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.

The film 'The Dark Knight Rises' is one of the 3 Dark Knight films to be released.

The film genre is action/thriller and it shows this through a variety of conventions. The first visual we see is a high shot of Gotham. Straight away as an audience we familiarise ourselves with the city as we know the city is the main setting of all other Batman films as it is where Bruce Wayne/Batman has grew up since a child. It is a city of crime and chaos which could be seen as a Binary opposition of Order versus Chaos. We also see medium close ups of the all the main characters cut in to one another to give an over view of who is in the film. The director of the film, Christopher Nolan, shows that the film is an action/thriller as a lot of the films he has directed does have action and thrill in including the other two Dark Knight films; Batman begins & The Dark Knight. This film may draw an audience in not by the genre, but by the actors, those being Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Anne Hathaway and Tom Hardy; all huge blockbuster stars.

Using Todrov's stages of narrative, the equilibrium established in this film is Gotham. The first disruption we see is when Gotham Bridge collapses from an explosion and then Batman being sent to 'exile'. The disruption is recognised by a boy asking 'Do you think he is coming back' whilst drawing a Batman sign this being a convention of iconography of Batman. The attempt to repair disruption is seen when Batman returns to save Gotham. The trailer doesn't show it, but if we could predict it, the reinstatement of the equilibrium or the new equilibrium would be that Batman 'saves the day' as that is what typically happens most of the time in superhero films.

The music of the trailer begins quiet and tranquil which gradually gets tenser to create thrill and takes over the dialogue of the film until the first character who speaks is introduced. The sound continues to get tense until it becomes epic to connote the action scenes in the film.

The iconography of the film include the Batman logo, the various Batmobiles and the way Batman wears his costume in a shot standing on a tall building overlooking Gotham whilst his cape is flowing. A binary opposition is shown also through the characters, that being Good versus Evil. Batman is the 'good guy' and Bane is the villain. We know this as in the trailer Bane is asked 'What are you?' in which he replies 'I'm Gotham's reckoning' suggesting he is going to cause the chaos Gotham is going to undertake, that chaos being a lot of action. We also know he is the villain by the iconography of Bane, he has a metal mask which covers features of his face. Masks in most cases are what you would relate to villains in quite a lot of films. Almost, if not everybody knows as an audience that Batman is the hero as the franchise has been around decades. The trailer shows us that Batman and Bane are against each other as Bruce Wayne says to Bane 'why didn't you just kill me?' and we see numerous fight scenes of the two through mise-en-scene. Again this reinforces the genre of the film, action and thrill.

Gone Girl

Gone Girl is a 2014 thriller. Starring Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike, it follows the life of Nick and Amy Dunne, a seemingly happily married couple however all is not what it seems which is what this trailer highlights. Due to Amy's sudden disappearance, an investigation is opened framing Nick as a wife killer. The plot thickens throughout as it appears Amy is the one framing him. 
The genre of this film is quickly identified as a thriller as many conventions suggest this. Firstly the title assumes a girl has disappeared. This and the trailer alone causes the enigma to be asked "Is she dead or alive?" Later in the trailer it is quickly identified that the husband is the suspect to his wife's murder. Another enigma is quickly identified "Did he kill her or not?" 

John Carpenter’s 

The Thing Trailer (1982)

John Carpenter’s The Thing is a hybrid genre that consists of Horror and Sci-Fi. John Carpenter is associated with the Horror and Sci-Fi Genre, so we know that this will be a movie of both Genres.

The setting of the movie is in a snowy secluded area, shown by establishing shots. Secluded areas, such as cabins in the woods are very much associated with horror. Also, throughout the trailer we see a lot of close ups, which are strongly associated with the horror genre as it shows the characters fear. Once again, another thing that associates with horror is the tracking shots, which is affiliated with someone being chased, which is what always happens in horror films. The Film deals with the themes of fear, trust and the unknown, which are all main themes of the Horror genre.

A technical signifier in the trailer is the lighting, every time we see a character it is dark, there is always dark lighting everywhere the characters go. Darkness and shadow are associated with horror but are also associated with the unknown.

The plot of the Movie is very typical of the Sci-Fi genre. Alien or aliens, come to Earth and either want to annihilate or enslave all humans. So the Antarctic base is regarded as a microcosm to the men, and the alien wants to take it over or kill all of the men.

Claude Levi-Strauss’ Binary oppositions throughout this trailer are, Trust vs. betrayal (they trust each other not to be the Thing) and Predator vs. Prey (The Thing is the predator, humans are the prey). Both of these binary oppositions associate with the horror Genre.

At the beginning of the trailer we hear static from a radio frequency, we then begin to hear a man say, “We found something in the Ice.” the word “something” indicates the horror genre, as it represents the unknown, and all human fear the unknown. The camera then zooms out so show the audience the word, “Thing;” this is the title of the movie, but it also indicates horror as “thing” resembles a monster.

After this there is a fade to white, then an immediate shot of a helicopter that flies to an Antarctic base. We then cut to a shot of a UFO, which is iconography of the Sci-Fi genre, as aliens are associated with Sci-Fi.    

Then the non-diegetic sound of a voice over then activates, the voice is ominous and begins to describe the plot. The voice over is omniscient, as he tells us things that the characters don’t know, “for one hundred thousand years, it was buried beneath the ice.”  Behind the voice over there is eerie, low pitch music which is used to build tension, and resemble mystery. Once the voice over stops we hear Kurt Russell explaining what the “Thing” is and what it does, this is an action code, because this moves the trailer on. We know this to be true because the music builds up and we begin to finally see the thing.

The unsettling music signifies paranoia; as the little montage at the end of the trailer shows people running. And Kurt Russell has explained that the thing could be anyone of them, and that leaves the characters and the audience wondering who; this is also an enigma code, as it raises the question to who’s the Thing? We also hear the “Things” famous blood curdling scream at the end, which signifies pain. Blood curdling screams also resemble horror.

The main character of the film is R.J. Macready, and is stereo typical of the main character in a horror or Sci-Fi film, as he is the first person to know what is happening and is the character who takes charge. We know this to be true, because in the trailer he is the one who explains what the “Thing” is to the other characters and the audience. All the other characters in the trailer seem to be stock characters, as throughout the trailer all they seem to do is challenge the character, like the betraying best friend, or follow the main character like the trusting best friend.

In the film there is a character called, “Mac,” and “Windows.” The film was made in 1982, so this could be coincidental or it was used to resemble the rise of technology in the 80’s. This has nothing to do with genre; I just thought it was a cool fact to add.

Genre Trailer

Genre Essay

For my essay I have chosen the Fantasy mystery Watch men one of Dc’s darker films about an alternate 1985 where a once group of superheroes, are informed that a former colleague is murdered, so the crazed member of the team Rorschach vows to find his murdered but in the process finds something he was not excepting.

The plot suggest that’s they are trying to deal with society and how they are not be excepted into it, so they become unwanted saviours who are ridiculed an abused by society this is shown through the constant assaults on the ship of one of the superheroes and at one points this is made extremely clear when a Molotov is thrown at his ship, I think all of this is one big allegory, with the superheroes supposedly being a corrupt government so the people are going against them as in the film the are going against the corrupt ways of he superhero group. Also fear of the unknown and a faceless enemy as it is quoted “John thinks there’s going to be a nuclear war” but it is never specified from whom this attack will come from that sense of paranoia and that how can they fight an enemy if they are not clear who the enemy is.

 This is obviously not one of dc’s usual films which would appeal to the young and old but instead just the old in this case as a dark theme runs throughout this film and this is very clearly shown through lighting, there is not one scene throughout where the sun is visible or there is a blue sky or in fact they are never in a shade of light that would suggest anything but a lurking problem and a horrible conclusion.

There is a narrative that is spoken by the team member Rorschach and its is him swapping between scenes and speaking to different characters but when this is happening his face is not shown but just the person whom is speaking to signifying that he is a mysterious masked man with some sort of problem.

Something, which is also a strong signifier that it is a fantasy mystery, is its fast paced shot cuts showing how the mystery is progressing throughout the film, this is telling us how they are getting closer to solving the mystery what also accompanies this is the music as it comes in with the narrative two thirds of the way in showing a change in mood.

Many shots have bullet speed in them empathising the strength and the significant of fights or actions played out this is stereotypical of any fantasy as it allows you to take in and appreciate the scene and visual.

Zack Snyder is well known for fantasies so is automatically an icon for fantasy films, attracting an audience that follows Snyder and his work.

This trailer is very stereotypical of a fantasy with its great visual effects and unusual unnatural music but also alongside its mystery with that change in music and pace in thot cuts which speed up to be a signifier that the near.

Genre Essay

Sci-fi Horror – ‘Cloverfield’ Trailer

Jonathan Taylor

Visual imagery is used cleverly in this trailer. Close-ups, zooms to long-shots, give an amateur-feel effect, for lost footage style, for realistic effect. Realism and personalisation of the ‘personal camera view’ adds to the horror genre effect, seen in many films such as ‘Blair Witch Project’ and the ‘Rec’ series.

Distorted/damaged shots are also used. Towards the end of the trailer the picture cuts out to black constantly, then back to image briefly. The shots move randomly and distort vision. This distortion creates tension and unease in a viewer, heightening the atmosphere of horror and mystery that sci-fi horror generates. This itself reflects the genre and its conventions, as the general tone is dark and eerie.

New York City, explosions/toppling buildings and general lighting is dark/shadowed. The entire idea of New York City on fire, exploding buildings, with the talk of some kind of ‘monster’ is a use of iconography, with biggest references to films such as ‘Godzilla’ and ‘King Kong’. The idea has been seen before, this is something the audience has seen before and fills the convention of the classic sci-fi / monster movies, with the horror aspect being seen as the twist.

The plot can be compressed into a more generic form, seen as a template for many sci-fi horror movies, such as ‘Alien’ too: A ‘change’ is about to happen in everyday life (in this case, a character is moving away). Mysterious, unexplainable (at first) things start to happen. City/Iconic location (spaceship maybe) turns into chaos as a Supernatural/Unnatural force is seen to be rampaging, causing mass-death, disturbance and threat to the human-race. Group of survivors fight for survival, some will probably die along the way. Unravelling as to why and who, but leaving many questions unanswered. I’ve gathered this from the various short introductions to a group of characters and the general direction in which I think the movie might take, due to the trailer. It seems to show the eerie, mysterious tension aswell as ‘survival’ aspects of the horror genre, but the grandeur special effects, dramatic landscape and concepts (such as world-wide shock, seen in the news broadcast) are in relation to sci-fi films.

All characters shown are young average/slightly privileged adults. Lead character (Rob) and ‘camera-man’ – lead and side-kick relationship could be seen here. See it in lot of sci-fi films, especially Monster-related ones, such as ‘Battle Los Angeles’ and ‘District 9’, where there a lead character and some form of less head-strong/courageous close friend. The realistic, varying personalities between the characters are shown to again, push out the realism, to create the sense of horror.

The idea of ‘just a normal day, but it all changed’ is seen in many sci-fi and horror films. Where the trailer starts in a familiar party setting, to that of a city in chaos. This sudden change lands the plot into a life/death situation seen in both horror and sci-fi movies. Also, the use of almost minimalist music, with heavy reliance on dark-sounding sound effects, aswell as discordant and chromatic instrumentation, give an idea of bare, eerie silence (but still, not quite silent).

There are no instantly recognisable actors here, no Hollywood stars to be seen. This is probably to do with the same effect as ‘The Blair itch Project’ – planting the response of ‘is it real?’, so having that seed off doubt, adds to the film’s realism approach, to really push the horror feeling in the audience.  Because you cannot recognise the actors here, a lack of ‘fantasy’ or ‘reality separation’ is created, where the audience cannot shut off and fall into the ‘safety net’ of knowing for sure that this is completely false world, that they are safe from. It challenges the very safety of us from others and indeed ourselves too, very common in horror films, aswell as reflective of the themes and emotional drives of sci-fi films, as their ideas are often complex and philosophical.  

Some binary opposition can be seen in this trailer. The idea of humans vs. the alien/unknown, is commonly seen in sci-fi. This normally correlates with the theme of ‘team-work’ and the bond between humans when working together to fight against evil, with the aliens often being seen as the evil, so also reflects good vs. evil, or even possibly innocent/defender vs. attacker.

Genre Essay.

Never Let Me Go Trailer.



This film is based on a group of youngsters who spend their childhood at a Boarding School. When they leave the school Tommy & Ruth's truth of their fate is revealed to them. They must then confront the deep feelings of love, jealousy and betrayal that threaten to tear them apart.

The functional approach of this trailer is that it involves the theme of love, but also gives off the effect that something is getting in the way, which gives the ideologies of 'if you want something, never stop fighting for it' and  everyone has to uncover their relationship to their own mortality, we have two options: either go against it, or try to figure out a way around it like the character Tommy does.

The descriptive approach is represented through the music throughout the trailer as it starts off very orchestral, which then develops into romantic music and then continues to develop into sombre music causing the audience to wonder how the film will end. It also creates an emotional effect on the audience. Also the lighting of the trailer is dull, dark and gloomy, which signifies the outcome of the overall film. It seems as though towards the end something unexpected will occur.
 
The main characters in this film are Kathy played by Carey Mulligan, Tommy played by Andrew Garfield and Ruth played by Keira Knightley. Kathy seems like a very honest, empathetic and mild-mannered individual. She is the narrator of the trailer which gives us a chance to explore her point of view and feelings. However the character of Tommy as a child seems to be very short tempered, although when he becomes an adult is seems that he is a kind-hearted individual as he causes the 2 women to fall in love with him. The character of Ruth seems to come across as selfish, as when they were children she is seen kissing Tommy knowing how Kathy 'her friend' felt about him.

The trailer gives three main institutional settings: Hailsham, the Cottages, and the donor recovery centres. The overall setting seems to be very mysterious, as the weather is always gloomy and the camera shots seems to be quite dark. The visual imagery of the camera shots of the Boarding School implies how the individuals felt about their time at Hailsham.
There are various shot types throughout this trailer, there are close ups, establishing shots and zooming shots. This creates a lot of effect for the audience as it gives them the opportunity to put themselves in the point of view of the character. The establishing shots benefit the audience as it allows them to view the setting in a full image.

Genre Essay

For my essay I have chosen to analyse the film trailer for the western/revisionist western movie Unforgiven. This movie hit the big screen in 1992 and has some iconic factors with a western movie along with some factors that challenge the western genre and in turn making this film a revisionist western.

Firstly, the majority of the shot types used in the film trailer are traditional to a revisionist western because they are close-up and revealing. A lot of the shots used are close ups which allow the audience to focus on the character and connect with them because we can see their feelings through the heightened view of their facial expressions. This in turn conforms to the genre conventions of a revisionist western because they are very character based, in oppose to the all out action theme of a traditional western movie.

The mis-en-scene of the Unforgiven film trailer is extremely traditional and conforms greatly to the genre conventions of a western movie. However, there are some challenges against the western genre. The settings are what you would expect to see! The settings include a vast baron desert/wasteland setting and a saloon/bar type setting which are extremely typical settings and characteristics for a western and revisionist western movie to the point that there is a sense of intertextuality with every other western movie! The costumes used are also very typical of a western movie. Throughout the trailer we are bombarded with the traditional cowboy hats and leather waistcoats. We also see the sheriff brandishing his star shaped sheriff's badge. These costumes are all typical to a western genre and just cowboys in general and they let us know that this movie is a western. The women in the trailer are mostly dressed very differently to what you would expect in a western movie. In a patriarchal genre such as westerns Women are usually seen as second class and as trophies, the better your woman the better man you are. To denote this the women are usually dressed loosely and provocatively. There are women dressed like this in the trailer but there screen time is minute and they are dressed like this to adhere to the dress code of their profession. The women in this movie trailer however are dressed to the full wearing long dresses and shirts buttoned up to their necks. By doing this the Unforgiven film trailer challenges the genre conventions of a western movie because dressing women in this way shows them in a different light all together. The props used in Unforgiven are also very traditional of a western movie. The majority of props used are guns from the civil war America era such as revolvers or a 'spencer rifle', there are countless horses seen and the American flags in the town setting connote patriotism which is a big theme in western movies, due to the fact they are usually set around the time of the American civil war. These props and costumes are all a form of iconography. The cow boy hats and guns are all iconic to western movies and revisionist western movies. One of the stars and directors of the movie, Clint Eastwood, is a form of iconography also because he is iconic to the western genre. Even the characters are iconic. In every western movie we see a sheriff type character.

The characters in the Unforgiven film trailer are a mixture between conforming to the western genre and its characteristics and going against them completely. There are the traditional western characters such as the sheriff and the bad guy (or guys in this case) and characters such as the damsel in distress. There is also a traditional character of a revisionist western, however this character does challenge the genre characteristics of a traditional western movie, in William Munny with him being the retired police officer going back to do 'one last job'. This doesn't conform to the characteristics of a traditional western because the men in those movies are depicted as killers and are happy about that. However there are some very different and unexpected characters in this film trailer. The first are the women, who challenge the police and voice their opinion. This is practically unheard of in the traditional westerns such as 'the searchers'. The other character is Ned Logan, Clint Eastwood's black partner. This was unseen in any western because the time when these films are set are usually around the civil war era when black people were seen as second class citizens. By including such characters in the trailer and giving them such powerful roles, Clint Eastwood (also directed the film as well as starred in it) goes against the genre characteristics entirely.

The iconic props and characters in this trailer have their own connotations that go against or conform to the western genre characteristics. The sheriff character in western movies signifies law and order and the villain character in the trailer signifies injustice. This is a classic binary opposition in the western genre. However, in this particular trailer this binary opposition is challenged with the sheriffs being described as 'killers' and as being the signifiers for corruption. This binary opposition is supported by the sheriff character having his badge half covered under his jacket. This signifies that the corruption and injustice has over clouded what is right. One ideology that conforms in this trailer is that honour is of upmost importance to a man. Clint Eastwood's character William Munny coming back to do one last job in the name of honour. Another binary opposition that challenges the western genre characteristics is the one of man against women. With the western genre being traditionally patriarchal, this trailer challenges this binary opposition by making the women strong characters who voice their opinion and chase the villains out of there town by throwing rocks at them. This signifies that women are as equal as men and can do what they can do. This binary opposition can be taken further by looking at it as inferior and superior, men being the superior and women being inferior. This challenge of characteristics is supported by the strong women shown in this revisionist western trailer and Morgan Freeman's character Ned Logan. He also signifies equality, however he does it in a way that says everyone is equal not just men and women but people of every race. This is signified through him being black which is something that is rarely seen in western movies.

Genre Essay: Fantasy

Genre Essay: Fantasy

In the Fantasy genre there are many conventions, which are typically used throughout their films.

One of the most prevalent conventions that take place in fantasy films is the use of ‘Good vs. Evil’. This is shown in the trailer for ‘Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe’ when it introduces the character of the White Witch and the trailer seems to move into a darker tone with shadows and fire. It introduces the idea of danger in Narnia and something evil that is trying to take over. The words “A destiny will be fulfilled” and the shot of the male lead character, Peter, unsheathing a sword connotes that he will lead a fight to stop the evil witch. This enforces the idea of ‘Good vs. Evil’ and ‘Freedom vs. Domination’ which takes place in so many other fantasy films like Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings.

Another convention that is used in the plot is the idea of the ‘Underdog vs. The Aggressor’. This is shown in the trailer for ‘Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe’ when it shows the battle against the white witch when the children are forced to lead a battle against her.

Another convention commonly used in films belonging to the Fantasy genre is the use of magic. The magic element is shown through the characters of Aslan, the lion and The White Witch. Magic in fantasy is used to show contrast between the ‘magical’ world and the ‘real’ world.

In most fantasy films the setting is that of a lush, green countryside reminiscent of that of the English country. This has been used as early as the Lord of the Rings, which has cast many of its places of importance in valleys of rolling green such as the shire. This setting is also used in films such as Eragon and The Hobbit.

A medieval setting is also a common convention used in fantasy films. It is shown in this trailer when the battle takes place and all of the weaponry looks similar to those used by the Saxons. This is used throughout the range of fantasy films as it created a larger gap between the magical and real worlds.  It is also linked back to the tolkienesque literature, which drew on the old English mythology and legends of the Vikings and the Saxons. It creates a contrast to the vast technological advancements of the modern day.

Another frequent convention used in fantasy films is the presence of an old advisor. This old soothsayer character is mostly used to guide the young hot-headed character to be more wise and to think about his actions before he makes a move. Most of the time this old man will be in the form of a wizard. This trope has been used throughout the vast collection of fantasy films. Gandalf in the Lord of the Rings, Dumbledore in Harry Potter. In this trailer the wise character seems to be in the form of Aslan the lion.