Introduction-The film I have chosen is ‘Spectre’ which is an
Action-adventure Thriller. It is about a secret organisation called Spectre and
Daniel Craig plays the part of James Bond who has to find the motive and links
of Spectre while Ralph Fiennes, as M, is trying to politically stabilise the
British spy organisation.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCYSun4hL4o
Institution-The film studios that created the film were MGM, Sony, B24 and
Columbia Pictures with Sony as the copyright holder for the name ‘Spectre’. The
film poster has an institutional blurb which mentions all of the Production
companies and the stars of the film, and the main star is featured in the
foreground of the film poster in a strong, confident pose. The trailer
references ‘Skyfall’ which is effective because they have an established fan
base for spy films, James Bond franchise films and can appeal to Daniel Craig
fans. The poster features a predominant 007 logo instead of the actors name
which signifies that it is a successful established brand. Similarly, the
trailer features action footage before the name checks of the institutional
information at 0.23 seconds where MGM and Columbia Pictures feature,
establishing the film as associated with successful, dominant institutions. At
the end of the trailer the 007 logo is again associated with the name of the
film.
The film poster features the main stars full names which gives
them credibility. The film poster has an intimidating picture of Daniel Craig
with a gun, this is effective because it indicates that this is an action film
and audiences will expect there to be violence. The trailer doesn’t mention the
actor’s names as the fans will be familiar with the franchise. The USP of the
film poster is that the background gives away hints about what the film could
be about as it is a man in a skeleton suit, which can also be seen in the
trailer, this creates synergy for the audience.
Narrative Theory and textual analysis-This film trailer doesn’t follow Todorov’s
Theory of Equilibrium so it is a subversive action film. It starts off with
disequilibrium: chaos and disruption in Mexico City when Bond blows up a
building. You could argue that the equilibrium is established when James comes
back to England to discuss plans for his next mission, therefore anticipating
further disequilibrium and danger. Although we do not see the equilibrium
restored (New Equilibrium) in the trailer, there are hints at moments of
triumph for the hero and an established audience would expect for the mission
to be successful according to previous narrative arcs.
Propp’s character theory argues that each character conforms to a
set role with stereotypical characteristics. The hero/protagonist is James Bond
who is a conventional hero with features such as: well built, strong, skilled,
intelligent and brave, constantly carrying out dangerous missions for the good
of his country. The Father figure is M who is a wise and experienced man who
looks much older than James and gives him guidance, he also tells off James of
for doing the wrong things. Q can be seen as a Donor as he supplies James with
equipment for him to overcome the villains, he can be seen as a ‘nerdy’ figure
as he is always inventing gadgets for the British Spies.
Barthes argued that all films have action codes and enigma codes.
This film follows these codes, some enigma codes can be carried on from
previous Bond films such as ‘SkyFall’ ; ‘What happens to M?’ or ‘Does
Moneypenny survive?’. Action codes are used in this film as the audience
expects there to be action and fighting between the antagonist and protagonist.
Some examples of action codes used in this film are; 'James Bond kills the
European' and 'James Bond and the heroine are in a relationship.’ A key scene
and/or rich moment from the trailer are at 0:18 when James Bond destroys a
building and kills an antagonist. He shoots a gun at the building leading to a
huge explosion.
Gender is represented in this film through the depiction of a strong,
well-built man who plays the part of 'James Bond'. He is represented as a brave
hero which is a typical characteristic for a protagonist, particularly this
representation is conforming to other heroes in action film as he stays alive
and defeats and overcomes evil; however you could argue that he isn’t the
typical American protagonist with huge muscles and limited intelligence as he
shows his superiority as a skilled spy.
Females are represented as attractive women (A conventional feature in
action films where females are traditionally less developed) but are also
strong and can fight, this hints to the audience that the females play a part
in defeating the villain and are therefore more subversive than archetypal
heroines who's only function is as the love interest. Moneypenny is equated to
Bond in terms of ability and bravery therefore this subverts the usual
expectation that an audience would have of female characters in this genre. London
is represented as the typical, sophisticated city with deliberate emphasis
given to its slick, elegant side because this re-enforces the
representation of the hero's personality. European people are represented as
villains in this film as the main antagonist is French. They are the
typical leaders of quite private groups who terrorise the world secretly.
The film promotion for spectre was extremely effective as it gave the
film more attention. Aston Martin really promoted then film by releasing a car
which was featured in the film. Spectre’s estimated budget was $245 000 000 and
so far it has earned $198,500,048.
