Casino Royale (2006)
Film Trailer
Film Trailer
In the trailer of Martin Campbell's Casino Royale (2006), the clip consists of a collage of random action-packed snippets from the film. Flash backs are also used at the beginning of the trailer to briefly introduce the storyline and characters. The editing is fast pace and the display of explosions and violence shows that the film genre is thriller. This is also evident in the non-diegetic music played throughout the trailer, as it is dramatic and fast-paced. This reflects the mood of the trailer and creates tension for the audience.
James Bond is introduced as the protagonist in the trailer as he is shown consistently throughout the text and is in the heart of the storyline. Vladimir Propp's Theory of Narrative is applicable to this trailer as the clip successfully distinguishes a hero, a villain and a princess. Bond is often seen through a close up or a midshot and is kept in the centre of the frame. This further proves that he is introduced as the main character.
By the protagonist kissing a female character, it is apparent that the film involves romance, giving it a subgenre of thriller romance. The lighting throughout the clip is fairly low-key but changes to natural or high-key when the protagonist interacts with the female victim. This relates to Laura Mulvey's Male Gaze Theory and suggests that the woman brings light and happiness to the film. The setting is modern and is evident in the vehicles, clothing and lifestyle.
The music is in time with the events in the trailer and a correlation between music pace and editing pace is kept. The fade to black editing transition is commonly used as a dramatic effect throughout the trailer and shows that there is a distinct difference between a film trailer and a film opening, as fade to black is a common attribute found in cinematic trailers.
The colours black and red are splayed throughout the text, which have strong connotations of death and violence respectively. This signifies that the theme of the film is action. The title of the film is presented at the end of the trailer. This is used to lure the audience and create curiosity throughout the trailer. There are no cast or crew credits throughout the trailer, further distinguishing a trailer from an opening as a film opening follows a traditional credits order.
The narrative consists of enigma codes, as pieces of information are controlled, and not enough is revealed to give away the narrative storyline but enough is fed to the viewer to create curiosity. The violent events in the trailer can also be seen as action codes as they signal to the audience that a narrative action will occur in the film.
The narrative consists of enigma codes, as pieces of information are controlled, and not enough is revealed to give away the narrative storyline but enough is fed to the viewer to create curiosity. The violent events in the trailer can also be seen as action codes as they signal to the audience that a narrative action will occur in the film.
Film Opening
In the opening of Martin Campbell's Casino Royale (2006), props such as guns and playing cards are consistent throughout the opening and the card suits are associated with violence and death. This insinuates that the theme of the film is gambling and violence. The music is non-diegetic and is up tempo and medium paced. The music is used to reflect the speed of the opening and thrill the audience.
The colours black and red are commonly used throughout the opening, which have strong connotations of death and violence respectively. This tells the audience that the film genre is thriller. The use of graphics and technologies in the opening consist of royal and Victorian patterns. This shows that the film may also be focused on money and wealth. This is also evident in the theme of the film (gambling) and the falling of money at the end of the opening.
The protagonist is shown continually in the text, telling the audience that he is the main character. He is seen fighting other men and is constantly victorious, identifying him as the heroic character. He is seen wearing a black suit, which gives the audience the impression that he is secretive and mysterious. This sparks curiosity in the viewer and encourages the audience to watch the film to find out more about his character.
The editing pace is kept in relation to the music pace. This is evident in the gunshot close up near the end of the opening as the music is used to emphasise the action. The titles follow a traditional format. The order of the credits begin with the production company, followed by the main character and the film title. The producer is then introduced along with other cast and crew members and the producer is reintroduced at the very end of the opening.
This is used to acquaint the audience with the film producer and characters, and to credit important contributions to the making of the film. The narrative consists of action codes as the deaths and violence signal to the audience that a narrative action will occur in the film.
Differences Between A Film Opening and Trailer
Overall, there are several noticeable differences that distinguish a film trailer from a film opening.
Fade-to-Black/Fade-to-Image
These transitions are frequently used in film trailers to build tension for the audience and draw curiosity for the viewer. They aren't used in film openings as attracting the audience has already been accomplished.
Titles
Film openings display titles for the film title, main actors, director's name and miscellaneous cast/crew, whereas film trailers only tend to display the main actor(s) and film title. Titles are a key indication as titles are normally formatted in a particular order to either introduce the audience to the beginning of the film, or attract the viewers to the trailer.
Editing
For trailers, the editing is usually fast-paced and uses series of cuts to create an exciting and eventful clip, while film openings tend to be more relaxed. The editing in trailers also tends to be discontinuous, allowing the clip to contain as many intriguing sections of the film as possible in a short space of time. Whereas in film openings, the editing is more continuous as timing is less important.
This analysis was useful as it allows our group to ensure that our film opening does not resemble a trailer by avoiding these differences, and enabled me to see the difference in conventions used and how the audience is attracted.
Differences Between A Film Opening and Trailer
Overall, there are several noticeable differences that distinguish a film trailer from a film opening.
Fade-to-Black/Fade-to-Image
These transitions are frequently used in film trailers to build tension for the audience and draw curiosity for the viewer. They aren't used in film openings as attracting the audience has already been accomplished.
Titles
Film openings display titles for the film title, main actors, director's name and miscellaneous cast/crew, whereas film trailers only tend to display the main actor(s) and film title. Titles are a key indication as titles are normally formatted in a particular order to either introduce the audience to the beginning of the film, or attract the viewers to the trailer.
Editing
For trailers, the editing is usually fast-paced and uses series of cuts to create an exciting and eventful clip, while film openings tend to be more relaxed. The editing in trailers also tends to be discontinuous, allowing the clip to contain as many intriguing sections of the film as possible in a short space of time. Whereas in film openings, the editing is more continuous as timing is less important.
This analysis was useful as it allows our group to ensure that our film opening does not resemble a trailer by avoiding these differences, and enabled me to see the difference in conventions used and how the audience is attracted.
