The Trailer
The trailer begins with a low frequency noise to immediately set the mood for the following trailer. The first image we see is an unnatural one, of a plastic-like figure behind a glass screen, that talks in a rather typical robotic voice. The robot says "Violation today at bus stop 34-B" to the man (Matt Damon), and the scene then cuts to what the audience would assume to be this scene. A larger, transformer-esque robot moves in time to similar low frequency booms from at the beginning of the film, and when Damon's [*bald] character responds to the distorted, "what's the matter?" with "Hair products, mostly", the perhaps robotic law enforcer beats him to the ground. From these opening few seconds the audience can already tell that there are elements of science fiction in this film and that it must be set a long way in the future for this technology to have developed. However, from Damon's sarcastic tone, "No-I-Am-O-K", "Neg-a-tive" there seems to be some hostility towards these robots, that they are unwelcome in this futuristic setting, which is immediately revealed to be the year 2154. This opening clip would conform to sci-fi genre conventions quite easily.
The repetition of the loud bass on scene changes heightens the suspense built within the trailer, so the audience gets the impression that this isn't going to be a dull affair. The trailer then says, "Humanity is divided between two worlds" followed by a establishing shot of what appears to be some form of space station in orbit of Earth. A extra-terrestrial world of some sort is a common feature of science fiction films also, conforming to typical genre conventions.
However, there is many aspects of the trailer that indicate that this film is a thriller and will contain some form of action. The extreme close-up of Damon's character shows seriousness in his facial expressions, indicating that the action in the film will be very important. The trailer reveals a lot about the plot of the film, with the phrase "We live on Earth, the Privileged live on Elysium" and the distinct contrast between the images of a war-torn, half-destroyed city and some form of seemingly artificial paradise, with "No War, No Poverty, No Sickness". This could incorporate the thriller theme of isolation; humanity is separated. The theme of hostility continues, as people seem to want to get to Elysium to be cured of illness etc, yet they are shot down when nearing it. Damon is then shown to be "modified" in some way in order to be able to save the people of Earth, once again conforming to sci-fi conventions, but Max [Damon] is told he alone has the power to "override their whole system" showing he has some form of responsibility now. The action in the trailer then starts to pick up, with an increase in the pace of the music, with gunshots, explosions and a whole host of technologically advanced weaponry incorporated into the scene. This reveals that the film will be action-orientated, with elements of a thriller. Although some reviews class this film as a thriller it does not conform to some conventions, i.e. the iconography, but from the trailer we can observe that there are victims (humanity), some villains (the man who causes the vehicle to flip [2:23] the woman aboard Elysium), death and revenge. Suspense is prominent throughout the trailer, and the apparent heroes and villains in the trailer indicate that there are elements of a thriller in Elysium.
The Poster
There are several posters for Elysium but I think this one details the most about the film and can further aid establishing the genre of the film. A very large proportion of the poster is taken up by Damon's Character, showing his integral role in the film as the protagonist. From his stance and expression we can infer seriousness, determination and strength, as well as elements of concern, all of which would immerse the audience in the genre of a thriller. His robotic additions are visible on his back, and he is holding his gun- this could indicate a fight to come in the film as well as the great power he holds. Focusing on just Damon's character alone, the poster reveals that the film will have elements of a thriller and action. However, switching the focus to the background we can see some form of aircraft, that could be assumed to be futuristic as it doesn't look like modern aircraft, and this would reveal elements of science fiction. In the top left hand corner you can see Elysium, which appears to be some form of space station to the reader, also suggesting that space craft and extra-terrestrial worlds will be involved in the film, which automatically have connotations with the future, technology and science fiction.
To conclude, from the trailer and poster, "Elysium" seems to fall within the genre of a science-fiction thriller. The trailer clearly shows the difference between two worlds and the presence of the robots and futuristic weapons suggest the film is heavily orientated around sci-fi and it's conventions, but elements of a thriller and also present within the advertising campaign, more in the actual plot and characters than the mise-en-scene. The combination of the aspects of both genres builds a lot of suspense in the trailer, and both the trailer and poster suggest that "Elysium" is going to contain a lot of gripping action due to the sincerity that is present.
No comments:
Post a Comment