Film Poster Analysis #1

Insidious
Considering that I did a film analysis for the 'Insidious' trailer, I thought it would be sensible to also do an analysis for it's poster, that way I could create a symbiotic link between the two and explore all the similarities. The commercial purpose of a film poster is to promote a film. They draw target audience in by using key iconography that gives the TA an idea what genre the film is, for example the dark and cold colours could signal terror and the unknown, the fact that the little boy looks numb and his eyes look like they have been scratched out doesn't exactly shout out 'Romantic comedy'. In the window of the house you also see a silhouette of a creepy hand figure, telling the TA that there is something unwelcoming and evil in the house, signaling that this film is a horror. Film posters also include verbal messages and images to provide a clue to what the narrative of the film is.

The film poster for 'Insidious' follows the codes and conventions of a horror film poster; The audiences eyes moves straight to the main image, which is the boy, it dominates most of the page. He is wearing a red shirt, which could represent blood and death. The shot is a medium close up, clearly showing his face and eyes, which stand out the most. They look like they have been scratched out by the nails of the evil spirit. They are also white, which usually represents innocents but in this case would represent the supernatural. He has a very blank facial expression, he almost looks numb which links in with the fact that in the film, he is in a coma. The lighting almost looks like under lighting as the main focus of his face is clearly lit, whilst the bottom half and the top half of his is more shadowed, creating a horrific effect. The tag line is placed at the bottom of the page, just beneath the film title. It's a light blue colour, representing a the feeling of coldness and emptiness, it also links in with the colours of the background which is also mainly light blue. It's placed in a location where the audience would look next, after they see the title of the film, that way they will know what it is that they should fear which is the boy as the tag line is 'IT'S NOT THE HOUSE THAT'S HAUNTED', it gives clues as to what the narrative is, and tells us it's the boy that is possessed.

At the foot of the page you will see institutional information and the website of the film. This is placed here as it is the last thing you will see, therefore taking it away with you, it has an inconspicuous placement because it's not important. This will allow the audience to remember the website address and therefore they are able to go home and find the trailer, release date and so on. When first looking at the poster I am automatically aware of the genre of the film. I could tell this by looking at the main image of a disturbed and numb looking boy, the big house behind him that looks haunted and unwelcoming. The background is dark and cold, also the fact that the boy's true identity is hidden behind his white, scratched out eyes which signals an eerie and unwelcoming feeling. The name of the film clearly signals the genre of the film as the definition of 'Insidious' is: awaiting a chance to entrap, also an example of it would be:
1. Most people with this insidious disease have no idea that they are infected.
Clearly showing the audience that something is wrong with the boy, and something may be trapped in his soul or the house.

In the background there is one thing that caught my eye the most. In the window on the left hand side you see a black silhouette of something that looks like an arm with big claws. Now, in the film the evil spirit has the same sort of long arm, and in one of the scenes of Renai walking into her sons bedroom, you see the evil spirit standing in the corner, in the exact same position as he is in the window. This signals the genre and narrative of the film, it shows the audience that something or someone evil is lurking around the house that could have gotten trapped inside the soul of the little boy. Evil spirits is a convention of supernatural films, the fact that we see the evil spirit makes it iconography, we see a silhouette but don't see it's features, that creates suspense and terror. The fact that we see the claw in both the trailer and poster also creates a symbiotic link.

The main image is set in the front lawn of the house, the reason for this is that in the film, the house is the main setting. The background looks very eerie, cold and dark. The clouds are light blue and the further they go up the frame, the darker they get. This could do something with the fact that in the film the further the family get sucked into the happenings of the house, the darker things get for them. If you look more into the center of the frame, the trees and bushes are dark and almost dead, but further out of the frame they get lighter and more alive, signaling to the audience that it's only their house and family that are having a dark and evil trouble, not any of their neighbors or town.
The positioning of the boy makes the audience feel wary and and on edge, the fact that the boy is blocking the front entrance of the house could mean that nothing can get out, for example the evil spirit and no good can get it, for like help. Because the boy is in the middle of the frame, he dominates it, this suggests that he is the character that's haunted.
The text on this poster is all in white, except of course the tag line. But the fact that it is white could link to the sub-genre of the film, supernatural. In this case, the white represents the supernatural as it's a horror film. It also stands out against the darkness of the background.The font is in capital letters suggesting a powerful statement, and very important to keep aware of when watching this film.

Other text on this poster is 'FROM THE MAKERS OF SAW AND PARANORMAL ACTIVITY', the audience know that both films are very successful and will expect 'Insidious' to be too. Also if they are fans of those films they know that they can relate to 'Insidious' and will feel like they will also enjoy it. Because 'Saw' and 'Paranormal activity' are some of the best horror films makes this film more appealing to a horror audience, if they liked 'Saw' and 'Paranormal activity', they will definitely like 'Insidious'. On the right hand side you see a rating of five stars and the quote 'SO SCARY I WAS WHIMPERING IN SHEER TERROR', the target audience will see this and feel that if it has the best rating and made someone feel like this, it will be worth watching. The words 'whimpering' and 'sheer terror' will make the audience realize that it's very powerful terminology used and that 'Insidious' is very scary, making them see what sort of impact it can have. The text is the same in the poster as it is in the film trailer, keeping it recognizable and tied in with each other.
In conclusion I feel that this film poster successfully promotes the film ‘Insidious’ as when first looking at it, I was straight away drawn in, wanting to watch the film as it created fear, it doesn't reveal too much allowing there to be an air of mystery.