Trailer analysis
Max
The trailer starts of with eerie music as the scene is set and the audience is unsure whats going on, a sudden explosion occurs before we see the main character, the dog Max. The music changes to a softer guitar tune that seems quite sad and foreshadows that something bad is going to happen, a monologue adds drama as the parents say the cliche to the son that they're "proud of him".We are briefly introduced to the boy who doesn't seem to care, whilst the sad music continues in the background before we finally get the sad news we had been waiting for - the soldier brother is dead and leaves the dog behind. As life is shown to be not great as the dog has no owner the sad music continues and leaves the audience feeling quite glum and pessimistic about the situation. The music builds to a climax though at the point where he is finally able to stroke the dog, the music becomes slightly more uplifting, happier and brighter. Diegetic sounds of the dog whimpering as he's scared of the fireworks cause empathy for the dog from the audience as he's no longer just barking aggressively, and like the boy, we as the audience become closer to the dog. This signals for a change in music as dog and boy bond, the song is called "I bet my life" and shows how thee boy will come to trust Max the dog possibly with his life, maybe not in a physical way but by letting him help him in day to day life. The introduction of the antagonist, causes a short lift in volume and tempo of the music showing he is likely to have a negative effect on their lives and cause problems, this is reinforced through the dialogue as its stated that "Tyler is someone you should stay away from". The flat, on going tone of music is purely to accompany the scene on screen so the trailer isn't in silence as more of the background of the story is told until it dips to silence as a solo shot of Max is shown accompanied by the dialogue "Max, go search" before the chorus of the song bursts through and a fast montage of action, running shots to go along with the faster tempo of the song. As the film now has a more optimistic feel to it as the boy and dog work together the music has a more inspiring, uplifting feel to it yet still has a part of emotion with it as the song sings "I bet my life for you". The music falls in tempo to just an instrumental part at the end of the trailer as a humorous scene is shown to reassure the audience it's not all doom and gloom.
The opening shot is of the dog Max showing he will be of key importance in the film, this is followed by several slow cuts not too fast, wide shots to allow the setting to be established and another shot of Max all on his own whereas other shots had multiple characters showing he is an important character. The plain browns and beige of the dessert surroundings in the first few shots is contrasted by a birds eye view shot of the green trees at home and shows the difference of the two worlds the characters are living in, it could also be foreshadowing that good could come of Max coming home (green = good) as he could help improve this boys life. There are a few shots of boy on his own showing he is more of an important character than maybe initially thought, the dog is in every other scene reinforcing although the boy may be important as the name suggests this film is predominantly about Max - the dog. As the boy starts to bond with Max shots of him looking at his brothers stuff showing he did really care about his brother even if he never showed it, also as he watches clips of brother he seems visibly upset and seeks the dog for comfort. As in any film though as soon as things seem to be going well there's got be a disruption of the equilibrium, in this film its the arrival of the antagonist, but the attention can't be drawn too much away from Max as in the next shot he tries to attack the antagonist signalling that there's something not right about him. A fast montage of clips (common in nearly all trailers to be able to give enough of a glimpse of the film to entice people to want to go see it) where again the dog is in ever other shot - showing he has prevalence.
Film production logos appear first as in nearly all trailers - suggesting what sort of a film this will be and what sort of things to expect from the trailer and the film. The plain dessert could suggest that Max has a plain life, he does the same thing day in day out - they all do in the army, the shots of just Max highlight how important he is and how good a dog he is. A two shot of Max and the older brother shows they love each other and have a very close bond, this is all contrasted by a birds eye view of the green trees foreshadowing that maybe life back home could be positive, another birds eye view shot of the boy suggests he's not important and he maybe resents his brother for fighting in the army as it makes him seem pointless to his family - he's not like his perfect older brother - this is supported by shots of him looking sad and annoyed suggesting he wishes his brother wasn't a part of the army. On the other hand he has an american flag on his t-shirt suggesting maybe he's just envious of his brother who gets to be out their fighting a real war whilst he's stuck at home playing computer games.The plain beige room where Max is being held connotes a lack of hope and leaves the audience wondering if Max will ever bond with anyone like he did with the brother, the green of trees and grass back at the home and that always seem to accompany the boy suggests he will be able to bring some good to the situation and he will be able to help Max. The fireworks could symbolise a celebration as the boy and Max seem to be bonding well and is accompanied by a uplifting change in music suggesting a brighter future for the two of them now they are together. This is contrasted by Tyler (the antagonist) in dark room, with dark clothes connoting something sinister and bad is going to happen now he's around. Also the red clothes on boy - could suggest a bit of brightness and colour shining through and be foreshadowing good things for the future, alternatively it could also connote danger or blood or seeming that the girl is also wearing some maybe something will happen to both of them. It could also connote love, either for the girl or for Max.
The first shot is a medium shot of Max on his own in the desert environment immediately signalling his solo importance in the film and how things will be central to him. A long high angle shot of Max follows suggesting he may be alone soon as he seems vulnerable, the audience may wonder what could happen, a two shot of the older brother and Max shows their relationship and how much they love each other, first time viewers may be fooled into thinking this is a film about those two and the relationship they have at war together. A birds eye view shot of the green trees at home is a great contrast to the part of the world Max is in, a medium shot of the boy zooming into his emotionless face suggests he doesn't care about his brother, a following side shot of him looking slightly more upset reinforces the idea he doesn't care about his brother as he makes him look bad to his parents but as you can only see half his face it could be that he's only showing half of his emotions and he is also simply envious of his brother who gets to be out there fighting in an actual war. A birds eye shot of the boy shows him to be small and insignificant, reinforcing the idea that his brother outshines him and he is but nothing to his parents. Another birds eye view shot looking down on the funeral could be metaphorical of the dead brother looking down as Max has to be walked in by two strangers and he's not there to comfort him. A long shot of the kennels shows Max to be just another dog and the plain interior suggests these dogs are nothing special. In contrast to the two shot of Max and the older brother earlier this two shot of Max and the younger brother shows no love between them as Max barks aggressively but with perseverance and help from a friend the boy manages to stroke Max and a close up shot is used to show this break through moment. A little later in the trailer another two shot between Max and the boy shows a change in the relationship as the boy is now comforting Max and they seem to be far more loving towards each other. Multiple low angle shots of Tyler (the antagonist) suggests he is powerful and dangerous to this dog and this family. A high angle shot of the boy and Max implies they are towering over people now they are a strong team together and nothing can bring them down. Several solo shots of Max reinforce the idea suggested at the beginning of the trailer that Max is a very important central character, a low angle salute shot of the boy shows that now he appreciates Max and what his brother did for this country he's become something and has grown as a person standing tall upon others like Tyler.
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