Genre Essay | Media Diary

In the essay I will be analysing The Hunger Games film trailer, which is part of the action genre. The usual conventions of the action genre are that we usually see fights, weapons, quite loud, upbeat music and set in a big city.  This films stars Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson, who have ,before the hunger games, starred in a few other action films. Basically, the film is about a city that gets split into 12 districts, and each year a girl and a boy are randomly chosen to fight for their district, however only 1 comes out alive. From the plot we can already tell it's an action film due to the fact that it consists of fighting, and ends in death.

Throughout the trailer I noticed that this trailer fits in with the action genre. The trailer features the main character, Katniss Everdeen played by Jennifer Lawrence, which already goes against usual stereotypes of girls because we don't always see girls being represented as powerful and strong like we do in the hunger games. However there are many characteristics of the trailer which do suggest to the audience that it's an action film.The generic codes I noticed in the trailer, is that the main 3 characters in the trailer are young and fit, which is what we usually see in action films. Also, at first the setting seems quite dark and run down however, it then moves into a big and modern city. The use of a big city is often used in action films, to possibly make situations seem more realistic. Another generic code used in this trailer is the themes of death and fighting. The characters say things like 'survival' and 'fight until death' which stand out in the trailer to let audience know what the film revolves around and maybe what to expect, as these themes are used in many other action films. Mise en scene in the trailer also gives us an indication that it fits in with the action genre, for example the main prop used that we see is the bow and arrow which is a characteristic of the genre because it's a violent weapon used to create action in the trailer. In many of scenes, both Peeta and Katniss are seen to be wearing dark clothing, which has negative connotations and could indicate the action and deaths that will occur later on in the film.

 The narrative codes portrayed through out the trailer, includes things like the camera work influencing the audiences position. For example, at one point when the characters are running, the camera also shakes, which positions the audience in a way that makes us feel as though we are there, and also joining in with the action. Also, there are a number of different action and enigma codes portrayed in the trailer, such as the part where Katniss volunteers as tribute in place of her sister. This moves the narrative along because it then changes the whole plot to follow her fight in the games. Some of the enigma codes I noticed where, who comes out alive? What happens to Katniss / Peeta? What actually happens during the games? Usually, the binary oppositions in action films could be Life vs. Death, or Good vs. Bad, however in the trailer we can not recognise a villain yet, which could also lead to another enigma code. We do see Life vs. Death though, as one of the characters says it is a 'fight until death.'

There are technical and audio codes throughout the trailer that suggest that this fits in the action genre. An example is the non-digetic music in the background. It portrays the action genre because although it's quite slow, it consists of occasional loud bangs, which add to create a tense and energetic atmosphere. At one point, the music completely stops, and we then hear the digetic sound of a countdown. This makes the trailer more intense, because we know that something dramatic will happen at the end of the countdown, making the audience anxious and excited. There are several shots used, for example a high angle shot of the crowd, all wearing a similiar blue colour. This creates quite a sinister mood, because it makes everyone look the same, and everyone fits into the crowd. There's also a shot reverse shot from Katniss and Gale. This has been used to immediately get the reaction of each character whilst they wait to find out who is being picked to fight and their facial expressions therefore reflect the atmosphere in the crowd. The lighting at most points in the trailer is quite dark. Again this reflects the action genre as it connotes a bad vibe and negativity, so it could indicate the violence that will take place throughout the film. However at times, the lighting picks up to a brighter light which could imply that maybe there is hope for one of the main characters, which is a usual characteristic of the action genre. The hero usually survives.