Cloverfield (Class Trailer 1)

Name of film: Cloverfield

Year released: 2008

Genre of trailer: Action Horror

My marking after viewing: 8/10

What happened in the trailer:
The trailer is a scene trailer. It starts with people having a fairwell party for the main character. Midway through the party, sudden shaking and noises start happening like an earthquake. The party heads out to the balcony looking worried and confused, where they are met by a louds and bright explosion in the background, and fragments start hurling towards them, so they run back inside the apartment staircase. They then venture outside to see another explosion in the distance, and end up having the statue of liberty's head hurtling towards them. There is then diegetic screaming and people in hysterics as the credits appear on-screen.

Which positive clever or interesting aspects do you think you could include in your own trailer? What generic features are fulfilled well?
The use of a scene trailer gives us an enticing view into the film, as it gives us a dramatic scene from the film, but it doesn't give too much away, tempting the audience to want to go see it. The use of a hand-held camera immediately throws the audience into the diegesis, putting us into the mindset and emotion of the characters in the film. The low-key lighting works really well, set during the night time adds an even creepier and sinister feel about the film, but also makes the audience feel more vulnerable, as the night covers a lot of the streets so you don't know what's around the corner about to attack you. Also the sounds work really well, especially the deep groans of the monster, and screams in the background. Something I particularly liked was the use of the iconic Statue of Liberty from New York. Destroying something so iconic and well-known all around the world, and throwing the head around like it's a piece of scrap paper immediately effects the audience, as it's something many look up to and admire, something we wouldn't imagine being destroyed.

Which aspects of the trailer did you think were unsuccessful and would put off its target audience? How is it disappointing?
The trailer may be limited by not being able to get across enough of the narrative, so the audience may not fully know if the film would suit them. Also the trailer starts of a bit slow, so the audience may get a bit bored to begin with.

What was the trailers average score in class? Why did it receive that mark?
The average score from the class was 8. A scene trailer can work really well if a very dramatic scene is chosen from the trailer, which offers an enticing view into the film, without giving too much away, so people want to go see it for themselves. This is why I think Cloverfield received a high score.