R14 - Film Trailer Analysis: Ouija

(2014) 

The trailer starts off with a wide two shot of two girls outside a house at night time, with very dim lighting coming from the lamp post. The diegetic dialogue consists of the girl saying "are you sure you don't wanna come out tonight?" thus connoting that the second girl will be at home alone at night time which foreshadows that something bad is going to happen. Her use of costume presents gives the representation that she is a teenager, as she is wearing simple jeans and a tshirt. The darkness within the first scene of the trailer adds an automatic eerie sense to the trailer, foreshadowing that something bad will happen. As the trailer progresses, the suspense rises as the door closes by itself in an eye level shot, and soon after, high pitched background music can be heard. The sound effect of the door creaking shut creates an uncomfortable atmosphere.

The continuity editing of shows the girl walking around the house, up the stairs, trying to figure out where the non diegetic noises are coming from. The lighting used, shows her in very dim lighting with only lights from lamps allowing the audience to see her. However the background music intensifies and the frame cuts to a body (the girl) hanging herself in an eye level shot from her staircase. The use of the music helps us understand how to insert music into our radio trailer. When we are leading up to a climax or a disruption, we need to intensify our music to help the audience understand who it is they should be afraid off. 

A non diegetic heart beat sound effect is played in the background as a non diegetic dialogue of "I don't think this is a good idea" is spoken by a girl which is stereotypically considered the weaker gender. Her tone of voice and mode of address implies that despite being scared, she is curious to find out, whatever it is that she is doing. The frame then moves onto a blank screen with a red and black musty background as the text says "some call it a spirit board". Non diegetic sounds of children laughing is heard faintly adding more intensity to the trailer. After fading in for a few frames, it then fades into another slide with text saying "it has existed for centuries... It is used to communicate with the other side". The use of editing here presents a flow within the trailer, and gives the audience time to read the text without it moving too fast. The effect of this is so that the audience have to watch the trailer, due to the purpose of, if they don't they'll miss what the trailer said, which will make them more nervous and anxious to continue watching. This increases the suspense much more largely the audience become aware of the fact that they are talking about an Ouija board, and automatically know the 'risks' of it. 

The shot then moves to a bird eye view shot of all the teenagers looking around at each other each other whilst kneeling around the table, and then at the ouija board. A loud non diegetic bang is heard as the lights go off by itself and the music becomes louder. The glass moves by itself in a close up shot and the diegetic sound effect of the door shutting, scares the teenagers. The dialogue starts again as you can hear the girl say "this thing... is haunting us" with a more frightened and panicked tone of voice, which is then followed by another non diegetic scream. 

The shot then moves onto a mid shot of a girl flossing through her reflection in the mirror through an over the shoulder shot. in the next frame, she then ends up with a sewn mouth as she tries to scream. The use of editing here, surprises the audience as it isn't what they were expecting. Likewise, the fast paced shots, doesn't allow the audience to think about what will come next as the frame fades to the next so quickly. The conventions of a horror film can be seen here, as even though she is in her own home, supernatural things happen, containing blood - a conventional aspect of the horror genre. The frame then moves onto blood on the wall as a little girl walks down the stairs holding an old scary doll by it's leg. As she gets to the bottom, the suspenseful music dies down and a loud non diegetic scream is heard, also a conventional horror theme. 

The clip then finishes as 'Ouija' appears establishing for a few seconds. Once that fades off, another slide with text appears saying "keep telling yourself it's just a game" as well as 'coming soon'. The editing effects make the audience question their own selves about Ouija boards and how they believe it is just a fanatic. 

The use of sound used in the radio trailer is significant in how it represents the film. It has a constant use of background music, and effective use of silence, influencing my ideas for a radio trailer. Likewise, the sound effects of the screams is equally as effective as it is played when you least expect it, making the audience jump without even needing them to see what is happening. The titles within the film emphasis on the horror genre as the background colour is a dark murky red, with an olga effect making the outer corners black. The font used to present 'Ouija' seems classical, despite being a modern film however sticks to the conventions of the horror genre. The tagline also consists of the same font and colours, keeping to the theme of the film.