Film trailer analysis - Jaws

Jaws
Box office: $470,653,000
Budget: $9 million
Distributed by: Universal pictures
Genre: Horror
Certificate: 18
Release year: 1975



This Jaws film trailer is used to sell the film towards the audience. At the start of this horror film teaser trailer "Jaws" we just see a black screen which connotes the genre of horror towards the audience. This then fades into an image of a person swimming in the sea. We are looking up towards the person so we are in the perspective of the shark. As this is happening we hear the conventional non-diegetic sound of a shark coming. This then again fades to black when this happens the sound stops/takes a breather inbetween scenes.

The next scene is of the person in the sea from above the water. The scene fades from black into this establishing shot. The sun is setting in the background thus telling us that it is getting close to night time. We can't tell what gender the person is as the light on their face is hiding their identity. We then hear the diegetic sound of the waves moving as she comes up from underneath the water. We then realise it is a women as we hear her breathing as if she as been holding her breath for a long time under water. This could also connote that she has seen something under the water and that she is scared. The scene then fades to black and the diegetic sound stops again.

The camera view changes yet again back to the perspective of the shark from underneath the water. We see the female trying to keep afloat by moving her arms and legs. Again we can't tell what she looks like as the camera is still trying ti hide her identity. Whilst this is happening we can hear the dramatic sound of which you would connote to a shark attack. It seems much louder than it did before thus connoting to the audience that the film trailer is about to climax. The scene then fades to black again.

The film trailer than flashes the women being dragged under the water, we can't tell if its a shark but it definatly drags her down with some force. When this happens the camera is from above the surface of the water and we briefly get to see the females facial features. When this occurs we hear the diegetic sounds of the waves hitting her body still, however after the brief second when she gets pulled under the orchestral non diegetic sound occurs again. The sound is much louder before as it is at its climax. After the flash of her being dragged under bold red text appears on the screen. It reads 'Jaws' this tells the audience for the first time what the film is actual called. The text appears from out of darkness and comes towards the audience, the orchestral sound is still playing. This makes the text seem as if it is the shark. However throughout the whole of the film trailer we can't actually know it is a shark as we don't see it. This could be down to the fact that it was created in 1975 and the right technology wasn't as big for example CGI.