Trailer Analysis: Transformers

The film Transformers belongs to the Action genre which immediately skews the target audience, towards males. There are many other aspects included throughout the trailer which prompt us that this film’s audience is male dominated, this includes: the mystery and interest in alien life, robots, sci-fi, old kids programme, space, astronauts. There are some scripted lines involved such as “mission is a goer” which can relate to the mission 16-25 year olds might experience on a computer games. Seeing as the majority of men play some sort of violent computer game, most films which want to attract a male dominated audience have to include violence, guns, explosions and other senseless beatings to make them engrossed with what there watching.

The way this teaser trailer is able to grip us from the beginning is the historical reference to the moon landing in 1969 which everyone can relate to and have interest in, for many people wish to know what it’s like up in space and to know what actually happened when Neil Armstrong and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin Jr. landed on the moon. By playing with past facts, it plays on the expectations of the audience; making them intrigued and filling in a blank, for they don’t really know what happened on the 20^th of July 1969. By using old footage from the original moon landing it attracts more of an older audience, because it was what they would have watched on their TV’s when they were younger; undergoing a once in a lifetime experience of the first moon landing and the mystery behind it being revealed drawing in the audience.

The non-diegetic music used for the teaser trailer varies from peaceful and intuitive to tense and breathe stopping. Once the government interfere with the live Apollo 11 feed the music starts to fade and brings suspense to it. Once the astronauts have permission to do what they were sent to do the music becomes alien to us using warping sounds and base mixed with high pitched screeches. This music builds the audience’s suspension and makes them gripped to the film, making them want to go and see the movie.

They also include non-diegetic narration used from the original moon landing playing over shots of space and old footage. It is used as a voiceover to give more of an impact on the audience and making them reminisce over that significant period in time. They also include the renowned phrase that Neil Armstrong said as he took his first steps onto the moon, “One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind”.

This teaser trailer contains unique selling points to grab a wider audience, such as the moon landing on the 20^th of July 1969. It is also a Steven Spielberg film and Michael Bay directed it and from knowing their past films and success, with Spielberg involved with films such as ‘Jurassic Park’, ‘Indiana Jones’, and catch me if you can’ and Michael Bay with ‘Armageddon’, ‘’A nightmare on Elm Street’, and ‘Bad Boys’, people would want to go and see one which they have worked on together.