Film Magazine Front Cover Analysis #3

For my last analysis, I have chosen to look again at ‘Empire’ magazine as I personally like the style and look of the magazine. I am looking at ‘Empire’ front covers for inspiration and so I thought it would be better to analyse the magazine front covers in more depth.

Let us begin with the main image as it is the most dominant feature on the page. The image is of the protagonist in the ‘Iron Man’ movie franchises and it is anchored by the main sell line which reads ‘Iron Man 2’. The medium shot displays a powerful and dominant superhero and so this instantly indicates that the genre of the movie is sci-fi action. This is a favourable genre of the target audience and the marvel heroes are beloved characters for the readers; they would have read the marvel comics in their past and some readers may even collect them. To the target audience the marvel movies are ‘classics’. The protagonist is giving a menacing look of terror into the camera which shows the audience that he means action! This aggressive tone is emphasised by his iron body wear which represents his strength, power and masculinity. If we look at the film poster for the ‘Iron Man 2’ movie below we can clearly see a symbiotic link between the two media texts. The film poster shows the protagonist without his mask on but still looking into the camera with the same sinister glare. Also a very similar camera shot is used to ensure that ‘Iron man’s’ iconic light source is in the frame as this is the feature which will allow audiences to recognise the movie.  It is also interesting to note that the backgrounds for both texts are the same too. Both backgrounds appear to look as if there is a storm brewing which could mirror the action and drama which is about to take place in the movie. It creates excitement and anticipation amongst the target audience. 

The lighting is ambient backlighting, as it comes from behind and is generated by the lightening. Lightening is a powerful force with a dominant presence, just like the character of 'Iron Man'. The light emanating from the character is artificial to create an intensely powerful look.

The masthead is in the usual typeface-to maintain brand identity- however the aesthetics have changed to match the main image.  It appears to be illumines and looks similar to the protagonists light source. The lightening coming off the masthead adds to the idea of a storm brewing and continues to build up anticipation within the audience as they wonder what could cause the ‘Iron Man’ to be so angry. 

The main sell line is promoting the movie ‘Iron Man 2’ and anchors the main image. As mentioned earlier, marvel superheroes are extremely popular amongst the hard-core film fans and so this is why ‘empire’ magazine have chosen to include it in their magazine. The colour of the sell line is the same as the light source but it is not illumines so that it is easily readable for the target audience. The literary technique of a rule of three is used to create a short, snappy and luring description for the main sell line; ‘New suit, new enemies, same attitude.’ This will make the audience ponder what the new features of the suit are and what will ponder is the enemies from the comics will feature in the movie. Furthermore by stating ‘Iron Man’ has the ‘same attitude’ provides the audience with re-assurance that the beloved character which they know and love is returning in the sequel. By knowing that the essence of the character hasn’t changed, they will go to see the movie.

This promotional feature is placed on the left hand third of the magazine and is used to reinforce the main sell line. The description reads ‘All Hail the King of 2010’, by using the word ‘king’ it emphasises the important role of the protagonist and also emphasises the importance of the main sell line for the magazine. 

As this is a special edition front cover, there are no other sell lines around the main image so that it remains the main focus of the frame.  One feature use to promote other articles inside the magazine is the banner which runs along the bottom of the page. The banner discusses ‘three amazing exclusives’ which are all movies that the audience would be interested in. 

The other feature used to promote articles inside the magazine is a strapline placed above the masthead-a conventional placement for this feature. The strapline informs the readers that a review on the ‘Oscars’ and ‘the lovely bones’ will be inside the magazine. Being film fanatics they would be keen to know about the gossip at the ‘Oscars’ and also reviews on films are giving by people just like them so they receive advice from a trusted source. Also they have stated that ‘The Clooney’ will also be inside the magazine, this is a big name Hollywood star and so the readers will be excited to read the article.

In the top right hand corner is the puff which is going to give the readers ‘the ultimate review of 2009’. The readers would have seen most of the blockbuster hits in 2009 and so hearing how they were interpreted would be greatly interesting to them. The mode of address is colloquial because of the use of the word 'ultimate'. It also emphasises the definitive quality of the review. 

The date, price, website and barcode are the features which the target audience are least interested in and so they are placed in unnoticeable areas. The barcode is placed on the bottom right hand corner which is the place where the human eye goes last.

The date and price are placed in the ‘M’ of the masthead and this is the same for every edition to maintain brand identity. This is a usual feature which the magazine uses to obtain originality. 

All the text on the frame is in a blue grey or white colour. This is so that they match the aesthetics of the main image. The strapline above the magazine uses all three colours to contrast the texts with each other, making the strapline stand out. The promotional features such as the ‘First look’, ‘Plus’ and puff are all in a bright blue which is highlighted against the dark background and catches the reader eye as these are the deciding factors for the readers in whether they want to buy the magazine.

I find this is the most effective film magazine front cover that I have come across during my research. The image and magazine complement each other extremely well, and I find that it builds up exciting in the audience and so urges them to go and see the movie. 

Film Magazine Front Cover Analysis #2

To gain extensive knowledge on magazine front covers, I think it is good to analyse a variety of different magazines and so for my second analysis, I have decided to analyse ‘Total Film’.

The main image promotes the movie ‘ Valkyrie’ and has the Hollywood star Tom-cruise posing as his character. The first thing that will catch the reader’s eye is the medium-long shot of the model wearing a military uniform which is indicated through the hat and the badges on his uniform. This will allow the audience to assume that the movie being promoted falls into the war film genre. His costume combined with the stern facial expression and strict body form will show the reader that this movie also belongs in the drama genre as the model is projecting a very serious image. By using such a popular actor on the front cover, the magazine widens its target audience to the fans of war films, the fans of the actor and to the regular readers of the magazine which successfully further promotes the movie. In addition he is also wearing an eye-patch which will reflect that being in the military he has suffered an injury and so now will intrigue the audience about the narrative of the movie. The eye-patch also creates an image of a stern, unemotional character. Due to the costume style, the subtle planes in the background the audience can suspect that the movie‘s narrative is based on WWII and this is anchored by the main sell line ‘Cruise goes to war…’. As there is no shadowing from the model it can be said that artificial lighting is used so that the image can achieve a clear and crisp finish. When looking at the film poster for the movie ‘Valkyrie’ I can instantly see the symbiotic link created between the two media pieces. When looking at the film poster for the movie ‘Valkyrie’ it is clear that there is a symbiotic link created between the poster and this front cover. Even though the colour schemes and lighting differ, the composition, costume and facial expressions of the protagonist remains the same. The front cover uses similar mise-en-scene from the poster so that the audience can recognise the movie in a different form of media.

The masthead is the largest text in the frame and is the title of the magazine. 'Total Film' suggests that the magazine is for hard core film fans. It also tells the reader that not only is it a magazine that deals with no content other than film, it is also a magazine that knows more about movies than any other. The language used are words which the audience are likely to use themselves, for instance 'total' is the colloquial derivative for 'totally' this suggests that the audience are young and cool. The letters are bold, upper-case and in a display font to primarily attract the attention of the audiences but also to perhaps reflect their dominant and bold characteristics. As mentioned earlier the font is in display which is informal and so reflects the laid-back, easy going personalities of the male audience. As you can see the masthead is white and this is something which is kept the same to maintain brand identity; the colour of the masthead will only change is the front cover is a special edition. The colour white is bright and bold, perfect for catching the male reader's attention. Furthermore the colours are masculine and the war theme of the film featured. To obtain individuality the magazine has placed the word 'total' in word 'film'. This creates a cool and memorable look and the readers will look out for this feature when searching for the magazine amongst news stands.  Even though the aesthetics of the masthead may change depending on the movie being promoted, this is a feature which remains the same to maintain brand identity. It is interesting to note how the models head sites above the masthead, this is to indicate to the audience that the image is the most important feature in the frame and it is only because the magazine is so well known that it can afford to use this sort of placement. 

The main sell line is promoting the movie 'Valkyrie', this is a movie which will appeal to the audience because it is based on WWII and will include many action scenes. Also this is a topic of interest for the target audience and so they will the narrative captivating. Following the conventions of film magazines, the main sell line is placed in the center of the page to ensure that it is in full view of the readers. The main sell line reads 'Cruise goes to war, Valkyrie, on-set with the world's biggest movie star', many techniques have been used to lure in the readers; firstly 'the world's biggest movie star' is used to emphasise the fact that there is an interview with Tom Cruise in the magazine. Cruise is an actor who the audience would respect and aspire to be like but also the audience would be a big fan of his previous movies. The main sell line is the only piece of text which is in a serif front; this is done to create a more formal atmosphere to reflect the dramatic narrative of the movie. Also there are only two piece of text which are in the colour blue and one of them is the word 'Valkyrie' in the main sell line. This is because it creates a striking contrast with the background and the colours used on the other sell lines and so successfully draws the audience's attention. 

Other sell lines also promote movies which may interest the readers of the magazine. Many film magazines have very little text on the front cover because men respond more to visuals. Mostly the sell lines on this front cover only state the movies name to inform the readers what else to expect inside the magazine, for example, 'watch men, eagle eye, potter 6...'. Even though these movies differ greatly, for example, 'Potter 6' is sci-fi and 'eagle eye'is action,  they all appeal to the audience as they are fans of these genres. This will incline the readers to buy the magazine. 

The reason the magazine is so successful is because it understands that the readers have several needs and interest and so they include other topics but combine them with films giving the audience the best of both worlds. Here is the sell line 'the baddest bond girl ever'. This article is the perfect example to show how the magazine combines two interests; the 'bond' movies would be considered a classic to the audience and also they would love to see the most attractive females which features in them, because after all they are young males! Furthermore the mode of address in the sell lines uses language the target audience may use themselves for instance 'Baddest' is not an official word but is is the sort of colloquial language the reader will use when describing something cool of exciting to his friends. 

Moving on to the other sell lines, we can see that there is an interview with 'Steve Coogan' and he reveals his 'confessions'. Steve Coogan is an actor/comedian who the audience would enjoy watching on the big screen for his beloved comical appearances and so they would be inclined to reading his interview. Furthermore by using the word 'confessions' makes it seem as if he is revealing personal, interesting secrets and so this will intrigue the reader.

The last two sell lines to look at are 'the go-hour movie you must see' and 'the annual blockbuster report, this summer's biggest movies'. Both of the sell lines are providing some sort of advice to the audience on the latest movies which they 'must see'. This will be useful to the audience as the advice is given by fellow film fanatics. 

The colours used on this front cover create a refreshing finish. The characters costume is a grey colour which reflects the serious undertone of the film but the striking blue and white make the front cover far from boring. All the writing on the front cover is in white and certain sell lines are in a bold typeface to create an aesthetically pleasing contrast. Only two pieces of text are in blue; the main sell line and the top strap line. This is because they are the unique selling points for the front cover and so need to be significantly highlighted.

To make the magazine front cover even more appealing, the magazine has chosen to add two strap lines, these are used to promote something or to inform the audience of what else may feature inside the magazine.

Above is the first strap line which is placed above the masthead-a conventional placement. By using the word ‘Essential’ it makes the reader feels as if this issue is a must have and that they cannot miss out on all of the exciting features within. Also by stating it is a ‘preview’ will make the reader feel important because it is as if they are reading it before anyone else. Below is the second strap line which is placed at the bottom of the front cover-another conventional place for the strap to be placed.

This strap informs the audience of all the actors which will be featuring inside the magazine. All these actors are people that the audience look up to and even may aspire to be like; they also would enjoy their movies and so therefore would be interested in their interviews.

The barcode is a feature on the magazine which is of no interest or use to the readers, however must be placed on the front cover for commercial reasons, and so it is usually placed either in the bottom left or right hand corner. This is an important convention which the magazine has chosen to follow and so allows the main focal point of the magazine to remain as the main image.

Other features such as the date and the title are slightly more significant than the barcode and so are placed higher on the page. The date, price and website name are placed in the 'M' of the masthead, which is similar to where it is placed on 'Empire' magazine front cover. As the masthead is the largest text, it ensures that the reader's eye will go there and so by placing the website name in this position the magazine are ensuring that people are reading it. 

The tagline of the magazine is placed underneath the masthead which is an inverted convention as usually they are placed at the top of the page. 'The modern guide to movies' suggest that this is the magazine to read for the latest information, also the target audience are 'modern' males so this is something that they can relate too, building a bond between the readers and the magazine. 

In conclusion it can be said that this front cover successfully promotes the movie 'Valkyrie' and appeals to their audience's needs and interest. By carefully selecting a specific colour scheme the magazine depicts the genre and the narrative of the movie well to the readers.

Film Magazine Front Cover Analysis #1

In order to make a professional film magazine myself, I need to analyse a variety of film magazines to see what makes them successful and hopefully gain inspiration from them. The first magazine i chose to analyse is 'Empire'.

‘Empire’ is said to be one of the most successful film magazines in the UK.  To be one of the most successful magazines in the UK means that the magazine is outstanding in providing their target audience with fantastic articles on new and old movies and with gripping interviews with the popular actors and directors.

The biggest feature on a magazine that will lure in the target audience is the main image. In this edition of ‘Empire’ the main image is of the protagonist in ‘Hell Boy’ which is anchored by the main sell line ‘Hell Boy 2’. The most immediate aspect the target audience will be able to notice is that the protagonist does not appear to be human, and has a devilish appearance as he has shaven horns and an unusual size fist. This will indicate to the audience that the genre of the movie is sci-fi. Furthermore the protagonist is giving a fierce look into the camera and his fist is cupped by his hand, giving the impression of violence and so also indicating that this sci-fi movie has elements of action and violence and so the audience can conclude that the genre of the movie is sci-fi action. The front cover uses a medium close-up shot so that the audience can clearly see the characters facial expressions but also so that they can see the big muscular body. The male target audience for ‘empire’ respect a well-developed body and also it reminds them of the characters strength and so relates back to the narrative of the movie. Another element of the image which connotes strength are the rubbed down horns of Hell boy's forehead. These horns conjure up images of a bull in the target audience's mind. Bulls are commonly associated with fighting and so emphasises the narrative of the movie. When examining the mice-en-scene, we can see that the character ‘Hellboy’ is wearing a bracelet of the cross on his wrist; this is ironic as his look and name all relate back to hell. This could imply to the audience that even though he is portrayed with an evil and devilish look, he may not be what he seems and so would encourage the audience to watch the movie to find out some answers. Hard lighting is used on the main image to create a hard, crisp and sharp look which ensures that it will capture the target audience’s eye.

Below is the poster for the movie ‘Hellboy 2’ and it is interesting to see that ‘Empire’ magazine created a symbiotic link between the poster and the front cover to ensure the audience recognises the movie. In both the front cover and the poster, the protagonist’s large fist is emphasised. This may be because it is important to the narrative of the movie and also because it may be how the audience recognise the character. Another way the symbiotic link is created between the poster and the front cover is that violence is portrayed through the protagonist’s body language and expressions. However despite the symbiotic link, there is a difference in the type of image used; the shot presented on the film poster would not look right on a magazine front cover because it is not a close enough range. This serves to show that I must adapt my image for the type of media form I am working within. 

The largest text in the frame is the masthead. Usually the masthead is in capitals letters, in a display font and in a bright red colour. Red is a primary colour which will catch the male target audience’s attention. Also the colour red has connotations of power and dominance, just the sort of characteristics the target audience themselves would possess. The masthead keeps the same aesthetics every issue- unless it is a special edition-to obtain brand identity. Following the theme of dominance, the word ‘empire’ conjures up imagery of roman kings who had empires and lots of power. This again reflects the audience’s personality traits. Below are two examples of the typical ‘Empire’ masthead and as you can see on both examples the main image sits on top of the masthead to show that it is of more significance; ‘Empire’ magazine can afford to do this because is well known and extremely successful and this is carried out in every issue to maintain brand identity.

Looking at this issue’s masthead below, it follows the magazine’s tradition and maintains brand identity by keeping the colour red and in this case the colour red reflects the feel of the 'Hell boy' franchise too, however it has a distinctive feature that links with the movie being promoted. The masthead looks as if it is on fire because it is trying to reflect the narrative of the movie and anchor the main image of ‘Hellboy’ as fire has connotations of hell, fury and danger. The fiery masthead reflects how 'Empire' will often adapt its stylistic feature to reflect the film featured on the front. This will appeal to the target audience as it reflects the sub-genre of the movie which is action and sci-fi; these are genres which they would spend their spare time watching and so they will buy the magazine to find out more.

The main sell line ‘you and whose golden army? Hellboy 2 Guillermo Del Toro Goes Epic’ anchors the main image as it refers back to the movie being promoted. The sell line is accompanied by a ‘First look!’ which makes the article seems exclusive and so luring the target audience in to buy the magazine as they won’t be able to read it elsewhere. Another technique used to capture the target audience is the use of the director’s name. The fans of the director will be inclined to buy the magazine along with the usual ‘Empire’ fans; this will broaden the magazines readership. Usually on magazines, the main sell line is placed on the left hand third as this is where the human eye goes first, however film magazines have their own conventions and so the main sell line is placed at the bottom of the page but in the middle so that it can attract the most attention. To maintain a professional finish the font is the same as the masthead.

Another convention for film magazines is that they do not have many sell lines so that audience can focus on the main image. This edition follows this convention and only has 4 sell lines (excluding the main sell line) on the left hand third of the magazine. Similarly to the main sell line, these too are in the same font and typeface. The first sell line ‘Indy IV’ is promising an article which will reveal ‘secrets’ for new and upcoming movies. The audience will love reading this because it will built up their anticipation and knowing secrets will make them feel included and as if they are part of a special club. Being the hard-core film fans that they are, the target audience would have seen all the classic films such as ‘godfather’ and ‘lord of the rings’ and so an article about ‘the hobbit’ will fulfil their basic film needs. The magazine realises that the audience does have other interests and so includes an article featuring the hottest holly-wood actress; ‘Natalie Portman vs. Scarlett Johansson. Well who would you choose?’ The rhetorical question implies a sexual innuendo which the audience would love because after all they are cheeky men! The last article, ‘there will be blood’ will provide the audience with advice and guidance about new movies. This advice would be given by people who are similar to the target audience and who the target audience respect. As the target audience are young males the mode of address is colloquial and direct address is used to make the audience feel comfortable and for example, words like ‘epic’ and ‘pics’ are used because this is the vocabulary they would use when talking to their friends. This makes the overall tone of the magazine relaxed, just like the target audience are.

The colours for this front cover are all primary, bold colours which are used purely to grab the reader’s eye. As discussed earlier the masthead is always red following the brand identity of the magazine and this then matches the colour red in the main image and so successfully achieving the look of hell and promoting the movie. The sell lines are in white to contrast with the dark background because these are the convincing factors for the audience to buy the magazine. The description underneath the sell lines are gold to give the magazine quite a luxurious, expensive look. Any promotional feature on the magazine such as the ‘first look!’ and the puff are also in gold to make them stand out significantly from the rest of the text.

This edition of the magazine has a puff placed in the top right hand corner which is the conventional placement for a puff. The puff combines two of the target audience’s main interest, sex and films; ’40 films that will get you sex!’ The number  ‘40’ and the word ‘sex’ are in a bold typeface as these are the parts of the promotion that the readers will interested in the most. Being a healthy male, sex is something which the reader enjoys and so this article will appeal to him greatly.

Other features of the magazine are the barcode, date, price and website. The barcode is placed on the bottom left hand corner, out of the reader’s eye line as it is of no significance to them. The website is underneath the masthead in a small sized typeface, this is a conventional position for all magazines. The date and price are also usually placed underneath the masthead alongside the website, however empire invert conventions and places them above the ‘M’ in the masthead. This could be a technique to try and achieve originality and this is repeated every edition to maintain brand identity.

 Overall this magazine front cover follows most of the important codes and conventions and is successful in promoting the movie ‘Hellboy 2’. The magazine also takes into consideration the target audience’s other interest and combines them with their love of film and so satisfying them greatly.





Film Poster Analysis #3

For my third analysis I’ve chosen the official poster for the supernatural movie ‘Sinister’. It is a new supernatural/satanic cult horror movie which is excellent to analyse in relation to my research and planning as the promotion package for this movie greatly influenced me with regards to my own horror movie narrative and trailer so my trailer narrative.

The main image in this poster is quite complex and tells a lot of the narrative to the audience. We see a long shot of a child who is walking and as her hand drags across a damaged wall, it leaks blood. The red blood has connotations of evil, danger, and murder and this is why the antagonist’s frightful face appears in the blood. As only a face is outlined the audience do not know if this figure is human or another being. Most of the lighting seems to be emanating from the right hand side of the poster, highlighting the unpleasant face. The lighting dims on the child, to show that her life is now in darkness and lacks hope because of this ‘sinister’ being. The background is a dark and grey wall which is full of cracks and badly worn. This may be trying to parallel the characters life in the movie which is also ‘cracked’ and ‘damaged’ due to this menacing face. The child is facing away from the camera and so we cannot see her facial expressions however her costume seems to be pyjamas which emphasises her innocence and so amplifies the audience’s empathy for her. Furthermore her body seems limp as if she has no control over it which implies the idea of some sort of possession as her behaviour is not deemed ‘normal’ but the poster does not tell us the reasons behind the possession and so leaves the audience on a cliff hanger and eager to go find out the rest of the story. The characters hair and costume colour combines with the background colour to give an impression that they have been taken over by the evil around them and that all soul and spirit has been stolen from them.

Usually the main image occupies the majority of the top half of the poster, however in this case the image dominates the bottom which means that the title has to be placed on the top so it does not distract from the image. The title of the poster is ‘Sinister’ which mirrors the personality of the blooded figure.  It is the largest piece of text in the frame and the letters are in a serif font. Following conventions, they seem to be distorted; the letters are dripping similarly to how blood may drip from the ‘sinister’ victims or how the soul was dragged and drained from the child after possession. The dripping of blood from the title also mirrors the dripping of blood from the face on the wall, creating a link between them and suggesting that they are one and the same, both sinister. The colour black connotes with an evil soul and inhumane being and so it is used to reinforce the idea that the audience do not know what ‘Sinister’ is.

The tagline ‘once you see him, nothing can save’, makes the target audience hiver to the bone as it implies that there is no escape from ‘sinister’. Also the ‘once you see him’ will make the audience wonder and question, where they would see this menace and why do they have to particularly ‘see’ him to be in danger; it explains the narrative whilst also leaving the audience wanting to know more and so hopefully encouraging them to see the movie. The tagline also successfully anchors the main image, as we can see ‘sinister’ and so fear begins to develop as subconsciously the target audience will now think they too are in danger. The main image is extremely dominant and so the tagline is in a small font in order to keep the attention on the image. The aesthetics of the tagline are extremely simple to again ensure that it does not steal focus from the main image.

A popular convention that the poster has chosen to follow is to have ‘From the director of Paranormal Activity and Insidious’ at the top of the page. This is a great technique which is used to widen the target audience as along with the general supernatural horror fans, fans of that director will also be lured into watching the movie as they would have enjoyed the other movies which that director has made. This information also gives the audience a clue to what type of film this is. Interestingly this is the only piece of text which is in the colour white; this is to ensure that it will stand out and catch the audience’s eye. The last piece of text which features on the poster is the institutional information and following conventions it is placed at the bottom of the page because it is the section of the poster which the audience would not focus on that much.

The mood of the poster is sinister, evil and menacing, which is created by the pale pallid colours of white, grey and black. The red is used to create a striking contrast and so therefore enhancing the terror crated by the menacing face.  

Overall I think this poster masters the balance of scaring the target audience and opening up their curiosity as it does not give too much away. The face in the blood is a brilliant way to start up conversations between the target audiences about what the narrative could entail and so promoting the movie further.

Film Poster Analysis #2

My second analysis is of the official poster for 'The Grudge' movie which was released in 2004 and belongs to the supernatural sub-genre. Even though the movie was released a while ago I feel the poster is extremely memorable because of its simple nature. Also this poster has given me inspiration for my own horror movie film poster and so I am intrigued at how this poster chooses to follow and invert conventions. 

The main image on the poster is an extreme close-up shot of the antagonist's eye and the rest of her face is covered by her hair which emphasises the piercing glare but also could indicate that she is hiding something. Along with her her, profile lighting is used to ensure that the whole focus of the poster is the eye and that is where the audience's attention remains. Her skin is pale and looks as if all like has been drained away, highlighting her inhumane nature; this is a technique used to indicate the supernatural sub-genre to the target audience. Also the pale skin contrasts with the dark background causing the image to become more striking to the audience. On her pale skin lies scratches and patches of blood showing the audience her ghost-like aura and again emhpasising the fast that she is not human and also conjure up thoughts of a more troubled spirit that is harmed and therefore out to harm. The focus on the eye makes the audience feel on edge and uneasy because she is looking straight into the camera and so therefore engaging with the target audience they will begin to feel as if they are being watched with a glare that can see into their soul, making the audience feel vulnerable. It is also said in literature that the eye is the gateway to the soul, so the fact that her eye is tainted red could imply that her soul is tainted with pure evil. The rest of the eye socket is blacked out, to emphasise the bloodshot eye. As mentioned earlier the characters face is covered by her hair and this is what creates the background for the poster. The character blends into the background showing the audience that this her world and she is in control, which again makes them feel vulnerable and alone. Black has connotations of the unknown danger and evil, and so this foreshadows the narrative of the movie whilst also causing the audience to feel uneasy. Also included in the background are two streaks of red, this is to remind the audience of blood dripping and draining from the antagonists victims. 

The title of the poster and the name of the film is 'The Grudge'. The title implies that the antagonist has been wronged and is now seeking revenge as she 'never forgive' and 'never forgets'. This is a plot to gain the target audiences interest and make them ponder what could have happened to cause her to be this way. Furthermore the title is in the colour red to primarily create a sharp contrast with the background but also because red has obvious connotations of blood, danger and threats and so helps the audience recognise the posters sub-genre. Also is combines and compliments the blood shot eye. The bold typeface, capital letters and sans-serif font combined also help emphasise the title against the black background. The placement of the title is on the same level as the character's eye, this is unusual as the titles are normally placed at the bottom of the page so it does not draw away any attention from the main image. The placement of the title is quite a clever use of layout, as it really forces us to focus on the most gruesome and terrifying part of the poster; the eye. As we read from left to right, it literally guides us to and points us towards the eye.

The tagline of the film is 'It never forgives. It never forgets' which refers to the grudge which the antagonist possess. It also successfully anchors the main image which shows the antagonist seeking and searching for revenge. The tagline creates an enigma as the use of the word 'it' emphasises the inhumane quality the character possess and so successfully encourages the audience to watch the movie to find out exactly what 'it' is. The letters are in a simple typeface and are in an unusual pale green colour which matches her pale and pallid skin tone. The tagline is placed at the bottom of the page, just above the institutional information; this is unusual placement and breaks the codes and conventions as usually the taglines are placed at the top of the page or near the title. This could be done so that we see the title and image first and they effectively anchor the meaning of the tagline, allowing the audience to see that 'it' refers to 'The Grudge'. 

Above the movie title is the name of the leading actress in the movie, 'Sarah Michelle Gellar'. This is another convention the poster has chosen to invert as usually on horror posters, especially within the supernatural sub-genre, the actors are unknown to create a universal character in the movie that could represent anyone and so creates a sense of realism. However this is an excellent technique to widen the movies target audience, as the movie will not only appeal to the fans of supernatural horrors but also to the fans of the leading lady. The size of the text is smaller than the titles ensuring that it does not overtake the frame.  

Even though many conventions have been challenged in this poster, it chooses to follow one significant convention which is that all the institutional information is placed at the bottom of the page. This is because it is the section which the target audience will be least interested in and so it is placed out of the way to ensure that the focus remains on the image and title. 

Most posters use limited amount of colour so that it remains simple; the dominant colours on this poster are red and black. Both colours represent evil, danger, and also an inhumane being. These colours set a sinister tone for the poster which amplifies the audience's fear. 

I personally think this poster is extremely successful in frightening the audience as the colours used, combined with the piercing look can scare someone to their core and this is why it is the biggest inspiration for my own poster. It also informs the audience of the narrative without giving too much information away, leaving them wanting more.