Analysis of 7 key stills – Sinister Trailer

Philippa English

Camerawork: Mis-En-Scene:

This still is a wide shot which therefore shows all of the burning car. This shows that there is some kind of danger or bad events going to happen as before this shot they were just moving into a happy family home. The shot is also low angled so that the car looks longer and so that you can see all of the smoke and flames in relation to where the car is.

Setting: The setting of this shot is in a garage of the house but it is being viewed on an old film reel. The car is wrapped in chains which gives the impression to the viewer that there may be something inside it which is not allowed out.

Lighting: The lighting in this shot is very bright as there is flames and smoke which would be bright in real life. The car looks dark in comparison to the rest of the fire which makes it stand out more.

Prop: There are various chains wrapped across the car as to make it look almost as there is something inside the car which should not be let out. The car looks like an older model of a family car which would represent the people who lived there before as an average family.Costume: The

car looks old and possibly run down and is covered in chains.

Conventions of genre:This is conventional of the horror genre as there is usually danger and destruction in horror films and a car covered in chains being blown up is conventional of this.

Conventions of form:

This is conventional of a trailer as they show things starting to go wrong or action parts of the film to try and get the audience to watch more.

Camerawork:The shot is a wide shot which shows the antagonist in the bushes with a light just over its face. The wide shot adds to the scariness of the scene as it is only on the screen for a few minutes and then it is gone which adds to tension and suspense for the viewer. As you would not expect to see someone in the bushes and the antagonist is small in comparison to the setting.

Mis-En-Scene:Setting: The setting of this still is in the garden of the main characters in the trailers home. It is very leafy and full of hedges which makes it difficult for the antagonist to be noticed to start with.

Lighting: The lighting of this still is very low lit to make the garden look more mysterious. But there is a light underneath the antagonist to make him noticeable in the dark garden. As he has a pale face this draws even more attention to him as it stands out more on the dark background.

Costume: The antagonist in the still is wearing all dark clothing apart from his face which is painted in white face paint with dark make up around the eyes to make it look very mysterious and scary to the audience.

Prop: There are many trees and bushes surrounding the antagonist.

Convention of genre:This is conventional of the horror genre as in horror movies there is typically an antagonist who usually looks scary and is not seen very often but causes lots of destruction like this one.

Convention of form:This is typically conventional of a trailer as they usually show you a small snippet of what the antagonist looks like as they have done here.

Camerawork:The shot used here is a wide shot as to show the viewer the main character but then the antagonist on the computer screen behind him. It is close up on the mans face to show his emotion and the antagonist is in the background almost to show that he is always in there watching the characters.

Mis-En-Scene:

Setting: The setting of this still is within the family home in which the film is set. The man seems to be in some kind of study or writing room as the man says in the trailer that he is a story writer.

Lighting: The lighting in this still is low lit and you can only see half of the mans face. There is also a mysterious yellow light where the antagonists face is on the computer screen as to draw attention to it as it therefore stands out in the dark light.

Costume: the man in the still is wearing plain clothing to show that he is just a regular person which typically in horror films the bad things happen to as they try to make it realistic. The antagonist on the computer screen has his face covered in face paint or make up in white and smudged black around the eyes to make him look scary to the viewer.

Prop: There are props in the scene such as the computer which is important in constructing the scene as without it you would not be able to see the antagonists face on it.

Conventions of genre:

This is conventional to the horror genre as the antagonist is in the background which is typical to have in a horror movie.

Conventions of form:This is conventional for a trailer as it is showing the viewer something that the character cannot see, therefore helping to explain the narrative.

Camerawork:This shot is a zoomed in wide shot which shows a boy who has been possessed coming out of a cardboard box in a very strange position. It is shot from a low angle to make it look as though the boy is coming almost towards you.

Mis-En-Scene:

Setting: The setting of this scene is in a normal room of a house that belongs to the family who are the characters within the film.

Costume: The boy in the still seems to be naked and may have some kind of contacts in to make his eyes look freaky as he is possessed.

Prop: The cardboard box in this still is the main prop as the boy has come out of it, which to start with is irregular because people do not sit in boxes. Which gives the viewer that something is wrong before he even comes out of the box.

Lighting: The lighting on the left of the scene is very low lit. However there is a light shining on top of the boy which makes his pale skin stand out on the dark background. This also gives him a shadow on the box which gives an eerie feel to the still.

Conventions of genre:This still is conventional of the horror genre as typically there is a family member or a person in horror films who gets possessed or controlled by the antagonist in the film. This is typically a child as they are venerable such as it is here.

Conventions of form:

This still is conventional of trailers as they will show scary/interesting parts of the film but not reveal the whole story as they want the viewer to go and watch the rest of the film. Like they have done here the audience would want to know why this boy is coming out of a cardboard box in a strange position.

Camera work:This shot is a wide shot which has an axe being dragged along the floor in the foreground so that the viewer instantly see’s it.In the background of the shot there seem to be people/bodies lying on the floor which shows the viewer that there is something bad happening.

Mis-En-Scene:Setting: The setting of this still is in a room of the characters in the trailers home. The floor is wooden which shows where the axe has been dragged along the floor and scratched it almost as though to show that the person who is holding it is walking around menacingly with it.

Lighting: The lighting in this still like most of the scenes in this trailer is low lit to show less and give it an eerie feel. There seems to be an window which is letting through bright light almost like lightening flashing.Prop: The axe is the main focus of this still and the main prop used. As an axe is typically a weapon this tells the viewer that there is danger and allows them to relate that it is a horror film.

Costume: There isn’t very much costume in this still but there are people or bodies lying on the floor who seem to be stripped or half dressed.

Conventions of genre:

This still is conventional to the horror genre as there is a weapon and people/bodies in the background who have possibly been harmed by this and murder/torture are common in horror films.

Conventions of form:

This still is conventional of a trailer as they are showing a weapon and people/bodies lying on the floor but you do not know what happens or why which is why they do this to add suspense to try and get the viewer to go and see the film.

Camera Work:This shot is a wide shot which shows the whole scene of a woman holding a child going through a corridor which has been graffiti on in what looks like blood. The shot makes the woman and child look small in comparison to the long hallway.

Mis-En-Scene:Setting: the setting of this scene is in the family home in a hallway. The walls are covered in writing which looks like it is in blood. This gives a very eerie feel to the still as it is very unusual to have such writing on the wall which gives the impression to the viewer that something is not right.

Costume: The characters in the middle of the scene are wearing long dresses probably night gowns as it is very dark it is probably night time. This gives the feel of something more creepy than if they were just wearing jeans and a t-shirt for example.

Lighting: this still is very brightly lit from the bottom which then shows the viewer all of the strange markings on the wall that the characters in the middle of the still cannot see as they are behind them. It also gives the characters a shadow which makes them look very mysterious.

Conventions of genre:

This is conventional of the horror genre as the writing in what looks like blood on the wall cannot be seen by the characters. Things like this are typical in horror movies as they let the audience know more about what is going on than the characters.

Conventions of form:

This is conventional of a trailer because once again it is showing snippets of this woman carrying a child through a corridor covered in blood writing. Which makes the viewer wonder why this is happening and makes them want to go and watch the film.

Camera Work:This still is a wide shot which shows 5 children in strange face paint sitting in what looks like an attic. They are all facing the camera and looking with very scary faces. Which is a place where children do not regularly go in this then gives the impression to the viewer that something is not right. It is also from a low angle which makes it look like the children are looking down at something.

Mis-En-Scene:Setting: The setting of this still is in what looks like an attic or garage as it has lots of cardboard boxes in. This is not a typical place for children to be especially without an adult.

Costume: The children in this scene are wearing normal bright clothing, which contrasts with the ghoulish face paint which they have on.

Prop: The children seem to be sat in front of some kind of screen and are surrounded by various cardboard boxes. One of the girls on the left also has a mysterious black box in front of her.

Lighting: The lighting is low lit around the room however there seems to be a light underneath them which makes there faces seem to be more visible.

Conventions of genre:This is conventional to the horror genre as there are children who are in ghoulish face paint, and typically children in horror movies are taken over or controlled by the antagonist as they seem to have been here.

Conventions of form:This is conventional of a horror trailer as it is at the end of the trailer they have left this at the end to make the viewer question why the children are like this and then go and watch the film.