Horror Trailer Analysis: Insidious Chapter 3

Horror Trailer Analysis

 Insidious Chapter 3

The opening of the trailer begins with the distribution company “Focus Features”, they’re one of the well-known distribution companies and have had success with horror films e.g. Sinister 1&2. Insidious Chapter 3 was directed by Leigh Whannell who is well known for writing films, this includes Saw, Dead Silence and Insidious 1, 2&3. The film was predicted to make $13 million however it grossed $54 million which suggest that the franchise was successful.

A quick low angle establishing shot of a building is shown which suggests that the paranormal activities are going to occur in this location. In contrast to this there is natural lighting of the sun shining which could mean that something must have happened to trigger the haunting. The shot then fades in which reveals a long shot of a corridor inside the flat with dimmed lightning. The camera shot changes into a close up of the items in the room such as the paper birds decorations inferring that the room belongs a female, then it quickly fades to a close up of the record player with a picture on it suggesting that the item is significant.

The camera zooms out into a long shot introducing the main protagonist at 13 seconds into the trailer to make their audience anticipate however they may not be surprised as she’s seen in the film poster. There is a quick panning horizontally that assures their audience that there isn’t going to be a jump scare as the antagonist is nowhere to be seen. The dimmed lighting gives off a relaxing atmosphere as she’s lying down on her bed and we’re able to see her smile. In this scene camera composition used is the rule of third particularly as the main character is centred in the middle.

There is an over the shoulder shot used showing the main character having a conversation with someone however shot reverse shot isn’t used to reveal her face, this scene is shown briefly before it fades which may suggest that this could be important to the plot. The next scene is a medium two shot which shows an older man character suggesting that it’s her father as the protagonist hugs him, which implies that his character isn’t the protagonist. The shot zooms in that shows a picture framed beside the protagonists bed signifying that it’s her late mother as in the next scene the protagonist might have woken up due to a nightmare or a dream because she looks tense and surprised however in the next scene it shows her mother standing near the door smiling and staring at her before disappearing. A low angle of the protagonist is shown to imply that she’s powerful in contrast to the low key lighting in the room. The disruption is likely to occur soon as the scenes at cut quickly, she calls out for her mum as she senses her however there is low key lighting giving off a sinister feel. There is a voice over telling her that “be careful, if you call out one of the dead all of them can hear you” implying that she’s the target since she called out for her dead mother, this scene was accompanied by a long shot of her room as something appears through the window. In the next scene there is the old women of the voice over, this suggesting that she’s knowledgeable then there is a close up of the protagonists worried face as she realises she’s made the mistake already. There is non-diegetic music, creating suspense as the protagonist slowly turning her head towards the window suggesting that she’s nervous. There is a medium two shot as the antagonist is appearing, the non-diegetic music builds as the antagonist appears at window, suddenly it drops which makes their audience jump.  

It fades into the titles, showing that this film was created by the producers of The Purge and Sinister which were very popular horror film, Blum house production is well known for making popular horror films so it may encourage audience to watch as it’s a unique selling point. The camera return back to a medium shot of the protagonist still on the bed as she reaching over the bed to look under, this creates suspense as the antagonist may appear anytime soon. A high angle shot shows her looking under however the audience may know that it’s not that obvious furthering their suspense. We are able to see that the hands of the antagonist appears however its appearance is still unknown as she’s dropped on the floor then the camera shows the protagonists point of view as feet of the antagonist’s appear then it fades this allows the audience to engage especially as it’s the first hint that is given to the viewers appearance wise. There is non diegetic music which sounds like a nursery rhyme. The protagonists still lays on the floor, she begins to cry which implies that she’s scared then the light fades because someone close the door, the audience will be curious on whether she’s injured as there was no one to help. There is a non-diegetic music which is distorted and the pace is slower to make it creepy. Suddenly the antagonist appears on top of her as it screams which the surprises the audience making them feel uneasy. 

In the next scene we see that the protagonist is in the hospital as she lays on the stretcher, there is a close up of her face showing the audience that she has some cuts and bruises, making her look weak and vulnerable. This is a convention of a horror film because the antagonist always harms them, there is low key lighting to reflect the sadness of the father as he stares at her, feeling bad that he couldn’t protect her. The camera zooms to a close up of the main protagonist as she gasps for air; this is a convention because it takes the antagonist several tries to hurt or killed the protagonist. There is a long shot that introduces new characters as they enter the protagonists room, she seems like she has more knowledge of what occurring in this particular apartment. Then is move to a medium shot of the protagonist lying in bed with a neck braces on, she then says “what’s happening to me” which makes her character look innocent, making the audience sympathise her. The old lady is able to sense that the protagonist is in trouble because she had a vision, this character is significant as it could be her that is able to save the protagonist. In the next few moments shows the vision the lady had, her voice over warns that the entity is very dangerous. This is shown when the lights turn off in the living room and the camera is placed in a low angle to show that they’re powerless compared to this entity. 

It cuts to the camera which is pointing at the torch lying on the floor then the protagonist’s father discovers footprints on the corridor indicating that the antagonist has made visits to the apartment; the footprint leads to the window, there is an eerie music that accompanies this. There is a dialogue from the father “oh Jesus he jumped” to indicate that he’s surprises: he sees the identity of the footprints. The protagonist also wants to see, this may make the audience anticipate for the villain which appears grabbing her. The title cuts in, informing the audience when the film is likely to be released. In the next few scenes the father realises that someone is trying to kill her, the character gather as they perform a ritual to stop the antagonists from affecting their life. The old lady has entered in the same location as she tries to stop the antagonist; we see the protagonist in the hands of the antagonist as she’s possessed, there is low key lighting that connotes the mystery and death. We can see that all the characters are trying to save the protagonist from being attached to the antagonist, the protagonist destroys the cast on her legs so shows that she has lost control of herself because there is no facial expression. The ending scenes are fast faced to make it more dramatic as the highlights of the film is shown. The title and the date appears to inform the audience on when it’s released the colour of the title is red connoting danger and death which is going to occur in the film.