This trailer builds up a situation immediately showing characters, what the film is about and many significant shots.  Dramatic music and dialogue builds up the footage and the tension within the trailer.  This creates a level of understanding of that we know what is to unfold to a certain extent if we see the film.  This means the trailer has to be very intregueing and exciting in order to persuade people to the Cinema.  In my opinion this trailer appears to give too much away, but I have not seen the film and so therefore i cannot judge accurately.

This trailer persuades the viewer by creating a scenario where very little is given away other than that someone is trapped underground.  The intensity of the situation reflects the type of film and the urgency of the situaion.  This makes the viewer obviosly, curious as they want to know more about the situation.  I like the fact that visually little is given away and the fact that the sound tells us nearly everything in the trailer.  This creates suspense brilliantly.

Local Cinema survey

I sent a survey out to 20 of my friends on my Facebook account (20 being the maximum amount of people allowed for me to send my message to).  My target for my surveys was at the ages 16-17. 

This was the survey i sent.

1. How often do you go to the cinema?
2. Which is your favourite cinema and why?
3. How do you hear about films?
4. Whats the last film you've seen?
5. What is your favourite genre of film?
6. How and where do you prefer to watch films?
7. Is there a british film or TV drama you have seen recently? if so, what?
8. Why do you think that film directors consider cinema to be the best place to view their films?
Resposes:

1)
weeks?
1 - monthly - 4
2 - every other month - 2

2)
Vue - 5 - Due to price and convenience.
Odeon -
Cinema City -
Hollywood Cinema -

3)
Adverts -
Adverts/Friends - 5
Friends -
Reviews -

4)
Adventureland
The Expendables
Toy Story 3D
Devil
Inception
Shrek

5)
Comedy - 1
Sci Fi - 1
Romance - 1
RomCom - 2

6)
Cinema - 4
Home (DVD) - 1

7)
This is England 86 - 1
An idiot abroad - 1
Downton abbey - 2

8)
Their own profit - 1
The experience - 1
Both - 3

These are my results so far, i am still waiting for replys.  However, this clearly shows some trends of teenage Cinema goers.

Local Cinema research

The films showing at the Odeon on thursday 16/09/2010 were:

1) Dinner for Schmucks, rated 12A, UK
2) Going the distance, rated 15, USA
3) Grown Ups, rated 12A, USA
4) Marmaduke, rated U, USA
5) Resident Evil 3D, rated 15, USA
6) Scott Pilgrim Vs the world, rated 12A, USA
7) Tamara Drew, rated 15, UK
8) The Expendables, rated 15, USA
9) The Last Exorcism, rated 15, USA
10) The Switch, rated 12A, USA
11) Toy Story 3 (and 3D), rated U, USA

Two of the eleven films showing are American.  This makes 81.81% of the films showing at Odeon American. 18.29% of the films are British.  None of these films are foreign language.  From this I can conclude that the Multiplex cinemas are aiming at a very specific teenage, mostly male demographic with films produced with little effort and for a quick profit.

Cinema City is an independent cinema; these are the films showing on Wednesday 06/10/2010:

1) The Town, rated 15, USA
2) Made in Dagenham, rated 15, UK
3) Go fish, rated 18, USA
4) Eat Pray Love, rated PG, USA

Here, 75% of the films are still American.  However, a much wider demographic is attracted (age ratings) making for a more widespread interest of different ages and interests.  25% of the films were British, but as there are only four films showing it is hard to tell a huge difference.

It is clear that the British public do not consume a rich and diverse mix of film; I believe we are all too used to the formulaic styles of American Hollywood style films. 

None of the films I have listed are directed by a female director

Film Noir and 'The Third Man'

Film Noir and ‘The Third Man’ (1949)

How does the third man use film noir conventions?

Film Noir

Film Noir is a type of film/genre of thriller that came from post second world war.  This was a time of great depression and socioeconomic collapse.  These were originally American gangster films (about the 1940’s).  Film Noir tends to have a mood of bleakness, fear and paranoia.  The characters within film noir generally encounter a degree of moral conflict creating a difficult situation.  Flashback and mystery are often involved and a narrator tells the tale as a twisting plot unravels.  Femme Fatale is used in this type of film.  This usually links directly to the moral conflict often present.  Film noir derives from German expressionist paintings and artwork.  The contrasts for example show this.  Conventions of film noir include heroes and corrupt characters, often villains.  Moral ambiguity is often present and so is the concept of femme fatale.

Femme Fatale is where a significant character (a woman) is ambiguous in that they are deceptive because they use their sexuality and innocent appearance to exploit what they want within a situation.  They are generally good looking and confusing to the viewer of the film. 

Extreme lighting effects are used to exaggerate extreme moods.  This lighting creates great contrasts.  Chiaroscuro lighting is a main feature of film noir where light appears to be coming only from one source that is often not natural.  The films in the film noir genre are black and white; this makes the Chiaroscuro lighting even more obvious and crucial to the genre. 

Codes and conventions of a thriller

Conventions of thrillers generally have a suspicious and unusual beginning creating something that is to be discovered throughout the rest of the film.  Thrillers often use flashback to confuse the viewer making for a more interesting film.  Spiral stair cases are also stereotypically found in thrillers, these can be seen as symbolic of aspects within the film because of their distance and hidden floors.  The Third Man uses most of these conventions within film noir.

The Third Man

The Third Man is a Film Noir mystery Thriller directed by Carol Reed.  The Third Man uses Film noir conventions excessively.  For example it begins with a lone man in an unfamiliar place that he does not know.  Also, the animalistic appearance given to Harry, showing him as if vermin within the city and the sewers below.  This creates an ideal level of corruption to create a complicated plot for the film.

Chiaroscuro lighting is used throughout the film.  For example when Harry escapes and disappears down the sewers.  The lighting hints to the viewer that he has gone through what is discretely a sewer entrance but it is not easy to make out.  The lighting adds a hint of suspicion to the entrance and the reflection of light off the cobbles creates scattered light giving definition to what otherwise would be a bleak shot.

The film is set in Vienna.  There are many shots of empty alleyways with only the main character present.  Also, the sewers of Vienna symbolise the state of the city and the socioeconomic climate.  The rain slicked stone cobbled alleyways in the film and the gloomy dank, dark and disorientating sewers are all classic conventions of the film noir genre. 

Anna is a significant character in the film as she feels for Harry even though he is clearly evil.  There is no perfect femme fatale in The Third Man; however Anna possesses some of the qualities.  She is independent and attractive.  She is morally ambiguous in that she loves a man who is evil and being chased by the police and what seems to be everyone.  Anna uses her innocence as a victim to try and get what she wanted from the situation.

Despite the atmosphere killing music The Third Man uses unusual camera angles to show obscurity of situations; Or to show the drunken state of Holly Martin.  These angles give expression and make the viewer feel physically part of the situation and therefore making the film brilliant from a media perspective.  The atmosphere gained from these shots presents for an uneasy atmosphere, perfect for film noir.

The film ‘M’ uses a child character to represent innocence in the film, The Third Man also uses this when the child rolls his ball accidentally in amongst an argument about the suspicions that Holly Martin has of the supposed death of Harry Lime.  This creates juxtaposition between the innocence of the child and the sinister situation making both of these sides seem more extreme.

I used mainly…

http://www.filmsite.org/filmnoir.html