Vampire trailers

The Lost Boys (1987)

Plot summery

·          ‘The Lost Boys’ is based on two protagonists who are brothers, ‘Sam’ & ‘Michael’. The film focuses on the family moving to a fictional California town named ‘Santa Carla’. Here Sam befriends two brothers named ‘The frog brothers’ who claim to be self-appointed ‘vampire hunters’. At first Sam believes they are just delusional, but soon realises his older brother Michael is starting to show the signs of a vampire. As the film moves on we discover that the only way to save Michael (and the other characters) is to kill the head vampire, so Sam along with the frog brothers and Michael they set out to do so.   

1.     Which conventions of vampire fictions are followed in your chosen texts, and which are ignored, or adapted? (Is fear of garlic present, for example, or does the vampire look like a stereotypical vampire? Think of as many similarities and differences as you can.)

·          Stake to the heart.

·          The fear of the cross.

·          Flying.

·          Stereotypical vampire (white male, middle aged) & no women vampire.

·          The vampire saving the damsel in distress (in this case a female).

·          The animal detecting the vampire.

·          This film ignores other vampire conventions such as fear of garlic and holy water. 

2.     How would you describe the atmosphere and the tone of the texts, and how is this created? (Think about visuals effects, sound, the ways in which the characters interact, levels of violence, humour and sex/erotica.)

The films atmosphere, as seen from the trailer, seems quite clichéd as it follows the usually protagonists who are new to town and discovering a supernatural thing about their new hometown. All this along with both diegetic and non-diegetic create the usually vibe for a typical vampire film.

·          The protagonist being portrayed as a sex symbol before and after becoming a vampire.

·          The vampire/s growling.

·          Odd colored eyes

3.     How would you describe the audience for the texts, and how do the texts ensure that they appeal to these particular audiences?

·          The target audience for this film is teenagers. This is obvious because of the characters that are teens.

Interview with the Vampire (1994)

Plot summery

Born as an 18th-century lord, Louis (Brad Pitt) is now a bicentennial vampire, telling his story to an eager biographer (Christian Slater). Suicidal after the death of his family, he meets Lestat (Tom Cruise), a vampire who persuades him to choose immortality over death and become his companion. Eventually, gentle Louis resolves to leave his violent maker, but Lestat guilts him into staying by turning a young girl (Kirsten Dunst) -- whose addition to the "family" breeds even more conflict.

1.     Which conventions of vampire fictions are followed in your chosen texts, and which are ignored, or adapted? (Is fear of garlic present, for example, or does the vampire look like a stereotypical vampire? Think of as many similarities and differences as you can.)

·          Most vampires being middle aged white male.

·          The vampire living forever.

·          The vampire being a savior.

·          Vampire being portrayed as sex symbol

·          Coming out of a coffin.

·          Coffins being chained.

·          Church setting.

2.     How would you describe the atmosphere and the tone of the texts, and how is this created? (Think about visuals effects, sound, the ways in which the characters interact, levels of violence, humour and sex/erotica.)

·          Atmosphere seems very tense due to the violence shown in the trailer. 

3.     How would you describe the audience for the texts, and how do the texts ensure that they appeal to these particular audiences?

·          Target audience – older generations, both sexes.

Vampires

Plot summery:

Belgium's vampire community invites a documentary crew to film one of their families: husband, wife, and two teen children - Georges, Bertha, Sampson, and Grace. The teens have problems: Sampson wants to sleep with the community leader's wife (the only sexual taboo) and Grace wears pink and wants to be human. The family eats (they keep a young woman for snacks, and the police drop off immigrants for them), visits their community school, chats with a coffin maker, goes to parties, and looks down their nose at a childless vampire couple who live in their basement. We learn of the vampire code, forced exile in Canada, and the fate of the Sampson and Grace.

1.     Which conventions of vampire fictions are followed in your chosen texts, and which are ignored, or adapted? (Is fear of garlic present, for example, or does the vampire look like a stereotypical vampire? Think of as many similarities and differences as you can.)

·          The sleeping in the coffins

·          Vampires being sexual

·          Living forever

2      How would you describe the atmosphere and the tone of the texts, and how is this created? (Think about visuals effects, sound, the ways in which the characters interact, levels of violence, humour and sex/erotica.)

·          The trailer starts of as a typical horror atmosphere but then changes to a mockumentary as the background music changes from dramatic to almost cheerful and peaceful.

3      How would you describe the audience for the texts, and how do the texts ensure that they appeal to these particular audiences?

·          The target audience for this film would be mostly both male and female teens as the trailer has a reality TV show vibe.

Bram Stokers Dracula

Plot summery:

The vampire comes to England to seduce a visitor's fiancée and inflict havoc in the foreign land.

1.     Which conventions of vampire fictions are followed in your chosen texts, and which are ignored, or adapted? (Is fear of garlic present, for example, or does the vampire look like a stereotypical vampire? Think of as many similarities and differences as you can.)

·          Sex symbols

·          Middle aged White male

·          Super natural powers

·          sleeping in a coffin

·          living forever

2.     How would you describe the atmosphere and the tone of the texts, and how is this created? (Think about visuals effects, sound, the ways in which the characters interact, levels of violence, humour and sex/erotica.)

·          The trailer creates a very chilling vibe with different characters all being non human apart from the female lead.

3.     How would you describe the audience for the texts, and how do the texts ensure that they appeal to these particular audiences?

·          Target audience for this film is more for female than male as the vampires are portrayed as desired lover by both in real life & both in this film.

Near dark 

Plot summery:

A small-town farmer's son reluctantly joins a traveling group of vampires after he is turned by a beautiful drifter.

1.     Which conventions of vampire fictions are followed in your chosen texts, and which are ignored, or adapted? (Is fear of garlic present, for example, or does the vampire look like a stereotypical vampire? Think of as many similarities and differences as you can.)

·          Sex symbols

·          Living forever

·          Invincible being 

2.     How would you describe the atmosphere and the tone of the texts, and how is this created? (Think about visuals effects, sound, the ways in which the characters interact, levels of violence, humour and sex/erotica.)

·          The  mood of the film is portrayed as violent as it opens with one of the characters being kidnapped. The dialogue is also a major factor as many charcters repeated say ‘i wanna kill’.

Only lovers left alive

A depressed musician reunites with his lover, though their romance - which has already endured several centuries - is disrupted by the arrival of uncontrollable younger sister.

1.     Which conventions of vampire fictions are followed in your chosen texts, and which are ignored, or adapted? (Is fear of garlic present, for example, or does the vampire look like a stereotypical vampire? Think of as many similarities and differences as you can.)

·          Sleeping in coffins

·          Sex symbols

·          Living forever

2.     How would you describe the atmosphere and the tone of the texts, and how is this created? (Think about visuals effects, sound, the ways in which the characters interact, levels of violence, humour and sex/erotica.)

·          the atmosphere of the film is dark and depressing. This is shown right at the start of the trailers and also throughout with both the low key lighting and sad music.

3.     How would you describe the audience for the texts, and how do the texts ensure that they appeal to these particular audiences?

·          Target audience for this film would most likely be middle aged both male and females, because the two protagonists are that age.

Byzantium

Plot summery:

Residents of a coastal town learn, with deathly consequences, the secret shared by the two mysterious women who have sought shelter at a local resort.

1.     Which conventions of vampire fictions are followed in your chosen texts, and which are ignored, or adapted? (Is fear of garlic present, for example, or does the vampire look like a stereotypical vampire? Think of as many similarities and differences as you can.)

·          Living forever

·          Sex symbols

·          Two white female protagonists

·          How would you describe the atmosphere and the tone of the texts, and how is this created? (Think about visuals effects, sound, the ways in which the characters interact, levels of violence, humour and sex/erotica.)

·          The atmosphere of this film is quite dark and chilling. This can be seen in the trailer and also through he narration