The Gallows – Movie Trailer AnalysisA movie trailer is designed to give an audience a representation of what the film will entail and give them a rough outline of the story without giving too much away. This is done through putting clips from the film in sequence, adding music and sometimes reviews. I will now be analysing the move trailer of “The Gallows”.

This trailer begins in a dark environment, we see green light shining on areas of the scene as well as close ups of the protagonist. The light goes on and off 4 times, each returning with a different shot. The lighting is very low key, all we see is what the green light is pointing at which tells the audience that is also all the male in the shot can see. As the light turns on each time, the protagonist takes two deep breaths. This sound motif gives the audience the impression the character is terrified. This is then intensified from his gesture code and other details such as; his eyes scanning the entire area looking for something or someone, his chest pounding and how much he is sweating. The audience can tell he isn’t sweating through heat because when the character breathes we can see a his icy breath in the air. His breathing then stops as we hear a floor creak. The camera stays stationary for a moment to represent the protagonist being in shock but then moves around and shows a large, dark figure standing in a doorway holding a noose. Up until this point there has been silence, to build tension, but all of a sudden the protagonist screams and the camera is thrown about aggressively until landing on the floor. This tells our audience the film is going to make them jump but it also tells them the movie is filmed by the characters. The figure in the doorway is more like a shadow or a silhouette as it has no features whatsoever which gives an eerie feel. This feeling is intensified by the fact he is holding a noose, naturally signifying a terrifying piece of rope which can kill easily and quickly.After this scene quieter, calmer yet still eerie music plays. The song is a cover of Nirvana’s “Smells like teen spirit” which is a fast pace rock song but has been re-written to give the listener chills. The next scene begins by showing teenagers running through streets at night and having fun. One trips on a stair which could imply she is drunk and is not responsible. The setting is a very quiet suburban area, other than the protagonists there is little sign of other people.The clip then shoots forward to the protagonists opening a door to an abandoned building. There is a loud creak sound effect which echoes slightly to dictate the building is old and creepy. One character says; “this place is super creepy at night”, this is to show the audience they have gone during late hours, possibly because they aren’t supposed to be there. Once inside they are shown on a stage which could signify some kind of show is going to take place or possibly has already taken place. A noose also appears briefly on the stage, this is the second time this object has been seen so the audience should get the impression it is an important part of the film.The next scene is similar to the first as it is low key lighting again and it is silent. There is a door creaking, similar to the one previously heard which makes the characters scared. By this point the trailer has really dragged the audience in so now they will feel just as the protagonists are feeling. The scene the rapidly fades to darkness and comes back in with an exit sign on the roof. The exit sign is on the roof as it must be shot from a low angle to make it look superior. Then this suggests the characters will find it hard to get out. Two of the characters are then shot from the point of view of another

character to put the audience in the protagonists shoes’. The characters are walking slowly and timidly looking for an exit, again suggesting there is a strong element of fear within the group.They then walk into a room where an old television plays independently which is unnatural, signifying there may be more unnatural things happening. The room is old and rotting with the TV in the centre of the shot. The television shows an old news broadcast talking about a teenager dying in the building from a prop malfunction in a play. The television is very old and pixelated and the sound of the fuzziness creates an evil vibe. This clip is shown to tell the audience the background story so they have some idea about what is going on. To end the clip on the television it shows the boy dying from being hung accidently on the stage, which is then followed by the TV screen going black. This renders fear and confusion throughout the characters and audience which causes panic.The soundtrack now continues to re-embed the scary atmosphere. The camera is now entirely filmed from the point of view of the protagonists who are trying to open a series of doors which are all locked. Showing the audience that they are trapped. The lighting is now very low key, almost completely dark but with a red light shining at certain areas of the setting. The red colour could be a signifier representing blood or death. The volume of the characters has now increased and so has the soundtrack. The voice has started singing on the soundtrack in a scary way, and the characters have started screaming and shouting. During this burst of panic we see the characters running hopelessly through the building trying to get out and failing, just to confirm to the audience that there is no way out.At the end of the trailer we see a women with a noose wrapped around her neck. She is breathing heavily, almost identical to how the male was in the first seen. The camera is set at an over shoulder shot which shows the figure from the first scene lurking in the shadows. The shot is then an extreme close up of the girl who continues to breath heavily until she is pulled backwards by the noose. As she is pulled, there is a loud sound effect which is designed to again make the audience jump.The trailer concludes by fading into black, signifying all hope is lost.