28 days later (2002) trailer analysis

28 days later (2002) trailer analysis

For the micro-element Mise-en-scene for lighting, at the start of the trailer, using the institution logo/emblem, it appears to have light shining on the institution on the logo and the sequence of the lamps shining on the logo are turning off, one by one at a time in a canon sequence with a deep sound effect of the light turning off intensifying and emphasising that the lights are being turned off, which by this, creates subliminal tension and anticipation for the audience as they do not know what is going to happen when all the lights are turned off and why are they being turned off which can conform to Altman’s genre pleasure of puzzles. By the lights being turned off when shining on the institution’s logo, it reinforces the convention of isolation as light can symbolise life, hope and innocence and with the lights turning off it and then becoming dark, it can represent darkness, night time and light, hope and innocence being taken away which creates a metaphorical meaning of vulnerability and fear. Darkness and night time connotes sinister elements, evilness and time when crime and sins are committed. By this feature being used, it sets an unsettling tone for the audience straight away to engage them straight away and by these conventions being shown within a few seconds within the institution logo, the audience can recognise what conventions conform to this specific genre and know what to expect which therefore creates anticipation, making them wanting to watch more.

For the micro-element sound, twelve seconds in, an alarm can be heard in the background , which suggests danger through a serious problem which creates a tense atmosphere, shortly after this, animal noises such as monkeys can be heard screaming which suggests something has been unleashed which can further connote that it’s an uncontrolled situation, making the audience tense and feel unease as at the time in the scene, it is dark and the sound emphasises darkness as the sense for sound is heightened as the sense for sight is removed, which conforms to convention of fear of the unknown as the audience can sense something wrong from the tense atmosphere of alarms going off and vicious noises being made but can see anything which but do not know what is going wrong.  By this, the audience’s curiosity and them wanting to find out more, the audience will be more engaged and want to watch more.  

For the micro-element editing, a montage was shown at the beginning as an introduction to the story and also a good way to show a lot within a short period of time as a trailer is short and if the scenes were not shown in the format of a montage then it will be too long to be used in a trailer. There will fast paced editing through the use of a montage which makes the audience feel tense and engages them even more in the film which will make them want watch more as fast paced editing conforms to the convention of zombie horror as some of the scenes are intense and full of action and horror which this montage also contains. Overall the montage is a very good choice for editing within the trailer as it achieves two features, showing the audience a lot of significant scenes within a short duration of time and give an insight of what conventions may be included in the film such as intense moments through seeing fast paced editing.

For the micro-element camera work, 40 seconds in, a very extreme-long shot of the main protagonist can be seen, in which the very extreme-long shot shows the main protagonist (making the character look more isolated and more vulnerable by his size being small in the frame and his composition being in the middle of the frame) and the deserted background (which connotes isolation and lifeless) of London, which is renowned for being a very densely populated city which further emphasises isolation and conforms to the convention of isolation. The time of day of it being daytime and the city London are chosen as it makes it more shocking and disturbing for the audience as that is a time and place where you would least expect isolation as it is renowned for a lot of human activity that takes place there and then. The location of London is also chosen as the majority of the target audience are English as they will be more engaged to the trailer as they recognise and share a connection with the city. 

28 days later (2002) trailer - .https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7ynwAgQlDQ


Trivia

Athletes were casted within the film and played the 'infected' because of how important physicality is to them. Danny Boyle felt that since the athletes can do tasks in which other people cannot perform, they would be interesting when they are converged into the movements of the 'infected'.

Another aspect of rendering the zombie movie more contemporary was the idea that the virus didn't necessarily affect people physically (it doesn't kill them as in traditional zombie movies), but psychologically. Both Alex Garland and Danny Boyle felt that the idea that the virus renders people zombie-like due to uncontrollable rage was a good metaphor for the contemporary phenomenon of social rage (such as road rage, air rage, hospital rage etc). They liked the idea that the virus simply amplifies something already in each and every man and woman, rather than turning them into something entirely other, as is the traditional route in zombie movies.

The shot of the notice board at Piccadilly Circus, with the missing persons fliers, caused some controversy when the film was first released. Some said it was insensitive to what happened in New York after the 9/11 attacks. The film was shot prior to 9/11/01, although it was released afterward. Danny Boyle said he based the shot on a photograph he saw from an earthquake in China. He also said that if he'd made the movie after the 9/11 attacks, he wouldn't have shot that scene.




http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0289043/trivia?ref_=tt_trv_trv

For the theatrical trailer, I will include conventions that were seen in these trailer of an extreme long shot as it reinforces the conventional theme of isolation as it makes the protagonist look more inferior and more vulnerable making the audience feel more scared and more in suspense as when the protagonist is confronted by the antagonist, the audience are conditioned that the protagonist is weak and inferior therefore reinforcing more dread and fear. I will also use similar time of day used within 28 Days Later trailer within my theatrical trailer as it being set during the day creates more of a disturbing and isolating feel for the audience as no human activity is being displayed as it is deserted which makes look more disturbing for the audience as it is where they will least expect isolation as it is during the day (comparing everyday life to  the life within the film).