Salt poster analysis

                                           

  
   Salt was released in 2010 and the Main character is Angelina Jolie who is known around the world. It had a budget of $110 million and made a net profit of around $180 million. This shows that the movie itself was rather successful.

   This poster can be seen as a teaser poster as there isn't a specific release date but just states that it will be released sometime during the "summer 2010." I feel it does the job as a teaser poster as you feel a high level of mysteriousness which is supported by the black background which is giving very little away. The centralised image is Angelina Jolie which is very much one of the unique selling points of this movie as she is well known and has won countless awards and thus will gain the audience’s attention if they see her. This is also supported by the fact that her name is the second biggest piece of text on the poster and is at the top giving it very high prevalence and really shows how much they are trying to shun off this unique selling point.

   The level of mysteriousness is also supported by the question "who is Salt?" and you can show that this poster is really trying to tell the audience of this mysteriousness as the website that they offer is "whoissalt.com" and although the size of the text is rather small, the capital letters really catch the audience’s attention. The reason why I feel all of these small details are emphasised in this movie is because of the black background which makes everything stand out and makes the audience pay particular attention to even the smallest detail which shows how effective a black background actually can be. Furthermore, the colour of the text is in white which really stands out with the black background and helps to emphasise of the information offered.

   The centralised image is really shunned out in this poster thanks to the black background and the effect of her black hair which merges with the background makes the poster feel smoother and also adds to that theme of mysteriousness to the poster and film. She is directly looking at you but you can't obtain any information from her facial expressions as she looks very blank. Moreover her eyes are the aspect which stands out the most in this poster as her pupils are black followed by the white around her pupils but then gets really emphasised through the black eye lashes that really stand out.

   The title "Salt" goes over her face and ultimately answers the question that the poster is asking which is "Who is Salt?" as it is very rare to find a poster whereby the title covers the centralised image but this tells the audience that she is salt. This is supported by the lighter shade of white which says salt and tells the audience that she is in fact salt. That being said, I feel that this poster gets the audience to ask more questions such as what is her purpose?  This is due to the mysteriousness caused by the black background.

   Overall this poster has taught me how to get the audience to ask questions about the poster which ultimately makes them remember this film and they will want to go and watch it when it gets released. It tells me that a lack of information in a poster is not necessarily a bad thing but can keep the audience guessing about the storyline and that is the best way to gain interest in you movie. Furthermore, I can note from this trailer that the use of colours can tell what type of story you are trying to portray in your poster but also how the colour black can make everything stand out and add a level of mysteriousness to the poster.

Hitman Poster Analysis

poster analysis - Hitman

Hitman is an action film about a genetically engineered assassin who becomes ensnared in a political conspiracy. It is based on a popular video game.

The majority of the poster and foreground is taken up by the man, he is dressed in a suit, wearing leather gloves and carrying a large gun. As he is wearing gloves and the gun has a silencer attached (as well as the title of the film) this images clearly portrays the fact that the man is an assassin. He appears to be glaring directly at the onlooker with his finger on the trigger which instantly adds an element of interaction with the audience, it gives the impression that he is about to assassinate the audience.
His jacket is black portraying his evil side, his tie is red representing the blood he spills but his shirt is white and there is a light source shining on his face from the left which conveys that he is not all bad. In the background there is a woman in a provocative red dress. The red of the dress draws the audience's eye, whilst her revealing attire works to entice the audience this also plays on the male gaze (Mulvey). The red of the dress could also symbolise bloodshed suggesting that she is not as innocent as first seems. In the background we can also see a city skyline which tells the audience that the film will most likely be set in a city, but it is a city at night, which also connotes danger and (with the girl in the revealing dress) lust and fast paced action, as a city at night is one of the busiest places to be.
The title is in red which connotes violence and blood but also romance suggesting a possible relationship between the man and woman. The type face is simple with harsh lines and hard corners suiting perhaps the possibly mechanical personality of the main character. The release date is emphasised in red whilst the website is in white to add another dimension to the poster and suggest a less evil side to the man.
Overall I think that this poster is very simple and relies on basic techniques to entice the audience, a scantily clad girl and a big gun. Whilst this may not be the most tasteful or sophisticated way to sell a movie, it does appeal to their target audience (18-35 year old men) perfectly.

the Dark Knight Poster Analysis

                                                   

   Here is the official film poster for Batman- The Dark Knight. This movie was released in 2008 and was a huge success. There were a number of posters for this movie as it was part of its highly successful marketing campaign and this is the one which consists of the Joker who in hindsight I know is the evil character but can also be identified by this poster. As seen this poster came out way before the producers even knew of a release date which tells me how important a poster actually is in order to set the foundations of the success of the movie.
   The first thing that I can Identify is the visible destruction in the background of the Joker. The sparks all over the poster connotes danger and really makes this character known as the Joker stand out. Furthermore, the lighting in the background is dark and gloomy which tell the audience that this movie may be scary but more importantly puts more emphasis on the Joker being the bad guy and it also helps his make-up stand out which is what differentiates him from other batman evil characters.
    The Joker is holding a weapon which tells me that he is the cause of this destruction. Furthermore, there are flames flying everywhere and he doesn't seem scared which shows that this poster is trying its best to tell the audience that Joker is going to be the evil character in this Batman. Furthermore, Joker is looking directly at the audience which brings the audience in and makes them gain an interest in the movie whereby ultimately they will want to find out when the movie actually releases and this is the sole purpose of releasing a poster this early and the success of Batmans marketing campaign supports the fact that promoting through posters is an effective way in which to gain the audiences attention. Having the central image look at the audience is a common theme in both Magazines and Posters which shows the effectiveness of it.
    The picture of Joker is shot at an angle and makes it seem as if we are looking up at the Joker which makes him seem more powerful and tells the audience that he is going to be difficult to beat. Moreover, it makes him seem huge as he looks as if he is the same height as the buildings. Furthermore, the weapon in his hand also connotes action which is one of the genres in this Batman movie and does give a little indication of the storyline.
   Overall, this poster has taught me a lot about how different angles make the audience perceive the character in question and how posters should have as minimal information as possible; especially teaser posters which is what I feel this is. Also, this poster has shown how the lighting can make up the way in which you perceive the centralised image whereby dark and gloomy tends to be associated with evil whereas light can be seen as heroic.

The Hulk Magazine Front Cover Analysis

                                           

     Above is the empire magazine cover of the Incredible Hulk which was released in 2008 and is another character from the Marvel Comics sequel. The first thing that makes this cover different to any other I have seen or analysed is that it is actually in 3d. I have stated in the other magazines that I have analysed that they can make magazines seem 3D via getting the characters go in front of the empire logo whereas this one is fully in 3-D.
     The first thing that I have identified from this is the lack of information shown on the front cover which gives more emphasism on the front cover and the 3-D effect. This is ultimately the unique selling point of this cover and it works well alongside Hulk as it's an action, superhero movie. The cracks and the crumbled up empire logo tries to show its genre of action. It also tries to address their audiences by making everything animated including the Empire logo. This shows that this movie is for a younger male audience.
    Hulk is directly looking at the audience in an aggressive manner and this tells the audience about what type of character Hulk is. The fact that Hulk is looking aggressively towards the audience makes me feel as if I have done something wrong and that he is after me which is supported by the cracks in the ground. Furthermore, Empire have actually changed the font of the logo which I haven't seen before but it looks like a font which will appeal to a younger audience and so this magazine front cover has very much focused on the way in which it draws in its target audiences and has made it look more like a comic than a magazine front cover.
    Overall, this magazine cover has taught me that different target markets have different preferences and having a successful magazine front cover means that it appeals to its target audience. Moreover it shows how I can differentiate my magazine front cover via doing something like making it in 3-D.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 1 Magazine Front Cover Analysis

                                                

   The magazine cover that I'm going to look at now is Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 1. It was released in 2010 and its genre is fantasy. It is the second last movie of the sequel in which was inspired by J.K. Rowling. Straight away, the fantasy can be identified through the wand that Harry potter is holding. This is because wands tend to be associated with fantasy films. Furthermore the unique selling point is shown through the name "Harry Potter" being in a different colouar as it's yellow whilst the rest of the text is white. This is a Unique selling poing because of the huge success of the other Harry Potter movies and the book sequels as well.
     The aspect which makes this magazine cover stand out to the others that I have analyzed is the fact that it looks as if we are looking down at the central image which is Harry potter and so the angle that the the picture is shown adds another dimension to the magazine and gives a lot of information about the storyline. What I had learnt in my first year of media studies is that using a high angled shot such as this tells the audience that he is facing a struggle. For this cover, it tells me that he will be fighting a losing battle and facing creatures that are much bigger than him. This means that the angle of this shot also emphasizes the fantasy genre once again. Furthermore, the background cosists of different shades of blue which makes it look gloomy and also adds to the fantasy genre. Harry Potter is looking directly at the audience with a wand in his hand which may connote that ha can't trust anyone and makes the audience feel as if the are the villains. The idea that he can't trust no-one is shown as he is on his own and the biggest piece of text states that "the end is near."
     The Harry Potter movies could be seen by kids but this magazine front cover tells me that this movie will be much more mature. This is through Harry Potter looking rather beaten up which shows that there could possibly be more action in this movie as opposed to the children aspects that were shown in the other films. This cover ultimately tells me how to change the perception of a film and change the target audience as this one feels like a much mature audience. I say this because the harry potter movies were very much in my generation whereby the first one appealed to me so as they were growing up, so was I. This means that if they kept on just targeting children, then it could get risky as Happy Feet 2 shows whereby it was seen as a huge flop because the audience who had watched the first one had grown up and so they released it to an audience that had no knowledge of the movie and this was down to them releasing it too late.
     Overall, this cover has taught me how to keep the concept of a movie fresh and how to aim it at your target audience. This is a helpful cover to refer back to just to see how they have tried to bring their target audience in. Furthermore, I have learnt about how different angles can make the magazine cover look different to others as it makes it stand out more.

Research Targets

Some good analysis so far Nadib - a great start to this year's coursework portfolio! To improve your research further aim to revisit posts and make sure all of the following areas have been addressed: Genre Target Audience Characters Narrative Engimas Titles Camera Composition Sound Mise En Scene Unique Selling Points Pace of editing A really good start - well done!

Captain America Trailer and Magazine Cover Analysis

            
 
     
    Captain America "The first Avenger" was released in 2011 and made $370,500,000 in the box office thus showing that it was a huge success. This may have been to the high anticipation of the avengers movie which was released soon after this movie. The title is a unique selling point in its own right as it tells the audience that they must watch this movie in order to understand the avengers movie. I have noticed that Marvel Comics movies always shun out their unique selling point as much as possible as they have a lot to choose from. This is something I realized from my Spider-Man analysis.
    The trailer starts with predominantly fade shots to establish the location, character and set the pace of the trailer. This is also done with the non-diegetic sound in the background which starts off slow to compliment the fade shots. We also witness a very powerful shot/reverse/shot to establish the main character during the conversation. The camera also slowly zooms into him for the audience to identify that he is in fact the main character.
    The sound really starts to pick up pace after the 50 second mark to signify a change in pace. This shows how important sound is to dictate the pace of a trailer. It is really at the last 30 seconds where we witness the sound at its highest level. The sound in this trailer changes pace a lot throughout the trailer as well as the volume of the non-diegetic sound in the background. This may be because they want to ensure that the audience identifies main pieces of dialogue but also to follow the pace of the trailer via complementing the camera shots.

                                           

     Here is the front cover of empire magazine for captain America. It was released in 2011 and is one of the marvel characters thus is already quite well known. The genre of the movie is an American Superhero as well as action. Other successful movies associated with this genre is Spiderman and the Fantasic Four. Both of these films are also marvel characters which shows how much Marvel dominate this genre. One thing that I have identified is that magazine covers don't shun off this unique selling point and this may be because they don't want to insert any unnecessary information.
     Straight away, I identify a common feature of both magazines and posters which is directly addressing the reader via the centralised image looking directly at the reader and drawing their attention. The background is a picture of a slightly burnt American flag and is put there to relate to the title of this movie "Captain America." This actually gives the audience an slight idea of the storyline as it tells the audience that he is fighting for his country.
      Captain America looks a bit scruffy as well and it tells the audience that he is going to be involved in a fight which relates to the caption "How Summers Biggest Superhero Went To War" and so it really tells the audience the genre of this movie. For this reason, I feel that this Magazine cover goes give away a lot of information to the audience and.
      This magazine cover does have a unique selling point which is that they are subtly promoting their next movie. Furthermore, this is telling the audience that they must watch this movie in order to understand the Avengers movie.
      Overall, This magazine cover tells me that you can have a lot of information in the poster without much writing. Furthermore,  I found that they do show one of their unique selling points but doesn't show the fact that it is a Marvell movie yet adds interest to another movie that they are releasing.