Three Film Trailers-Action Genre

Genre- Action

 

The genre I chose to look at was Action, I chose the three different trailers of,
Collateral Damage (2002)
Wanted (2008)
Olympus Has Fallen (2013)

I watched these to look out for,
Amount of cuts
Amount of locations/ Mise- en scene
Titles
Sound
Editing


I purposely chose these films to compare them with each other, I wanted to do something along the lines of this genre for my film trailer, but looking at these I found barriers that would stop me from achieving this.
In Collateral Damage I counted around 95 cuts, 27 different locations, fading, slow motion and black and white effects. This trailer includes the main character (Played by Arnold Schwarzenegger) who is to be shown as someone to take revenge, he is strong and capable of dealing with other criminals. Different weapons and explosions are shown in this, the music appears to be slow and tense in the beginning, and narration of the news is being heard. An explosion is shown and the music becomes faster and more upbeat, when the characters are shown to be conversing with the main character, the music then slows back down again. Slow motion effect is shown on the killer, which could show he is still lingering. Fast and upbeat comes in again and narration is introduced back into the trailer, and is now talking about the main character.
Throughout the whole trailer, it draws you in because of the upbeat sound and the explosions and the fast cuts. I think this is good for an action film trailer, although I think the titles could have been in  a different font that didn't shadow behind as I find them a little boring to read, and maybe a different ending. I think a different ending would have been better because the original seems a bit too much. It doesn't seem very realistic having that part at the end of the trailer. It needed a bit more mystery so that the viewers are 'wowed'.
Other than that, I think this is a good trailer, it also shows the director that had created another film, this may draw people in if they have seen the film mentioned.


In the trailer for Wanted, I counted around 155 cuts, 33 different locations, zooms, extreme close-ups, quick fades, slow motions and a ripple effect. The trailer includes three main characters and their roles are mentioned and shown at the climax, however their names aren't metioned. This could be because they are covering their identity and the director wants them to be known for their role played. They are shown all the way throughout. The trailer shows the first main character as weak and boring, (Played by James McAvoy) however though it progresses we see that he becomes stronger with the help of his new master and teacher. These two characters are then shown, (Played by Morgan Freeman and Angelina Jolie). Sounds at the beginning begins slowly and gets faster and more upbeat throughout, narration is also used in the beginning by the first main character shown. the trailer shows how he progresses and is able to fend for himself. We don't know the plot as it doesn't give too much away but we know a basic outline which will draw viewers in.
When he is being trained, a gun is shown in the Masters hand in which the student is looking at. A ripple effect is being used on this, could portray the student in unsure and confused. He may not feel right picking up the gun and using it.
Also, he is asked to shoot flies, which is different from other action films as it is not just shooting human beings. This may draw viewers in and think that this is interesting. I think the titles that introduce their individual roles are effective because they swipe in a fast motion with them in  film action ,on both the top of the bottom half of the screen. This is different to normal titles. The release date is also shown before this, in a simple readable white font.
overall, I think this trailer is better than Collateral Damage because of the amount of cuts and action and the use of fonts to show the actors, However the only downside is I think it gives too much of the plot away to the viewers.


Olympus Has Fallen was the very last trailer. I counted around 168 cuts, 50 different locations, quick fades, action with audio and voice over the top, birds eye view and slow motion. The trailer shows the main character from the beginning, however we don't know that he is the star of the film until we get into the trailer itself. the second character is shown, however he isn't as important as the first, although he is important in the film as he is the President. The third main character is shown and he is the criminal. The hero, the main character (Played by Gerard Butler) is the President's secret service agent. He is shown to be protective, fearless and strong. I think this will appeal to the audience as he is a well known and good-looking actor who plays his part well. He is also shown to be smart and loyal to the people he is working for. The President, (Played by Aaron Eckhart) I think could have been shown more in the trailer as I think his importance and the White House should be shown to alert the audience of his importance throughout the trailer. I think we know that he is important from the beginning but as the trailer goes on, he becomes weaker to the enemy and the cuts show this well. They are quick and to the point. The sound over the top works well, as does the effect when the crash happens in the beginning. The scene plays slowly with a dramatic sound over the top and voices are deepened and almost muffled. This creates a dead atmosphere and tension for the viewers themselves, the President is unable to save his wife from the crash. The criminal then comes into the trailer, shown as good at first sight, but sends in terrorist planes. The criminal (Played by Rick Yune) is portrayed as a violent, strong character who gets what he wants. The fast and many cuts, show the violence and torture being shown to the members of the White House that is being caused by him, This shows he is in control over everybody. The planes colliding and the news being shown is all due to the criminal himself and he may feel he is in power. The text is shown in a blocked and simple white font, which is easy to read. it also has the texture of broken debris which could portray the destroyed White House. Actors names aren't shown and I think this is effective as it makes us as an audience believe their roles. it also has another film mentioned that the director has filmed. If the audience have seen the film mentioned, they are more likely to watch this film as well.