analysis of insidious trailer

Insidious begins with a dramatic entrance of the intertitle 'Film district' presumably the production company, accompanied by the non-diegetic sound of a cymbal to enhance the importance of the text essentially drawing the readers attention from the very beginning. Automatically the genre of the film is introduced with the usage of the black block capital font interspersed against the deep red flames that seem to be blazing from it, suggesting that it is a horror. The shot used here is also intriguing as it seems to be slanted at an angle, which is quite off centre and therefore may be classed as a canted angle.This may be used to implement the sense that throughout the film something is not quite right.

Screenshot of the film district sequence

Then at 11 seconds the title of the film appears in an eerie manner, with the accompaniment of a haunting, non-diegetic soundtrack.The inverted white font appears quite sci-fi orientated which perhaps suggests that the film may actually be a hybrid genre, perhaps with elements of the supernatural.This is further evident through the flash effect sequence where the title appears again and the effect is quite jarring.The use of non diegetic music here is similar  to that of a fly zapper again giving us the impression that the movie is meant to unnerve you.

At 14 seconds the first piece of dialogue is introduced 'are you ready' 'yeah' he replies, in what can be called a breathless whisper juxtaposed against a shot at 16 seconds of  a man looking thoughtful or  perhaps perplexed as he stares into space. The centred shot establishes the setting which appears to be the unknowns living room and the lights have been dimmed to perhaps indicate a comfortable setting.However the television has been shrouded in shadow which may indicate that it may be a focal factor later on in the film- this strikes resemblance to the ring which used this technique for the antagonist character.

As the protagonist says ' yes' at 17 seconds this shot is shown of an old fashioned metronome, ticking from side to side.This  may be a form of symbolism depicting that it is counting down to an important event.Generally it gives us the impression that the occurrence will have a negative impact on the characters within the film.The metronome is continued as a sound bridge which again makes us feel uncomfortable.I really like this idea of the metronome sound bridge and we could use something similar e.g.a ticking clock which can symbolise many different things including: frustration, betrayal and  death so therefore is extremely versatile.

With the demoralising effect of the metronome, comes another intertitile which establishes what other films the production company has conceived such as Paranormal activity which was a huge box office success.This makes the audience want to watch it especially if they have watched the above film before.

At 25 seconds this establishing shot is quickly shown on screen, what appears to be a normal house but the canted angle of the trees leaning towards the house perhaps represents danger giving us an indication of the superlativeness of the situation. This is again emphasised by the almost picturesque appearance of the whole setting and the lighting is light which makes the position of the trees seem less formidable but is still quite strange.This is something we can experiment on in our own film, angling is a very intriguing process and I would love to create something that represents a hyper/warped reality.

At 26 seconds a female voice ( supposedly the female in this shot ) asks uncertainly 'Sweetie?' as if something has happened to the boy and she is trying to find out what it is. She  is hunched over the boy frowning down upon him which could be remonstrating her question.The boy seems quite young shown by the embrace that they are in and the childishness of the pyjamas.Unsurprisingly the shot is extremely dark, despite the fact we know that it is daytime as we can see through the windows.

At 27 seconds a new setting of a kitchen is shown in which the male says 'Moira' presumably the females name and the closeness of the relationship suggest that they are perhaps married. The child seems quite thoughtful perhaps an indication of his character and the parents distracted- the mother on the phone whilst tieing up the males tie.In all it seems as though it is a normal family but perhaps not all is what meets the eye.

At 28 seconds the noise of hysterical laughter comes on the screen and in this shot the couple look intimate( evident through the way they are leant towards each other), but the laughter in my personal opinion is quite eerie, seeming quite out of place.It seems as though the sound has been pre-recorded but has been synchronized to look realistic.

 In this scene at 29 seconds is another example of a happy family shot where a small baby is introduced being bounced on the fathers lap.All the family are inclined towards the baby which suggests that it is important within the film.Perhaps the baby gets hurt?

Then at 30 seconds is the boy climbing a ladder a contrast between the previous shot as this seems more mysterious and out of the blue.Perhaps he is running away from something/trying to find something out?The lighting is dark here as in many of the other shots and the fact that his face is obscured could be that he is doing something that he shouldn't be doing.

But leaving us perplexed as to what the boys fate is comes the words insidious is.
Insidious is what you ask? Like the beginning the font is the same but the meaning of insidious perhaps is interpreted a different way and is just reinforcing the encompassing feeling of unease increasing as the film progresses.

At 33 seconds it changes into is insidious.Translating the whole sentence it becomes insidious is is insidious which perplexes the audience even more as the text doesn't make sense compelling the audience to find out what it denotes.

 

Then at 34 seconds comes the dialogue ' he's not in a coma', which comes as a relief to the audience, though the setting indicates that they are in a hospital.This implies that though he is not in critical condition, the fact that he is in hospital leaves us feeling sympathetic for the protagonists.Bright white lighting has been used to implement the clinical feel of the setting, mirrored by the somber expressions on the characters faces.The fact that the female is clutching her chin makes it seem as though she is fearful and perhaps questioning as to what really happened in the accident.

At 35 seconds you see the couple in the foreground, where they have been slightly blurred to make the hospital bed with the boy on it the predominant focus. The colours that have been used is often associated with hospital environments- green, blue  and white generally very clean colours that is not associated with danger.

' I don't know what to call it' she cries, her face haggard and pale, free of make up, her hair scraped back.Looking away from the camera implements her confusion although at this stage we don't know as to what she is talking about.One of its unique selling points is the way that it is so enigmatic as one question is answered it leaves more answers in its wake.In terms of lighting it reverts back to its normal state. After this the intertitle ' insidious is' is repeated.

Juxtaposed against this shot it suggests that she is insidious , meaning that something is spreading harmfully in a subtle manner.This could show that perhaps they wont notice until its to late. Her expression is inquisitive which may perhaps be foolish , its as though she is searching for something like the boy was and she could get hurt.

She carries on walking and then at 42 seconds she peers into a door way which seems messy and cluttered.Perhaps it is the boys room as the decor is blue traditionally associated with males.Here the diegetic sound of her footsteps have been enhanced added at a later point in the film, to really stand out against the otherwise silent house.The house seems empty which makes us feel that the clock is ticking closer as we have that 6th sense which makes us thing she is in danger, though she may not know it herself.

Again another shot of her looking confused and wary, perhaps she senses something is amiss.It seems as though a green light has been used her giving it a creepy effect. At this point we as an audience are thinking that she should probably leave her house but of course she doesn't

 Here the rocking horse is rocking although there is no one on it,which gives us our first piece of real evidence that her house is haunted.The sound has been synchronised and enhanced artificially and still the sound bridge of the metronome is continuing. Both sounds together give it a negative atmosphere and suddenly the house doesn't seem so welcoming.

As you can see by this shot she reaches out a hand to stop the chair rocking.What could seem so innocent as a children's toy has become an object of horror which is quite intriguing given the context.
The intertitle 'insidious is' is repeated for the third time.

At 49 seconds it cuts to a shot of the child seemingly closing the door behind him.The attire indicates that it is nighttime and perhaps he is wondering what the disturbance or has had a bad dream.The door creaks slowly and once again is the focus of the shot drawing your attention to the child.

At 51 seconds the scene changes to a window where a person has cast a shadow over it , making us feel quite scared as we are not quite sure what is going to happen.Blue has been used to cast a harsh glow over it as well as coal black for the outline of the shadow to really highlight the importance of this occurrence.For the 4th time 'insidious is' is repeated only this time the background is not black but it is a red the colour of blood and a splotch of it is smeared from the letters.

At 53 seconds the women glances at the baby monitor and appears to be at the piano.
The high angle shot implies that something may be happening to the baby.

She looks at it again in confusion and another high angle shot has been used although the monitor has been blurred perhaps again suggesting that the baby is in mortal danger.

She then walks towards the stairs and here a low angle shot has been used as she looks up towards the stairs to where the baby is presumably sleeping and the lighting here is really key as the light glaring down from the ceiling shows.I really like this shot and I think we should definitely include more shots that are versatile this year, to present ourselves a challenge.

She then picks up the phone and ' no' is screamed by a male voice which makes her drop the phone with fright.The light glares down on her capturing her look of shock and fear.However it shrouds the rest of the setting in shadow again giving a sense of obscurity to the film. You then hear the baby crying and she goes into the room to check on him.
Insidious's inter title is repeated again .Dialogue is then shown mainly being ' there is something in there with him' which could be suggesting that he has been possessed.A new character is introduced an elderly person bed ridden which suggests that perhaps she is an expert in ghostly occurrences.

The male character tries frantically to open the door which seems as though it has been locked.Perhaps it is a poltergeist playing tricks on the family?
The family then all run out frantically as the bad draws ever nearer, it seems as though time is being sped up.

'We have someone who can help' is the words said as another female character enters the room to witness this horrific scene.The place is in havoc, a cloth with a bloody footprint in the middle- perhaps it is a symbol of what will happen?The male is clutching the child sleeping or dead and the female looks up frantic with the notion that this can be stopped.The look in her eyes is almost pleading.

This appears to be some sort of instrument that detects sounds perhaps, meaning they have resorted to desperate measures as their lives lie uncertain.' we've found some wiring lots of bugs' says the male specialist.However a middle aged female cries ' i don't think wiring is the problem' and looks up to the ceiling in a low angled mid shot.' I wanna leave' ' I wanna leave this house 'says the mother to her husband as she becomes increasingly frightened by each turn of occurrences and cant seem to be to handle it any longer.

They then discover this grotesque drawing of what appears to be a monster sketched in oil pastels and generally seems quite foreboding.Perhaps it is a premonition of what will happen whether it be soon or later.

My notion is proved as this gruesome being comes to,life behind him.The fact he is red is interesting as it often connotes danger and evil. His eye is perhaps the main eye grabber as it is inhuman and seems to watch you even though your only an audience member.A lot of flash editing has been used here and in previous shots especially when it is important scenes, allowing us a glimpse into the films world but never seeing enough to satisfy our appetite.A tracking shot is then used as someone walks down the door accompanied by a shot of the middle aged female saying ' its not your house that is haunted it's your son' which although does not shock the audience it does shock the characters.

In response to this fast paced editing is used displaying a wide variety of disturbing images such as the one which i have shown here.The contrast of the shot has been darkened but yet really highlights the red of the hand print against the child's foot against it.

This is my favourite shot as the black and white format really accentuates traditional movie conventions, giving it a stylistic feel of old movies.The people standing there in this off centred shot seem like a mixture of china dolls and ghosts- generally quite monochrome.The monochrome stylism is something that I would love to replicate but I feel that it is quite niche and thus could only be used in the fantasy/horror genre.
The film then ends with the name of the film.