Class Trailer Review (3)

Name of Film: The Pusher Trilogy
Genre of Trailer: Horror/ Crime/ Drugs
Year released: 2005
My Mark: 7/10

What happened in the trailer?
The trailer shows groups of shots, which hint towards death and sexual activity. The main dialogue seen is about drugs and what appears to be different ‘gangs’ in rivalry.

Which positive, clever or interesting aspects do you think you could include in your own trailer? What generic features are fulfilled well?
A lot of quick sequences are used which then cut to quotes on screen to collision cut and speed up the pace. These quick shots reveal a lot of sex, drugs and violence and therefore are most likely the main themes of the film but the trailer doesn’t reveal much about the plot. The rhythm of the music speeds up and slows down to match he cuts in action which makes the trailer quite dramatic.

Which aspects of the trailer did you think were unsuccessful and would put off its target audience? How is it disappointing?
Some of the quick montages are possibly too quick and could be slightly slower to be clearer of what is happening. This causes confusion to the narrative, which could also be made clearer.

What was the average score in class? Why did it receive that mark?
The average score was 8 as it compacts a lot of shots into a short and fast paced trailer, which is a genuine reflection of the films.

Class Trailer Review (2)

Name of Film: Day of the Dead
Genre of Trailer: Horror/ Mystery
Year released: 1985
My Mark: 5/10

What happened in the trailer?
The trailer soon reveals that film is about a ‘zombie apocalypse’ and about warning the world and explaining their instincts and actions to protect the remaining humans.

Which positive, clever or interesting aspects do you think you could include in your own trailer? What generic features are fulfilled well?
The storyline is made very clear in the trailer as the voice over and dialogue explains the narrative well. The zombies make up and effects are good and ‘realistic’. The trailer also links to the ‘day’ in the title of the film which also relates back to ‘night’ and ‘dawn’.

Which aspects of the trailer did you think were unsuccessful and would put off its target audience? How is it disappointing?
The trailer falsely advertises the film as it sells the film as comedic whereas the film is actually very gory and horrific but the trailer doesn’t show any body horror. The trailer is also very slow and doesn’t have an obvious change in pace and would be improved with a fast ending. The voice over explaining the plot is quite annoying and cheap.

What was the average score in class? Why did it receive that mark?
The average score was 4.5, this was because the trailer is slow and therefore gets boring and disinteresting. The voice over was also mutually disliked.

Class Trailer Review (1)

Name of Film: Evil Dead
Genre of Trailer: Horror/ Gore
Year released: 2013
My Mark: 9/10

What happened in the trailer?

A group of friends go away to a cabin in a woodland area. One of the friends called Mia thinks she is possessed by a demon. The friends then fight to stop her killing them.

Which positive, clever or interesting aspects do you think you could include in your own trailer? What generic features are fulfilled well?
There is collision cutting throughout including slow to quick, with flashes of action and sound fx to accompany them. The music fits the trailer well and adds to the dramatic narrative. The intertitles are also nice and short to fill in the story line but are effective through the quick flashes. The trailer contains genuinely horrific shots, for example the female cutting her tongue and Mias’ eyes when she is possessed.

Which aspects of the trailer did you think were unsuccessful and would put off its target audience? How is it disappointing?
The trailer is very long (2 minutes and a half) and therefore reveals a lot of the plot, which may cause a lack of surprise within the film and ruin the ‘want’ to watch the film.  The use of less body horror could improve the trailer as it would intrigue the audience more and leave more new scenes for the actual film.

What was the average score in class? Why did it receive that mark?
The average score was 8.6 because it used intertitles and music very effectively and it suited the trailer and plot. It was also given this mark as it used plenty of collision cutting keep the audience interested.

Class Poster Idea

The Possession- film review

Director: Ole Bornedal
Genre/s: Thriller/ Horror

Brief Plot Outline:
An old lady owns a cursed box which attempts to kill her when the lady is lead to destroy it. Due to her illness after the attack, a yard sale is held for the items she owns, including the box. A young girl (Emily) purchases the box with her father and sister. The spirit inside the box takes control of Emily and the divorced parents search for a way to release the spirit from Emily. When the spirit is finally returned to the box by the end of the film and in search for a safe home for it. A car crash happens in which the box is involved and the box is left in the middle of the road.

Which two scenes impressed you the most? Why?
I enjoyed the exorcism scene because I believe it was done really well. Most exorcisms in horror films are humorous or ‘fake’ looking, whereas this exorcism digs into the true emotion and struggle an exorcism would cause; on Emily and her family. This is shown in the film from the use of close-ups on Emily and her family to portray the emotion and the connection they have as a family. The close ups which caught my eye were the ones of Emily in distress during the exorcism and also one of the dad shouting “take me instead”, this displays his love for his daughter and how he would risk his life for her. Another collection of close ups which portrayed the family's connection was the shots of their precious belongings being put into the box. This also symbolised them working as a team to save Emily. The intense and dramatic music also adds to the heartfelt scene.

The second scene, which impressed me the most, was when Emily is in the bathroom and she starts to wretch while looking in the mirror. She then inspects her mouth with a torch and 2 fingers reach out. I liked this as it shows she is being possessed from the inside out. The scene also portrays how part of Emily is still there as she is scared. This is shown by the jittery and unsettled music reflecting her feelings. The cinematography used is emotionally affecting as it connects with Emily and makes you have sympathy for her. Also a close up of her with a tear running down her face shows fear, along with her deep and distressed breathing. The scene impressed me mostly because most horrors are quite conventional and have similar jump scares, whereas this scene was something I’d never seen before.

How has watching this film helped you understand this genre of filmmaking? Which features on the genre checklist did you spot in the film?
The main theme running through this film is threat to self and family. This is shown throughout the film but especially in the exorcism scene and the scene in the kitchen when the demon first begins to act out on/over Emily.
The narrative of the film includes an open ending, this is when the box is left in the middle of the road after a car crash. This suggests that the box will continue capturing souls and hints towards a sequel. An open ending is quite conventional to a horror film, it is also seen in The Hills Have Eyes where the family are all hugging and then it zooms out and the camera shapes into binoculars. This hints that there is a surviving mutant.
The mise-en-scene in the film mainly includes body horror. This is seen in: the death of the teacher (bleeding from her eyes and violently being thrown around the room and out the window); the attack on the old lady at the beginning (spasms on floor and around room, caused by the box) and Emily’s’ stepfather’s teeth falling out.



Restricted narration is used at the end of the film for the car crash scene; you can see the wreckage and outcome of the crash but not the crash itself. It is also used when Emily punches a boy in school, you can hear the punch but not see it. The use of restricted narration is often used in horror films but still manages to shake up the audience. This is through the mystery of what happened, you can see the after effect or hear the sound, which makes the audience imagine the situation and therefore making it worse in their heads.
Collision cutting is used throughout the film, where a loud scene is being played and then it cuts to a silent aerial shot (this appears at the beginning of the film after the attack on the old lady). The use of collision cutting maximises the emotion on each scene as it shows the dramatic contrast between a tragic scene and every other scene. It highlights the difference and therefore shocks the audience more.
The final girl, Emily, follows character archetypes. She is a brave and strong young girl and isn’t involved in any acts of taboo. She is also brunette with is another convention of a final girl. She fights the demon and survives the film and therefore is the final girl. The role of male hero is covered by two characters, Emilys’ father and Tzadok (the man who performed the exorcism). These both fit as the male hero as they both sacrifice their lives to save others. The father does this by summoning the demon into him, instead of his daughter and Tzadok does this by taking the box to a safe place but dies in the process.

Which aspects of the film would you like to include in your own trailer? Why?
I would like to incorporate the drama and emotion that is shown in the film. This is mainly through the parallel music used in intense scenes to heighten the mood and atmosphere. For example the scene where Emily’s stepfather’s teeth fall out the music is uneven and beats in and out, reflecting a heartbeat, which gets increasingly louder and faster.


Which aspects of the film would you like to avoid in your own trailer? Why?
In my trailer I would like to bring new horror and jump scare ideas, rather than copying body horror from clichéd films.
An example of this is in the scene where the teacher is attacked and killed. She starts bleeding from her eyes and think it’s a very cliché horror convention, which I would not want to use. The film is also quite slow paced and eventually builds, I would like my trailer to fast paced and contain constant events and tragedies. I feel that if you care about the characters, then the emotional effect of the film is maximised.

What was the best aspect/ more enjoyable moment in the film? Why? Can you recreate this in your own film? How?
I enjoyed the special effects they used, but how they were not overly advanced and fake. For example the scene in the bathroom where finger reach up into Emily’s throat. Also in the scene in the garage where the hand of the demon/spirit is inside Emily’s cheek. While they are created using CGI, they looked sufficiently realistic to be believable.
However, given the limitations of budget its more likely I’ll stick to practical effects.

Favourite Image Analysis (Saw II 2004)

This scene from Saw II is where Addison finds an antidote for the poison air she is inhaling. To retrieve the medicine she must put just one hand in to get it and then use the other to keep the blades open. She stupidly puts both in and then becomes trapped.

Addison is allegedly put into this trap by Jigsaw because she is a prostitute. This follows the conventions of a stereotypical victim, as they are usually female and are known for being involved in a lot of ‘taboo’ activities, often having sex shortly before they are killed. This is seen in other horror films such as Halloween, where every teenager that was sexually experienced was killed.

The director of this film (Darren Lynn Bousman) is known for directing horror films. He was working on a script for a film called The Desperate when Gregg Hoffman (the director for Saw II) read it and shared it with his partners: Mark Burg and Oren Koules. They decided it would be the perfect opportunity to turn The Desperate into Saw II.

The Saw franchise became part of a new era of extreme body horror, which was called ‘torture porn’. This is the combination of graphic violence and sexually suggestive imagery. This is clearly used in this scene through the blood dripping down Addison's arms, from the cuts in her wrists and the symbol of a female in distress creating the sexual repression of males. Torture porn is also used in Hostel 2, where I a woman showers in another woman’s blood. This includes the graphic violence through the blood of the victim, and the sexual imagery as the women showering is naked.

Saw II can also be seen in terms of being a “splatter” film. This term ‘splatter cinema’ was invented by George A. Romero to describe his film Dawn of the Dead. Splatter cinema (according to film critic Michael Arnzen) “self-consciously revel in the special effect of gore as an artform.”. Whereas typical horror films portray fears like the unknown, supernatural occurrences and the dark. The main fears in a splatter film come from physical destruction of the body and the pain that brings. I believe that Saw II uses these fears and it excels in body horror and special effects.

Class Research: Favourite Type of Horror

My personal favourite horror film genres would be gore and psychological. I enjoy body horror within horror films, as it is a new genre, which is developing and becoming more extreme with pushing the boundaries. I enjoy a psychological horror film as well because within this genre of horror, the majority of the time the film holds a clever and intricate narrative, which interests me and makes it more exciting than a typical scary film. I also like a psychological horror as they can mess with your own ideas and realist mind.