Trailer Analysis - Comedy

Trailer analysis

21 Jump Street

The trailer starts with upbeat, punchy music, a diegetic ring of an school bell sets the scene in the flashback for where they met, a change in music (non-diegetic) signals the coming together of these two men as they agree to work as a team.  Cheesy dramatic music, almost mocking action trailer music, suggests to the audience that together they will amount to something great but after a bold statement of them spending the rest of their lives being "bad-asses" the music cuts out and it cuts to a two shot of them riding on bikes in a park - not exactly the action movie dream. A change in music to a more upbeat song signals that their luck may be about to change as they finally make an arrest but there joy is short lived as they realise they did it wrong - cue more funny dialogue. Another change in music this time not quite a joyful as last time, more serious and bad ass as we see action shots of them running around with guns providing the audience with the action part of the film they were hoping for. A change in music again - this time to more old school dance music as the characters mix with younger students, this music continues throughout a montage of action shots and funny dialogue right to the end of the trailer, There are several cuts in the music though that occur to add in silence to draw special attention to the funny dialogue or when something goes wrong. The high amount of funny dialogue conforms to the conventions as it gives the audience an incite into how funny this film will be and shows most of the funniest lines to entice the audiences to come see the film. Also the high amount of changes in the music conforms to conventions as it keeps the trailer upbeat and doesn't dwell on any part too long so the audiences don't get lost along the way.

Establishing shot is of the police academy - sets the scene and lets the audience know right away that it's to do with crime and the police, a flashback of them at high school edited next to them nowadays shows how much they've changed and how unlikely their friendship is, a key aspect of comedy - unreal or unusual. A low angle shot of Jenko reinforces this idea of how he has always been above Schmidt and how unlikely it is that he would now want to be friends with him. A two shot of them as they graduate as police officers as they think their lives are going to be amazing as its the two of them against the world is contrasted by another two shot of them as they cycle along and their lives seem very unadventurous, a long shot of them cycling reinforces this as they seem alone in a very plain, mundane environment. Multiple two shots show how they are very much a team and reinforces the idea they are the two main characters and it's the relationship between those two as well as the situations they find themselves in which is the funny aspect of the film. This use of contrasting characters makes the film more interesting because its two completely different people as friends, working together, which is also perfect as a comedy film because it is definitely going to raise some humor. After a not so action filled office scene it cuts to a few shots of them running around with guns to provide the audience with the bit of action they want. At about the half way point of the trailer the background part of how they got here has been told and so the story switches to tell them about what the main part of the film will be about - going undercover at a high school. As soon as they enter the high school all the clips that follow show much more of them separate rather than in two shots foreshadowing that something bad may happen which causes a rift in their friendship. An action shot montage at the end is matched with several party and high school shots suggesting all the action will come from the high school and they'll finally get to do some of the "bad-ass" stuff they wanted to. The jumping over the car scene at the end highlights difference in characters (again like earlier with test scores) again reinforcing the idea that the relationship between these two characters is just as funny as the situations they get themselves involved in. 

Schmidt has a white shirt in the flashback suggesting his innocence unlike Jenko who is more colourful suggesting he had a better time at high school. This is reinforced by a following shot where Jenko tackles Schmidt to the floor and is towering over him suggesting he's better than him. After their dramatic statement about being "bad-asses" the next shot is of them in a park - a fairly boring, mundane place and no where near as exciting as they had hoped for. Unlike some of the other trailers I have analysed the titles come later suggesting they're not such an important part of the films marketing campaign. Some funny dance moves from Jenko give the audience some of the physical comedy that they often look for and so draws in a larger audience, a dramatic slow mo long two shot of them showing up at school is again mocking action films. When they talk about how it is probably the popular kids dealing the drugs it cuts to a shot of them high up on some steps showing how they are above other average students and how they may feel untouchable. The girl is wearing a bright red top which could connote danger as you don't want to mess with the popular kids, alternatively it could connote love as conventionally it's expected that in every film there will be a love interest of some sort and seeming as she's the girlfriend of their new enemy she seems perfectly cliche. Throughout the trailer Schmidt is wearing much brighter coloured clothes than Jenko suggesting he will have a better time at high school the second time round whereas Jenko may not fare so well as he is consistently seen in darker clothes. The male teacher is wearing a yellow top which looks a bit weird and may suggest there's something a bit weird of peculiar about him or this school they're in. There is dark lighting when they are with the popular guy whose is suspicious of them suggesting he may have a darker side, he may cause darker times for them. They wear white prom suits which could imply they are trying to clean this place up despite the issues they face, alternatively it could be for simply ironic reasons as they already stand out due to their age and taste in music but this is simply the icing on the cake.