Textual analysis of horror film trailer

Textual analysis – A Nightmare On Elm Street (2010)
Genre
To which extent does the film belong? Does the text conform to the characteristics of the genre, or does it show them playfully or ironically?
This trailer definitely belongs in the horror genre. The diegetic and non diegetic sound is conventional; screaming, tension building music, children singing eerily and fearful whispers are all charactactristic of horror films. Editing is used to create fast paced, tension building trailer using a lot of fast paced jump cuts and alarming sound effects. Chase scenes, brutal imagery and obvious victims are common features in horror films and in this trailer.

Film Language
How does mise-en-scene convey meaning in this sequence?
The mise en scene builds tensions throughout the whole trailer. It does this by including the beginning sequence which shows the history of Freddy Kruger’s revenge mission. The dark settings (either indoors or the dark night) and gory imagery of blood and fire signify fear, death and pain. These innate fears of the audience are evoked by the footage, therefore causing panic, alarm and captivation; the main aims of a horror film.

How does camera shot size, movement and angle also convey meaning?
The establishing long shots of the deserted, eerie factories at the beginning instantly establish the horror genre and create suspense. The long shot of Freddy running first portray him as the victim until his villainous role is confirmed, creating an interesting twist to the plot and strongly represents the return of the repressed theory, which states that the villains in the media are often wronged in the past. Tracking shots of the teenagers dreamily walking through an eerie house create a feeling of personal fear for the characters and foreshadow danger / death for them. Close ups of the characters’ facial expressions showing fear signify captivating and realistic horror. The long shots of the villain’s dark figure instantly creates a response of alarm and fear from the audience, as does the close up of his horrifying scarred face.

How does sound anchor the images?
The use of sound helps to anchor the images. The loud explosive sound effects amplify the shock of the explosion footage. Non diegetic sound effects are used to introduce the text on the screen which tells the audience who the director is. These effects are also used between clips during slide transitions which are mostly ‘fade to black’ to split the clips up and signify perhaps a heart beat – which suggests fear and danger. The eerie children singing is played in between more violent sound of razors scratching on metal, screams and ominous footsteps, which all have images relating to them and establish the horror genre.

What do we learn about the characters through dialogue and non-verbal language?
We learn that Freddy Kruger is the villain only after he is burned and you see his razor hands preying on the teenagers. His scarred face and dark figure also establish him as the villain. The white dress and fearful face characterize the female teenager as the main character. The imagery of them being hunted / hurt in various brutal ways also establish the teenagers as the victims – which is very conventional for horror films.

What other visual techniques does the director use and why?
Images of fire, razor blades and blood all create the appropriate response from the audience. The font used in the text is typical of the horror genre and represents danger and alarm. The use of the young children being shown as a figure of imagination of a provocation of fear is common in horror films and invoke a strong fearful response – children can be conveyed very eerily, surprisingly!

Narrative
How is the narrative organised and structured?
The narrative is clearly organized into two stages. The first establishes the history of Freddy and the reason for his revenge killings. The second is a montage of probably the most fear invoking clips in the film to suggest to the audience that watching it will be a captivating and entertaining experience. These are probably not in chronological order, which is common of horror trailers, so as not to give too much of the plot away and maximize the effect that a fast paced montage of gory clips have.


What are the major themes in the narrative?
The major themes are revenge, death, pain, fear, running away and falling asleep. These themes can al be related to the innate fears of most human beings, which is why they are effective. Media of the horror genre aim to use these fears to maximize the success of their film – the more a person is scared by a horror film, the ‘better’ it is reviewed to be.


Representation and Ideology
What social groups are represented in this sequence and how?
The social group of parents is represented as people whose morals were compromised when they tried to protect their children. They acted wrongly and are punished for this. Teenagers are represented as vulnerable victims who find it hard to escape the killer. The socially isolated man is depicted first as a victim in this trailer, then takes on the role of the return of the repressed (becoming a villain because of the wrongs that were done to him). This is common in horrors.

What values and beliefs/ideological disourse is evident?
A moral belief is implicitly included in the trailer – that wrongs are always punished. The parents burned Freddy alive and for that, their children suffer.

How does semiotics as a framework see how the representation is constructed?
The use of Freddy’s costume – old tattered clothes – represents the working class and someone who has suffered in the past. The teenagers’ houses, clothing and general appearance generally represents the middle class. The weapons, fire and pathetic fallacy all represent dager and alarm, which are essential when watching a horror text.

Media Audiences
Who is the target audience?
Teenagers over 18 (due to the classification certificate) and adults who are interested in horror or who have seen the original film.

What are the probably and possible audience readings of the text?
- The probable reading of the text is that Freddy is on a mission of revenge and does this by murdering the teenagers. The film will be a story telling their suffering and their efforts to escape and survive.

How do you, as a British teenager, read and evaluate the text? To what extent is your reading and evaluation influenced by your age, gender, background?
As a British teenager I find it easy to empathise and sympathise with the characters – as I am of similar age to them. My gender as a female may perhaps lead to a more fearful response than males, who seem to be less effected by horror films and also because the main character is female. My background of attending schools clearly influences my reading as the school is the main setting for the film and this could play on some of my innate fears about pain / horror in my every day life.

Institutional Context
Has a star been used in this film? Why is this important?
No actors who are extremely famous have been used in this trailer. I think this is essential to create a sense of anonymity to the characters. Therefore, if the audience does not recognize the actor, they can become the character more than it than if the audience recognized them from a different film or media text.

Which studio produced this film? Is it an 'industrial' film or 'independent' film?
Pathe produced the film and for this reason the film is an 'independent' film.

What strategies were used to market the film?
The film was marketed through trailers, billboards and posters. The trailer was shown before other films at the cinema and also on television. The actors in the film went for a lot of interviews on TV / magazines etc to advertise and promote the film as much as possible.