Analysis of London to Brighton trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KU3G7EEFnwQ
London to Brighton, released in 2006 and directed by Paul Andrew Williams is a thriller that focuses on a young girl and a prostitute who are attempting to flee to Brighton from London in order to escape an angry pimp. Its target audience is likely British adults, which is implied through the mature themes (such as prostitution) and the fact that the review from Big Issue explains that it is the "Best British Film of the Century". The trailer itself is 1:40 minutes long.
The trailer features five main characters: the young girl, a woman/prostitute, a pimp, a client and the client's son, and seven main settings: the streets of London, a cafe, a fancy hotel, a bathroom, a strip club, a car/taxi, and an unknown location where a fight breaks out. These create different narratives throughout the trailer: the young girl meeting the woman and pimp, the girls' encounter with the client, the two girls fleeing from the men and a fight between the two groups. This results in no enigma effect which is a common occurrence in thriller films as it aids in creating an uneasy atmosphere. An example of the enigma effect would be in the trailer for The Snowman where the killer is relevant throughout the trailer but is never clearly shown, even at the end of the trailer the closest thing we get to a reveal is a snowman.
There are two tracks throughout the trailer, the first one loops and runs through the start, it is quite quiet and calm. The second is a binary opposite to the first; it is quite fast paced and isn't used for establishing the key narrative but for when the action takes place. This emphasises the difference between the start and end of the film/trailer. The sound effects also represent this; at the start the sound effects are quite natural and consist of things like birds chirping. Towards the end, the sound effects become destructive featuring things such as gun shots.
The inter-titles mainly consist of reviews, some from well known sources like: The Times and The Guardian. These reviews are all very positive and will therefore encourage people to view the film.
The most frequent camera shot is the close-up, this is mainly used to convey the emotions of the characters, for example: at the start when the girl is sat on the stairs, the close-up emphasises her fear. Long shots are also used in an attempt to establish the scene, for example: showing the girl sat on the stairs with people walking past, makes us feel sorry that she is stuck in such an unsafe place. Throughout the trailer at various points, a shaky/handheld camera is used (mainly where there is action), this puts the viewer directly into the action of the film and allows us to connect further with the characters.
Behind each review is a blurry scene of cars passing, which makes it seem like throughout the trailer something is happening - even when it is just an attempt to increase attention for the film. There are also a lot of quick cuts, which also make it seem like there is always something happening and is therefore a lot more exciting. Towards the start, there are a few fade to blacks, these allow the trailer flow smoothly from one clip to the next where the main emphasis is on story rather than action (where the quick cuts are mainly used). With a lot of the quick cuts, there is also an afterimage effect, this allows the image to remain fresh in the viewers mind while another clip is shown at the same time.
The whole trailer appears to be chronological, however, most thriller films don't have clips in chronological order. The slower paced clips are usually at the start (and sometimes mixed in with the later part) in order to construct a narrative, whilst the more action packed clips are generally at the end to keep the viewer entertained.
Interestingly, there is no release date mentioned for the film which is surprising as it is a key convention of any trailer. There is also no reference to other films ("From the creators of ...") suggesting it may be the director's/team's first major film.
The most frequent camera shot is the close-up, this is mainly used to convey the emotions of the characters, for example: at the start when the girl is sat on the stairs, the close-up emphasises her fear. Long shots are also used in an attempt to establish the scene, for example: showing the girl sat on the stairs with people walking past, makes us feel sorry that she is stuck in such an unsafe place. Throughout the trailer at various points, a shaky/handheld camera is used (mainly where there is action), this puts the viewer directly into the action of the film and allows us to connect further with the characters.
Behind each review is a blurry scene of cars passing, which makes it seem like throughout the trailer something is happening - even when it is just an attempt to increase attention for the film. There are also a lot of quick cuts, which also make it seem like there is always something happening and is therefore a lot more exciting. Towards the start, there are a few fade to blacks, these allow the trailer flow smoothly from one clip to the next where the main emphasis is on story rather than action (where the quick cuts are mainly used). With a lot of the quick cuts, there is also an afterimage effect, this allows the image to remain fresh in the viewers mind while another clip is shown at the same time.
The whole trailer appears to be chronological, however, most thriller films don't have clips in chronological order. The slower paced clips are usually at the start (and sometimes mixed in with the later part) in order to construct a narrative, whilst the more action packed clips are generally at the end to keep the viewer entertained.
Interestingly, there is no release date mentioned for the film which is surprising as it is a key convention of any trailer. There is also no reference to other films ("From the creators of ...") suggesting it may be the director's/team's first major film.
Some good analysis Jac - well done. It would be very useful to include screen shots of the different scenes - make your blog more visual and contextualise your analysis. RSC
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