Poster Deconstruction

In order to gain some ideas for how our poster should look. I decided to deconstruct movie posters within the horror genre. The purpose of a poster is to increase awareness and build hype for the target audience. The poster allows for details of the film to be slowly revealed which makes the audience want more and encourages people to tell others about a new film being released.

The Purge (2013)

- At the top of the poster it reads ‘from the producers of paranormal activity and sinister’ these are two other well-known films and people who have seen these are likely to enjoy this movie as well. Therefore, promoting the film well and enticing more viewers. Being placed in the top left hand corner is a good technique as this is where people naturally read first.
- The simple tagline above the title of the film reads ‘one night a year all crime is legal’ connoting that this is a special occasion similar to Christmas or Easter which happen once a year. This tagline shows that the film challenges the horror genre’s conventions as people are warned about the destruction that is going to be caused on this one night. Therefore, subverting the common convention that the events in horror films are often unpredictable. As the movie subverts common representations it attracts a larger audience as this is unusual and more people will be intrigued to know what the film is about.
- The title, ‘THE PURGE’, connotes danger and killing. It is in san serif and is white to show contrast to the dark background making it clear to see.

• The main image is presumably the main antagonist in the film. He is wearing a mask over his face suggesting that this is within the slasher horror genre. It conforms to the slasher genre having a male as the main antagonist and the use of a mask. The mask creates a sense of mystery and secrecy.
• The mask on the antagonist looks very creepy and the smile makes it seem as though the character is psychotic which links in with the slasher horror genre.  His eyes are not in-line with the man’s eyes making them look smaller. His eyes are also looking directly towards the camera which add to the sinister look and make him seem as though his eyes are narrow with some sort of twisted glee.
• At the bottom of the poster there is a hashtag which is a good way to advertise the film and increase the awareness because it will be trending on social media such as twitter.
• The hashtag says ‘survive the night’ also telling us that there will be lots of death. Providing a hashtag also makes the audience feel involved and people can talk to each other about the f