Textual analysis A2 blogs/Thriller Trailer

The girl on the train

Introduction- The first trailer I will be introducing is called The girl on the
train which was released in theatres October 7th 2016. The reason for my
choice with
in choosing this trailer is because I have seen the film myself in theatres
and I really found it intriguing to watch. The film in my opinion has a lot
key thriller conventions that I will enjoy being able to write about. The
director of this film is Tate Taylor who also acclaimed worldwide success
for other films he has directed such as The help. The girl on the train is
based on the best selling novel titled the girl on the train originally
released in 2015 by the author/writer Paula Hawkins.
Enigma codes- When I first watched the trailer I had a lot of queries
regarding the movie and also the character such as
why is the girl always on the train
what does Rachel work as
Where does Rachel live
why does she look so emotionally drained
Will she be a murderer in the film
Who is the blonde character in the trailer?
Is the blonde character promiscuous?
Will there be any heartbreak in the film
why is the setting so cold and isolated
Narrative- The girl on the train is based on the story of a character
named Rachel Watson who went through a very tough and heart breaking
divorce. Every single day Rachel she takes the train that goes to new York
due to her working in that city. Each and every day Rachel passes her
previous home while on the train which leads her to see her ex-husband,
wife and their new daughter through the window. As Rachel goes through
her regular routine of taking the train to new York every single day she
discovers a couple who used to live next to Rachel and her ex-husband
before she moved out of her ex-husbands home. Rachel begins to
fantasize and creates an image of them being a power couple
something her and her ex-husband tom never had when they were

married. Rachel one day spots the female who is apart of Rachels fantasy
cheating with another man while on the train as she watches them on
their porch. Rachel begins to feel hurt and angered by her affair which
leads to trouble arising in her life and the cheater

How are the characters established and represented

All of the characters within the trailer have a past which creates dramatic
and moving suspense due to the trailer not showing us every past of the
characters in detail.
Megan Hipwell-The first character that is introduced in the trailer is the
character Megan Hipwell played by actress Hayley Benette. Megan
Hipwell is introduced in a close up shot of her leaning forward and
confiding in a conversation with someone. Megan is represented as being
flirtatious and promiscuous from the way she leans forward in a very
demanding way. Megan comes across as being the stereotypical damsel
in distress due to her being blonde and attractive. The audience may
instantly assume that she uses her sexuality to get her way with men and
other people in society. Megan also portrays herself as not being afraid of
anything due to her subtle voice which represents in my opinion
cheekiness however power. Megan creates an enigma code and makes
the audience question who is she will she be the heartbreaker and
etc. in some ways Megan breaks the thriller stereotype because for
example a blonde person is stereotypically known in Hollywood and the
thriller genre as being uneducated however Megan comes across as
being smart, outgoing and most importantly fierce.

As you can see the pictures above of Megan are all flirtatious or sexy.
Megan wears a lot of white and neutral colours in the trailer which makes
us as audience be aware that she may be characterised as being
promiscuous however she may be a very sensitive and innocent person
within. This brings in the enigma codes such as why does she behave this
way did someone hurt her does she use her body and sexuality to
escape from the past. We instantly know as the audience that she may
be the damsel in distress or the character who is always caught up in
affairs due to her body language within the pictures. it is evident that
Megan enjoys sex because the majority of the trailer lets us see her in the
most intimate moments or her being flirtatious. Another valid point is the
fact that Megan Hipwell is blonde. This within thriller films brings the
stereotype because stereotypically you associate blondes for being
sexual,promiscuous and slutty however you also associate them as
being stupid but Megan breaks the sterortype of blondes being stupid
because she clearly is not. It is clear that Megan uses her sexuality to get
what she wants which is a smart thing to acquire. We know within the
trailer that megan becomes a victom of a muder which gets us to use the
enigma codes such as why was she murdered did someone envy her
and etc.

Rachel Watson- The next character we are introduced to is Rachel

Watson who from the image you can tell is very isolated. In this one image
Rachels facial expression says it all. Rachel is dressed in a business type
simple and plain uniform. She is wearing a white shirt which indicates
class and also loneliness as she is sitting alone on the train with no one
beside her. Rachel is wearing a formal suit which indicates that she may
play an important role in their film. Although we dont know exactly what
her career field is she comes across as being a smart and courageous
character who has a well paying job. Rachels facial expression in the
picture indicates to us that she may be confused all the time and also not
happy with her own life. Rachels body language tells the audience that
she is up to something and something may be bothering her which is
causing her to look out the window some way. This brings in the enigma
codes such as who is she looking at has she seen a familiar face and

etc.

Through out the whole trailer Rachels attire is mainly dark colours
compared to Megan the women she admires. This instantly tells us an
audience that she may be depressed or not an open person because we
usually associate a person who wears black or dark colours missing some
sort of light or happiness in their life and it is evident that Rachel is this
way. Rachels facial expressions in the two pictures have not been happy
ones instead they have been troubled looks as if she is looking for the
answers to a problem and she is desperate to get to the bottom of it.
Rachel is brunette which is stereotypical within thriller films because if we
want to compare Megan and her together it is evident that Megan
portrays her self as being much more happier because in the trailer she is
seen being intimate with someone who she cares however Rachel seems
nothing but the opposite and alone due the colours she wears. Rachel
wears no makeup which breaks the thriller stereotypical views on women.
This indicates to the audience that she is a women who isnt really looking
for attentions she has something else on her mind which is clearly more
important than her looks.

In this close up image of Rachel it is evident that she is upset

and lonely due her crying and her deep and saddened facial expression.
The director may have used a close up of her face in this scene to let the
audience emphasise and understand how she is feeling in more
understandable way. It is almost as if Rachel is crying to us and letting us
know that her sadness or pain is extremely serious due to us really being
able to see her emotions in a stronger way. This makes the audience feel
sorry for her even though we dont know her story behind all the sadness
we see in the trailer. Within this scene she is asked by a character why is
she here? Rachel then replys because im afraid of my self this lets as
an audience know that Rachel may be a threat to others and she may be
feeling a horribly guilt for something she may have done. This makes us
instantly make assumptions as an audience of her being Megan hipwells
murderer. This makes it more obvious for the audience to justify if she is
lonely or depressed for committing a crime due to her not looking uplifted
in any scenes of her within the trailer. This also brings the enigma codes
to question is she guilty of something why is she so depressed and
sad? and did someone hurt her?.
Scott-

The next character we are introduced to is Scott who is Megan Hipwells

boyfriend within the film. Our first impression of Scott is a very
stereotypical one for a male because he shows no emotion in his face
even though his girlfriend has been brutally murdered. This is
stereotypical for a male figure in a thriller film because men are usually
known for having no emotion . This brings the enigma codes in again
such as why does he have no emotion it also makes us question if he
was the cause for his girlfriends death because he is clearly watching
over something. Also his attire says a lot about him too as he is wearing
black which as associated with being strong and powerful, it is almost as if

he blocks out light because his facial expression is so blunt which makes it
hard for the audience to emphasise what his feeling within. Stereotypical
men usually keep their feelings towards themselves due to them having to
carry around a reputation which is strong.
Tom Watson-

The next character we meet is Rachel Watsons ex-husband who she still is
in love with and dwells upon every single day. From this midshot image of
him we can obviously see that he has been out shopping which breaks the
conventions of a thriller film when it comes to a male figure as we
associate women with the shopping not men. From this image tom comes
across as being a good husband as he picks up the shopping his wife
could have done if we wanted to play stereotypical roles. Tom also wears
black which represents him to may have dark side towards him. Tom also
wears a similar style coat just like Scott does which may indicate that they
may work together or both have connected problems or storys. The
colour black is colour you usually associate males with and when we do
we know instantly that they carry authority because black is a
powerful colour within films as it always leads to a mysterious past. The
car is also a dark blue colour and has multiple seats which indicates that
he has a new family without Rachel being included.
Within this shot it looks as if Tom is steering at something in shock as he is
about to pick up his shopping bags. This also brings the enigma codes in
such as what is he looking at why does he look so suspicious and etc.

Anna-

Anna is Tom Watsons wife and they have a daughter together. In

this shot Anna looks obviously scared as she cradles her baby away from
danger however as an audience we have no idea who she is making her
look so uncomfortable and afraid. Anna is wearing very light coloured
clothing just like Megan hipwell wears. This makes us as audience know
that Megan and her may have a connection such as being friends or
knowing one another. Anna is also blonde which represents innocence
and also a women who stereotypically relies on a man for situations she
does not want to be in such as the one she is in within the image. Anna
looks extremely frightened and it is evident that she needs tom her
husband to the shield her as a damsel in distress would. There are not
many shots of her within the trailer which indicates to us that she may
also be a mystery and the reason towards tom and Rachels divorce as
she keeps herself private and also she may be a character that is not
extremely vital.
Detective Sgt Riley-

Detective sgt riley is the detective within the film who is works on
Megan hip wells murder case. Within this scene you can see detective Sgt
riley engaging in what seems like a deep conversation with Rachel as
Rachel is a suspect for Miss hip wells murder within the case. Detective
Riley comes across as being women who does not joke about and also

takes her job extremely seriously as she shows no emotion in her face due
to her not having time for emotion or a sob story that Rachel may give.
Detective Riley is brunette and is wearing a dark colour which indicates to
us that she has power and control which is not stereotypical for a female
such as herself. Within films in general the detectives are mainly men
however to take on a role like this tells us as an audience that she holds
an extremely powerful hierarchy and the opposite sex does not intimidate
her which breaks the thriller conventions as women are usually control by
mean and intimated by them as they are so powerful in society.
Camera and editing techniques.

In my opinion I believe the director chose this point of view shot Megan
because it shows the full reality of her innocence and also her body. .
Megan is wearing all white the location she is standing in is mainly white.
The point of view shot of Megan is quite powerful because it indicates to
the audience that she may be a victim which eventually she does become
one. Also the image lets us see a good shot of her body which illustrates
to the audience that sex sells as she is wearing lingerie that is
considered sexy in a stereotypical males mind. As Rachel is the one
watching Megan on the train it illustrates to the audience that she might
have something to do with her death. its almost as if this is the scene
were Megans life comes to an end because the train moves she fades
away due to her moving with the train.

The next editing technique is a dissolve. The dissolve was used within dc
riley talking to Rachel and dissolving away into another scene was Rachel

is running away from someone. The fade in editing illustrates to the

audience that dc riley and Rachel may have a strong connection within
the film whether a good or bad one. The editing represents that Rachel
may be a victim of some sort because as the scene of dc riley talking to
Rachel fades into Rachel running away It makes us feel as an audience
that she may be victimised. Before the shot even dissolves onto Rachel
running you see an over the shoulder shot of Rachel talking to dc riley
with another detective by her side so it makes us as an audience feel as if
it is 2 against 1 and Rachel is helpless. It also makes us question who is
Rachel running from? Who is that person behind her? This brings the use
of enigma codes and makes us question as an audience is it a detective
thats after her? Is she guilty of something? And etc. its almost if shes
running away from dc riley because from just watching the trailer we know
that dc riley is not a women to be messed with and will go to extreme
limits to find the answer to what she Is looking for.
https://makeagif.com/hiAuwg
Towards the end of the trailer the editing and movement begins to
become very fast. Throughout the whole of the gif all we see is violence
and in one scene Megan is being pulled across the floor by her hair it
makes us question ideas such as why is she being attacked who is
pulling her by her hair across the floor. Within the ending of the trailer we
see a quick preview of the shots and they all seem to be conflict and
violent which make us as an audience feel ecstatic and intrigued to watch
because the beginning of the trailer did not include all of that drama. The
director may have chosen to use the fast pace editing at the end to create
more suspense and anticipation for the audience. The fast pace editing
illustrates to us as audience that a lot of drama is about to erupt as the
ending of the thriller looks very violent. This is because within the
beginning of the trailer it has quite a slow however interesting vibe
towards it so we are already intrigued and our enigma codes are erupting.
However the director may have decided to use the fast past editing
towards the end to in captivate us as audience more.
Use of sound
Music/soundtrack
Within the beginning of the trailer the use of the non diegetic sound is
very alerting and captivating due to the first non-diegetic noise you hear
is a piano key. This builds tension and keeps the audience alerted that a
mysterious event may occur due to the piano key sounding so intense.
The piano key is heard within the second shot of the white house pictured
within the trailer. As the trailer continues the scenes become more violent

and loud which triggered the non diegetic soundtrack to become louder
and upbeat. The song played within the ending of the trailer is a song by
the artist Kanye west which is called heartless. The chorus stateshow
could you be so heartless this indicates to the audience that rachels
anger and frustration within the trailer may be caused by someone who
has hurt her in an extremely horrible way. As the song continues to play
you see a lot more movement within all the characters because the plot is
almost being revealed somehow. Rachel is being strangled in one scene
and megan hipwell is in a bath which indicates to us that something very
dramatic is occurring. The music becomes more fast paste and the
audience hear the bass of the song more.

Titles.
The titles within the trailer are very simple and do not have much colour
to them. The main colours used within the different titles are neutral
colours black and white. The first title you see is At 4:36pm. From this
first title we as an audience know instantly that the title is going to tell us
a short story which will help us understand the trailer more. The second
title is a women disappeared. Both titles have a white background and
black text. The white illustrates the womens innocence as she
disappeared. Stereotypically women in thriller films are seen as the
weaker and easy targets so as an audience we may make assumptions to
where she really is. This gets the audience questioning and the enigma
codes such as was she kidnapped was she murdered and etc. The
black text indicates to us as an audience that the victim may have a dark
paste and may be escaping from it.

Intended target audience

My intended target audience is 15-25 because I believe they will be able
to relate to the film when it comes to the love triangle and the violence.
The trailer is intriguing and makes you want to continue to watch as it is
filled with stereotypical scenes my target audience would like such as love
scenes and violence.