Shaun of the Dead Analysis

Trailers are advertisements that are insights into future films that are going to be released. They are designed to promote and entice the audience to want to go and see the film. The trailer I’m analysing is Shaun of the Dead and because this film is one of the first of it’s sub genre (a zomcom, which is a zombie comedy) the audience will not know what to expect.

The trailer starts off with the first inter-title of the trailer of the Universal logo appearing this informs the audience what company produced the film. The first few short clips are of Shaun’s typical daily routine however the shots are quick and zoom in to everything he does from spreading jam on toast to brushing his teeth. Half way through these shots a voice over talks to the audience saying “Do you ever feel like modern life is not for you?” The voice over continues throughout the first half of the trailer. This makes the audience think about their own daily routine and how standard and boring it is. The trailer then shows some short shots of a supermarket and Shaun’s typical day at work. With the voice over saying “Do you do the same dead end job everyday?” This question is allowing the audience to respond and relate to the main character. By the audience being able to relate to the main character it is more likely that they will go and see the film. Establishing a bond between the audience and character means that they will begin to root for the character and want them to succeed. This will create a bases fan base that will entice them to see the film and even buy it on DVD.  Some shots are shown of the main character having flowers and then a female character holding those flowers. We would assume that the female is the main character’s girlfriend who would play a big part in the film. The voice over continues to say “Is your love life dying on it’s feet?” the dialogue it relating to the audience and fitting with the clips in the trailer.

The trailer shows how much of a bore the main character’s life is, an equilibrium which is leading up to an event that causes problems that need to be solved in order to create a new equilibrium. The voice over then asks the audience “Have you ever felt that you are turning into a zombie?”. These questions all appeal to the audience as they entice them on want is going to possibly happen in this boring life. The voice over also gives away the villain/virus when asking the audience if they feel like a zombie. Where a clips shows someone banging on the door who appears to be a zombie by the way they are behaving.

The first inter-title appears with ‘In a time’ with lots of clips of a new reporter and the zombies roaming around. The next inter-title appears with ‘of crisis’ the trailer is trying to give information across in short snappy phrases to make the audience want more. The trailer then continues to show short bursts of more action packed, dangerous clips.

Another inter-title appears with ‘A hero must rise’ followed by lots of different angled clips of zombies in the road and up against windows etc. Voice over is featured which is the news reporter warning people to avoid all physical contact from the zombies and the news reporter is shown throughout the short bursts of clips. This will make the audience aware that it is a dangerous situation and that the main characters could die and therefore need to be careful. The next shot is of the main character and his friend who again we assume would feature in the film sitting on the sofa. Then the inter-title appears says ‘From his sofa’ again the sentences are being continued throughout the trailer and are short and snappy so the audience will remember them. By using ‘From his sofa’ it is appealing to the main character whose life is a bore and is making a comical joke out of it.

The next clips after is a close up shot of the two characters sitting on the sofa and they look up to see a zombie in their lounge which they then get up of the sofa ironically and away from the sofa. The main character then starts to voice over the few clips saying “So what’s the plan?” then a few clips of the two main characters facing zombies whilst then saying to “bash them in the head.” This gives away to the audience the solution to killing the zombies again another feature which is not conventional in a horror trailer. However, this trailer does not follow conventional horror trailers or films as they then reveal what they are going to be doing by “going to Liz’s” and the reason behind it. Various jokes are made such as they take a picture together with a zombie the rest of the sequence is then filled with action packed shots so this will appeal to an audience who also like action films.

The next inter-title ‘This year’ telling the audience when the film will be out and make sure they know so they can go and see the film. It is then followed by some more shots of Shaun seeing a naked zombie which he is clearly embarrassed about, another comical part within the trailer to appeal to the audience. Another inter-title appears with ‘Fear’ and followed by more short action shots of jumping running and driving in a car. Yet another inter-title appears with ‘Has a new enemy’ which again flashes up quickly to make the audience more enticed and grab their attention. A couple more inter-titles appear with ‘And courage’ shortly followed by ‘Has a new name’ In between these inter-title are fast short shots of the main character and his friends battling for their lives, with rock music to show the dramatic scenes. Comically after the inter-title ‘Has a new name’ the main character’s name, Shaun is shouted very loudly through a door machine to a flat. When he looks around at the zombies you can see the adrenaline which is making him determined to make sure him and his friends live. The title of a film then appears ‘Shaun of the dead’ which is made up of the main character and the fact that mostly everyone around them is dead.  

Unlike horror trailers this trailer does not finish with a jump scare at the end of it. It actually finished with a comical scene between the two main characters and a zombie, who singing back to them. Then the last inter-title appears saying ‘Coming soon’ the music at this point is rather friendly, light compared to other horror films, putting the audience at easy. Ending the trailer with a comical clip rather than a jump scare reminds the audience that it isn’t just an action/horror movie but is also a comedy. This will then appeal to a wider audience who may not like horrors but would see a zombie comedy.

The film has to appear scary, action packed and comical which will appeal to a wider audience then if the film was just aimed at horror fans. Therefore, this film is a hybrid genre which involves zombies and comedy, making the audience want the character to survive and make them laugh along the way. Shaun of the Dead was one of the first hybrid genres to appeal to a mass audience which is why the film was such a success. Other films have been created from being inspired by Shaun of the Dead such as Hot Fuzz, World’s End, Zombieland. As well as recently Warm Bodies which is a zombie film and a romantic film as well combining genres is becoming more and more popular which is why they are such a success.