Prom Night Trailer Analysis

I looked at the trailer from Prom Night and analysed the different key concepts of it including camera shots and angles, mise en scene, editing and sound. Prom Night is a horror based around a sadistic killer from the main character's past.

Camera shots and angles

• Various types of shots used to show characters getting ready for their prom – establishing, point of view, long shots to emphasise the excitement for the night. This also emphasises the equilibrium at the beginning of the film.
• As you get more into the trailer, the camera angles change to close ups and extreme close ups of expressions and objects to evoke fear among the audience – scared expression and shots of the knife and other sinister objects.
• Point of view shots are used to show the character’s fear
• Close up shot of face looking through the key hole – it could make the audience feel as though they are being watched which would create further fear and uneasiness or it could create further fear by making them think she is hiding from someone and is about to be found.

Mise en Scene

• The lighting in the trailer varies – at the beginning it is very light and bright which connotes happiness and again emphasises the equilibrium, even when they are in the prom, the lights are off but there is still a bright atmosphere from the lights coming off the dance floor. Then when the lights flicker and go off, the lighting in the rest of the trailer is very dark and seems mysterious because it keeps flickering. This creates enigma because the audience doesn’t know what is in the darkness.
• The film is set in a hotel which is meant to connote a holiday or a relaxing get-away, but it is actually the opposite as something terrible seems to be inside
• The props used can be seen as scary just on their own e.g. the knife suggests to the audience that someone will be stabbed also when the knife is seen again in the evidence bag suggests that there is something bad going on that needs to be investigated – the knife is evidence of something that has gone on, the body bag again suggests that someone will be killed or has been killed.

Sound

• The music used in the trailer begins very cheerful with upbeat, rock/pop music which makes the audience think that everything is going okay and happy. It will also connote excitement and fun which is exactly what the characters are going through. Then half way through the trailer, the music stops when the teachers is announcing the king and queen, it then abruptly stops and only low atmospheric music is used such as very low and very high strings, which evokes fear into the audience and builds up the tension.
• The sounds used in the trailer are to make the audience feel uneasy and uncomfortable such as the screams, the creepy voiceovers and the enhanced sounds such as the knife scraping. These will all evoke further fear and make the audience jump as they are all fairly loud.
• The voiceover is also used to scare the audience and create enigma such as when the policeman is saying the murderer will not stop until he gets hold of the girl which makes you think how far will he actually go and what is he capable of?

Editing

• Unlike most trailers, the editing actually begins fairly fast paced, but instead of it being in a scary/jumpy way, it seems to be edited in a more upbeat way which reflects the younger/teenage age group of the characters in the film and also the target audience of the film.
• The upbeat yet steady pace helps the audience absorb the fact that this is the equilibrium and the climax has not happened yet.
• The editing slows down slightly when there is a big moment of tension just before the lights go off in the prom, this builds suspense and makes the audience want to know what is about to happen.
• The pace builds up even more towards the end of the trailer which in turn builds tension and suspense amongst the audience and is almost a reminder that something out of the ordinary is about to happen.
• Text is used effectively in the trailer with double meanings and puns. For example “a night to die for” which makes the audience wonder who is going to be killed and creates fear for the characters.