Fear and Loathing research - poster

This is the poster for Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. The image has been heavily altered to fit the meaning and purpose of the film. Johnny Depp's body has been distorted to show the drug addictions tackled within the film, giving the impression of how he as a drug addict sees things. He is smoking a cigarrette to show his addiction, with the smoke also being distorted.

The reflection in his glasses shows a busy night-time Las Vegas, a contrast to the other side of Las Vegas, the Nevada desert, which is the background of the poster. This contrast is a metaphor for the two characters in the story, and their conflict in ideas. The busy scene shows the life with drugs, the fast paced and blurry ideas that surround it. The vast, empty space represent the life without drugs, without dependancy and greed.

Several bats have been placed on the poster to show hallucinations that occur within the film, brought on by the addictions. They appear to be emerging from a black spill on the top of the page, suggesting that everything, as viewed by addicts, is not real and is merely their imagination running wild, fueled by the drugs.

The words 'Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas' is written in red letters, making it bold and therefore stands out against the background image of the desert. The font is scrawled and looks handwritten, maybe showing how untidy the life of drugs can most certainly be.

Shutter Island research - trailer

This is the trailer for Shutter Island. It is 2 minutes 30 seconds long, and manages to keep the audience interested and entertained for the duration. This is due to a series of fast cuts and tense music. We do not see any spoilers to the end of the film, and the ending is not predictable based on what we find out. We can tell it is a Horror because of the use of tense music which builds up throughout the trailer, as well as the dark, gritty locations. The first shot of a boat in the fog also suggests Horror, as fog is associated with 'the unknown' amd fear.

This trailer focuses a lot on Leonardo Di Caprio, using Star Theory to promote the film. People will be drawn to the film because of Di Caprio's reputation as an actor, as well as his female (and male) fanbase. Di Caprio is also the only actor mentioned on their own titles page, making him out to be the lead role and the sole importance of the film.

The production company: 'Paramount' is shown at the start of the film, however their ident has been changed to suit this film, by using the same effect that has been used on the title sequence. This makes Paramount seem different and fresh to the audience, by suggesting that they can keep changing and getting better rather than stick with the old logo they once had.

Shutter Island research - poster

This poster for Shutter Island is a good way of showing the genre as a horror. It uses dark colours to show the mystery, and a contrasting area of light to highlight Leonardo Di Caprio's face. The lit match is potitioned above the watchtower of the island to symbolise that there is a 'beacon of hope' within the film.

The text is small and therefore not overbearing. The words 'Someone is missing.' are very simple and do not take attantion away from anything else.

This poster uses star theory and relies a lot on Leonardo Di Caprio, as his name is the second largest piece of text on the page, as well as half the page being devoted to his face.