Analyzing a Film Trailer

Above is the trailer to Mirrors, a supernatural horror film produced in 2008 and directed by Alexandre Aja. The film is about spiritually cursed mirrors that torture and kill people, to the people that are not cursed by the mirrors, the deaths look like twisted murders, however the protagonist tails onto the underlying evil.


To the left is a typical screenshot of what will usually be seen in a video trailer. It is a disclaimer for the film but also informs the audience of what the rating of the film is and who is suitable to watch it. It allows the viewer to make an educated decision on whether or not they would like to watch the film.














Below is a standard situation in any thriller film; a happy, American but oblivious family. An establishing shot like this is used in the majority of all horror films. The 'normality' shown in shots like these allow the trailers to connect with the audience because what is shown in the shot is familiar to most. The extreme contrast between the happiness here and the chaos by the end of the trailer is what entices the audience to watch the film when it is released. All three subjects are in focus, allowing the audience to give privileges to whoever they desire. It is an high angle shot which allows the audience to look see the vulnerability of the three subjects.

To the left is an establishing shot of a run down and dilapidated building. The audience would then question what the importance and relevance of this building and what influence it has to the main or any sub plots. It is used to attract the audiences attention and open a whole range of ideas that could be included within the film.



Within the trailer, the transition that is used most regularly is fade to black and then fade from black. This creates tension within the trailer because the audience is literally unaware of what is going to happen; this can cause the audience to guess and then possibly be surprised with the next scene.

The protagonist here is face to face with the subject of the trailer and the film, the mirrors. This will connote the start of the gradual demise within the trailer. An establishing shot like this is used to show the audience a sneak peak of the future in the film, while still keeping the main points hidden within the finished film.

The film produces shot. This intro to '20th Century Fox' illustrates to the audience what they are watching and who it is produced by. This producers intro is unique and tailored to this specific film because it has a mirrored image of the usual logo. This is done to promote brand identity but will also trigger the minds of the audience.

As evident to the left, the protagonists first encounter with evil becomes apparent to the audience. In the shot it shows the main character, and then his reflection, however the reflection is moving as if it was it was another person. This connotes fear within the trailer and the audience would be encouraged to be scared or at least get a sense of how the film is going to play out. The protagonist is in close focus while the reflection is filmed out of focus; allowing the audience to see an outline. The shot is filmed at eye line level which means the viewers can focus on the subjects emotions portrayed by his facial movements.

Usually, around a minute into the trailer, the director of the film will be mentioned. This is so that fans of that particular director may continue to watch the rest of the trailer and then progress onto watching the full release when it has been announced.






To the left is the protagonists second encounter with evil. As you can see, the main character has placed his hand on the mirror over his reflection, and the mirror has cracked; in the trailer this will make the audience jump. To aid this 'jump' enhanced sound has been used to further portray the 'fear factor' for the trailer. An over the shoulder shot is used so the audience can clearly see the emotion displayed by the subject in his reflection.



As the trailer the progresses, the story line of the film also does. To the right is a medium shot of the main character looking at a message scratched into the mirror, all of the trailer so far has been situated in one room. This gives a good enough insight to the reader to whether or not they want to watch the rest of the film; without giving too much away.

Within this trailer, the director is mentioned twice, the second time with another film that he has produced. This is included because it shows the people that have seen 'The Hills Have Eyes' and enjoyed it that 'Mirrors' is likely to have the same entertain value as his other productions. It is likely that 'Mirrors' will be produced with a similar level of quality.

Here you see a secondary character being effected by the evil mirrors. Within this trailer, this scene shows how the evil of the mirrors began. This is the first scene in a long time that changes room; although it is in the same building, just at a previous date. The audience will see the stretch of people that the mirrors effect and will be scared. The concept of evil mirrors is clever because mirrors are such a conventional piece of furniture for a house.
This close up shot allows the viewers a detailed perspective of the subjects emotions.

Evil becomes apparent here again when the reflection of the mirror is angry and does its own thing while the subject ducks down to pick up a bit of mirror that has fallen on the floor. This concept is peculiar because it is physics that a reflection does exactly the same as the light going into it. To the right you see the mirror reflection killing himself, which in turn; kills the actual person. Both shots are over the shoulder shots; these allow the audience to see both the back of the subject but also the actions of the reflection and make a difference between them.

You then see the mirrors affecting the protagonists family at home, this brings the evil home and will scare the audience because the evil is no longer contained within the creepy building he works at; it has reached his home and also his family. This is portrayed by the director through the use of a high angle close up shot, highlighting her vulnerability as a character.

Towards the end of the trailer, the length of shots on the clips decreases heavily. This is to encourage tension and also include small snippets of the main film so the audience are lured into watching the final release of the film.

Near the very end of the trailer the title of the film is shown for the first time. Not only is there the main title, but what the title connotes is shown; for example, the mirrored 'Mirrors' and the smashed pieces of mirror bouncing around the outside of the title. This is cleverly portrayed because it will encourage the audience to remember the title and what the film is about when it is actually released.

To either side, these are the last two shots you see within the trailer. To the left is shows you who was involved in creating the film, and too the right is the release date for the film, along with an information link 'mirrorsmovie.com.' By including this link, it allows the producer to promote brand identity to the audiences that are watching the trailer.