TAKEN: TRAILER ANALYSISBy Giordano Boscarelli

10 seconds into the trailer the viewers are shown an establishing long shot of the protagonist in the film. In this shot Liam Neeson is seen to be a normal person delivering his daughter a present. He is also dressed in a suit which tells us that he is an important figure. The shot is also well lit, informing us that he is currently in a safe environment. You are also able to hear non diegetic sound, it is a slow pace and quiet soundtrack, reflecting his peacefulness.

20 seconds into the trailer, we see a high angle/ crane shot of the city of Paris. This is an informative shot, as it informs the viewers as to where a majority of the film is going to take place. It also shows the size of the city, which is ironic as the size of the city plays a key part in the film.

26 seconds into the trailer, the viewers see the protagonist and his daughter having a phone call, and all seems to b well at this moment in time. However, the shots contrast sharply. The image on the right of the daughter, it well lit and bright, mainly consisting of white portraying her innocence and peaceful environment. While the protagonist on the left is seen in a low key lighting shot, suggesting that not all is what it seems, and something bad could potentially happen.

30 seconds into the trailer, we see another two shot. The one on the left shows the feet of two men walking through a door. The men's clothing is black in colour, black has negative connotations with death and pain. This tell the viewers that these men could be antagonists in the film. The fact that the men dressed in black are walking through a white door shows contrasting opposites. White has positive connotations with joy and happiness, which is the opposite to black. The shot on the right of the girl dancing, portrays her feeling of happiness and informs us tat she appears to be unaware of the two men in her apartment. The shot has been taken from the outside of a window, which has noticeable bars going across them. Suggesting that she is soon to be a prisoner in her own home, the fact it is a long shot almost gives the feel as though she is being watched , adding tension.

31 seconds into the trailer, we again see two different shots appear on screen. One shows a close up shot of the protagonists daughter clutching her phone whilst speaking to her father. Her facial expressions show us that she is scared as to what she can see, she also says “there's someone here”. The other shot is along shot of one of the two men entering the room where she was previously seen dancing, again the shot is through the outside of the window , showing us that the protagonists daughter is watching the events take place.

45 second in, we are shown the screen has been split into three parts, showing the different characters we have been introduced to so far in the trailer. We hear the protagonist say “there going to take you” , from this the viewers begin to see what the focus of the film will be. Via the use of the three shots we see the emotions of the protagonist along with his daughter. We see the protagonist remaining calm, however is shutting his eyes as he does not like what he is hearing, as he knows his daughter is soon to be kidnapped. The viewers also see the emotions of the daughter, as she is showing fear whilst hiding under the bed. The third and final shot shows the feet of the kidnapper which has been shown previously.

In the first two shots we see some low key lighting this adds to the tension and the fact that the girl is going to be taken. However the third shot seems to have good lighting from the white of the walls and floors, the contrast that we see from the white of the walls up against the black feet gives the representation of good meeting bad.

51 seconds in, we see a mid shot of the protagonist, after the taking of his daughter. He is in a dull lit room portraying his sadness and anger following the kidnapping. He then says “I don’t know who you are and I don’t know what you want” he says this phrase very calmly, however a sense of anger is present in his tone. This shows the viewers that he is a serious man and is preparing to take action.

53 seconds into the trailer, the viewers are presented with a low angle shot looking up at the protagonist, portraying him as a dominant character. As the conversation unfolds the lighting in the shot begins to get darker. He also says “if your looking for a ransom I can tell you that I have no money”, the fact that’s he says this calm and collectively connotes to the viewers that he may be a detective or agent, as he is trying to negotiate with the kidnappers in order to save his daughter. He does this in a calm manor.

1 min 14 seconds into the trailer, we see a low angle shot of the protagonist kicking a villain in the face. Both men are dressed similarly, in black, leading to negative connotations of death and violence. This informs the audience that the main protagonist is extremely violent and has qualities mainly associated with other protagonists in this genre would expect to have. For example the way in which he dresses and acts.

1 min 7 seconds in, we see a close up shot if a man creaming in pain as the protagonist tries to gather information of his daughter whereabouts. He is then heard saying “I have a particular set of skills which I have acquired over a long career which makes me a nightmare for people like you”. This creates tension and shows the audience this film will revolve around revenge and vengeance.

1 min 17 seconds in, we see along shot of the protagonist reading a newspaper sitting outside a café. I believe he is doing this in order to spy on people whilst attempting to blend in with the crowd . From this it again suggests he is some sort of secret/special agent. This is backed up from him saying earlier that he has a particular set of skills. We see similar scene like this in other movies in the thriller genre. This fits in with the stereotype of thriller films and so is used to attract people to watch the film who like similar films as well as thriller films.

1 min 51 seconds into the trailer, we see a long shot of Liam Neeson running. This this shows that the action is starting to increase within the trailer, as it is starting to become more fats pace and tense. As the editing is beginning to increase, we also hear fast pace diegetic music, the fast pace of the soundtrack increases tension and emphasises on the action more, making viewers more engaged.

1 min 24 seconds into the trailer, we see a low angle shot of the protagonist shouting and aiming a gun. This particular shot portrays him as being a dominant figure and being in control, the fact he is holding a gun supports this. He is then hard the diegetic dialogue of “where is she?” again this shows his dominance in this shot, it also portrays his anger. Guns have negative connotations with death and pain, which again represent his anger and dominance. The guns is also a common prop and stereotype of the thriller genre.

1 min 30 seconds in, we see a high angle shot looking down upon an explosion. This shot informs us that the protagonist is extremely powerful and will not stop until he retrieves his daughter. The non diegetic score is also increasing in volume and pace, it intensifies the explosion in the trailer.

The final scene of the trailer shows the viewers a close up shot of the protagonist on the phone, he seems to be finishing the conversation he has had on the phone during the entirety of the trailer. The non diegetic score comes to a close, intensifying and building up what is about to come. We then hear the man on the other end of the phone speak for the first time in the entire trailer by saying “good luck”. His two words chosen and tension to the scene, and we know it is going to be a movie of cat and mouse.

This final shot of the trailer then fades into the tile of the movie along with the director and main cast names.

TAKEN: TRAILER

Watch trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPJVJBm9TPA