tension builds further as the young girl is introduced and the action in the clips eventually speeds up, aswell as going from one to the next quicker. The trailer finishes calm again as the music is cut and the title, writers and directors are shown.  
Information

The information we are given at the start introducing exorcisms and the devil gives us a breif insight into what we are about to watch. The ancient images and writing which accompany this appear eery, frightening and possibly dangerous. We are also introduced  to the Reverend through text on the screen, and are given some breif information about him. The dialogue introduces us to the problem being faced throughout the film, "Somehow, the devil got in her." No additional information on the actual film is given but at the end it displays the title, writer, director and website.

Audience

The genre is horror, so the film is aimed at a more mature audience. It has quite as specific storyline which could also be aimed to attract a religious audience who beleive in the contents of the film, such as demons and the devil. 

CONVENTIONS

Unlike many trailers, the stars aren't showcased at any point. This usually works as an attraction to audiences if the stars are well known.
It does however convey key features of the film through intertitles on the screen in between the relevant clips. Any information given through dialogue is narrowed down mainly to one-liners, but there is occasionally a breif conversation between characters.
Throughout the entire trailer, camera shots appear to be fairly frantic, as if being done with a hand held camera but deliberately rather than just poorly recorded. The effect reflects the overall atmosphere of each brief scene shown. The camera angles are often tilted slightly and even to the point where it is difficult to work out what you're looking at, but again this contributes to the frantic and dangerous effect.
The music throughout the trailer reflects the actions and dialogue, therefore assisting to create the overall atmosphere.
Another common convention that this trailer possesses is displaying the title at the end, although it was referred to at the start. It seems to act as a conclusion to what we have seen, 'The Last Exorcism'.
Right from the beginning, the tension and danger builds until the final climax, then the pace increases along with the action and amount of clips, until it comes to a sudden halt at the end, before the title is displayed.
Mainly informative and active clips have been put together in a montage, highlighting specific aspects of the film which are most likely to attract the target audience. Many emotions and situations have been chosen in order to attract the widest possible audience. For example, the religious references, the nostalgia created by the daughter referring to her mother as her "best friend", etc.


This trailer has a fairly conventional structure. The setting, characters and main features of the story-line are established at the beginning, as we see clips of them accompanied by inter-titles. This is followed by relationships between characters being briefly put in place and dilemmas or complications arising. This is mainly done through dialogue at first but is followed by a montage of clips which show you what is happening but leave you slightly clueless as it doesn't tell you.