War Horse Analysis

This trailer is an emotionally stimulating dramatic piece relating it to the drama genre. It is a piece which, I think, has no gender preference for its target audience for I think it will draw in an equal amount of females as well as males. I think this because of the contents of the trailer, for it includes the thrill, excitement and violence of the war throughout most of the trailer attracting its male audience, yet brings in the emotional attachment towards the horse and its owner bringing in a female audience. I also think that the age rage would be roughly from 17+ probably mainly aimed towards an older generation so that they are able to relate to the war and the emotional connection they experienced.

The historical context of the war helps draw in its audience because it is something we all feel we can relate to because us as a country were involved in it and throughout education everyone learns about it but, no one is truly able to grasp the experience of war unless they have essentially experienced war themselves. Also the fact that the film is different from others because from the trailer you know the main character isn’t just the boy but the horse and you realise that the film is about their relationship. This is a contrast to a lot of other films for they don’t normally associate the emotions between the boy and an animal, and in this case it is a horse.

The non-diegetic music doesn’t start at the beginning of the trailer instead it starts with the diegetic sound of the war around where the horse is galloping through as though it can’t be affected by the flying bullets and the mines and bombs going off. It’s as though it knows where it wants to in that moment, and is heading there. The music then fades in quietly and calmly and quite simplistic it then goes into a more complicated orchestra piece giving it more depth and emotion to the action and the piece keeps building making it more of dramatic and emotional piece showing the challenges the horse faces during the war and the way that it fights through as though it has a purpose. This music is continuous throughout the trailer giving it consistency; it also expresses the emotion through the use of the orchestral instruments as well as the build up until the end where it declines with a fade, giving a more emotional conclusion to the trailer.

Unique selling points include things such as: it being directed by Steven Spielberg, and the war. The war is a unique selling point because the majority of people feel as if they are able to relate to it. And the reason why Steven Spielberg is a unique selling point is because he is world famous for his films such as: E.T, Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park, Catch Me If You Can, and more recently The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn and many more. He is so well know for a wide range of successful films that it draws you in for you know that if he has been involved in creating the film you know it will be quite good and interesting to watch.