Analysis of Genre

The film The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is typical of the Fantasy and Adventure genres. This is the first film in the Hobbit trilogy so the trailer relies on showing the genres but it is also the 4th entry to the Middle Earth franchise so it will need to keep the same style as the other films.
You can tell that this film is Fantasy because of the mise-en-scene. Characters can be seen wearing robes and armor which are typical conventions of the Fantasy genre, also characters carry weapons such as bows and swords which are seen as weapons that would be used in a Fantasy world. These conventions are seen as Fantasy because they're not things we'd associate with being normal and they are things people would use thousands of years ago, such as swords. They have been outdated for hundreds of years and have been replaced by guns so seeing people walking around with swords like its normal is very Fantasy-like. Another way I can tell that this film is Fantasy from the mise-en-scene is the makeup/costume/special effects used on characters. The characters are made to look like they are different races- Hobbits, Humans, Dwarfs and Elves- this is because mythical races like this are used a lot in Fantasy genres, even in Star Wars there are other races in it but they are classed as aliens.

The setting is in an unfamiliar world that is not similar to our world. This is common in the Fantasy genre because it something we have to imagine but it is also a convention of the Adventure genre because it is an unknown world that we get to explore with the characters as most of the world is unknown to them too. We see many different places in the trailer such as a quiet little village, a destroyed castle and a forest. This is a convention of the Adventure genre because we see a lot of an unknown world and we get to see what it is like. It is also a convention of the Fantasy genre because it has lots of places that we are unfamiliar with.

The music that is used is very orchestral. This is typical of the Fantasy genre because they usually have big scores to go along side of their big settings and their characters. About half way through the trailer the music changes to a diegetic song from the film the the Dwarfs are singing, this song is very low pitched and slow to show their misery. This is typical of the Adventure genre because we get to see the Dwarfs adventures and see why they're doing what they're doing.

A few stars seen in the trailer, such as Ian Mckellen, Hugo Weaving and Kate Blanchett, are from other films in the Middle Earth franchise so seeing them in the trailer for this film as the same characters shows that this is going to to be a Fantasy film just like the Lord of the Rings films. The Director of this film, Peter Jackson, is also known for directing the Lord of the Rings trilogy. This will make people see that the Hobbit is a Fantasy/Adventure film, if they have seen Lord of the Rings, because they have seen him make three other films in the franchise and they will kind of know what to expect from him.

The story line shown in the trailer seems to be a Wizard, Gandalf played by Ian Mckellen, and a dozen Dwarfs led by Thorin, Richard Armitage, looking for a new person to join their expedition across Middle Earth. This is typical of the Adventure genre because it shows a group of people travelling across the world to achieve a common goal that will benefit all of Middle Earth.

Some iconography used in the trailer are typical of the Fantasy genre, such as swords and other races. They are icons for the Fantasy genre due to them being used a lot in other Fantasy films, such as Star Wars and Harry Potter. Furthermore there is some iconography of the Adventure genre too, such as places that are seen and characters being seen travelling a lot. This is iconography because in Adventure films many different places are shown and you see characters travelling a lot, going on an adventure.