Textual Analysis; Action:
Released in 1991
Directed by James Cameron

As I have already chosen the genre for my trailer, and decided I would do a romcom, I have decided to analyse several other genres of films, as I believe this will help me improve my finished product, as I can possibly incorporate conventions of other genres into my trailer, and also it will help me with my understanding of the different film trailers. The first different type of genre I have decided to analyse is action, and I have chosen one of my favourite films 'Terminator 2 Judgement Day'.

Plot summary: Ten years ago a cyborg from the future tried to kill Sarah Connor to stop her from giving birth to John Connor, a resistance leader in the future, now the terminator is back to protect John from the newest cyborg, who is determined to destroy John. The terminator has been sent back with a new mission, protect Sarah and John Connor from the new cyborg.

Media representations: The first thing we see on the trailer is a robot, it is a close-up of the face, and the face is in fire. This is a forewarning to the audience as it is quite a scary image, and it conveys to the audience that the robot is evil, and it will hurt you, as I think the fire represents hell, and the robot is the devil, therefore this suggests to the audience that the robots are dangerous. This is also aimed at the people who saw the first one as they remember the terminator from the first film, and this is what he looks like, so therefore they think he is back to attempt to kill Sarah Connor again, and this immediately makes the audience dislike the robot, as they think he is bad. The music also reinforces the robot is dangerous as the music is low, and the music almost makes it seem as if he is coming for you. We then see the terminator and the people who saw the first film recognise him immediately, and are instantly scared of him as they remember what he was like, and he also looks very intimidating, and the people who didn't see the first film feel the same way, as he is portrayed as very powerful and intimidating, as he is naked and has a very strong body, and looks like a bodybuilder, and this portrays that he has a lot of strength, and also when he gets up the music becomes loud, and this emphasise his power. We also see him in photos taken by CCTV cameras, and this conveys how he is dangerous and therefore this helps the audience who did not see the first film create an opinion of him that he is dangerous. We then next see him in leather on a bike, and bikers are known to be intimidating and dangerous, and him dressed as a biker has more of an impact on the audience than if he was wearing a bus drivers uniform for instance, he also has a gun therefore increasing the audience's dislike and fear of him, but it also conveys to the audience that he is going to kill someone, and those who have seen The Terminator before assume it will be Sarah Connor. We then see him following a boy and we see through The Terminator eyes, as it says target identified, we assume he is going to kill this boy, and therefore we still think he is dangerous, and this is reinforced as we see him throw a man out of a bar window, the effortlessness of this conveys that he is very strong and can kill someone easily, and as he throws the man there is a low angle of the terminator to make him seem powerful, strong, and shows him to be a robot. As well as the Terminator we also see Sarah Connor who appears to be in some institution as she is handcuffed, and there is someone in a white uniform stood behind her, and she is also dressed in white representing how she is in some sort of mental institution, this therefore makes the audience instantly wary of her, but the people who have seen the other film recognise her and also wonder what she has done to get herself in this situation, and when she is shown the pictures of the Terminator she instantly says her son is in great danger, reinforcing the audiences opinion that the Terminator is dangerous, and suggests he is back to kill her son. Sarah Connor is portrayed as being much more independent and stronger than the first one as towards the end of the trailer she is seen holding a rifle and telling her son to get down, and this represents how she has changed since the first film and is now going to protect herself, but more importantly her son. We also see John Connor, and as he wasn't born in the first film the audience can create an entirely new opinion on him. We first see her son on a bike in a leather jacket, presenting him to be quite a rebellious young boy, and it is also reminiscent of James Dean in leather on his bike, he is portrayed as being the stereotypical young teenage lad, rebellious and doesn't do what he is told. We also see him in the trailer talking to the terminator and high fiiving him, and teaching him slang, this changes the opinion of him and the Terminator as we see that John Connor is looking for someone to talk to, and could possibly see the Terminator as some sort of father figure, and the Terminator is keen to please John, and is loyal to him. We also see the other Terminator and he is very intimidating and robotic, as he doesn't speak in the trailer, and therefore the audience is immediately scared of him. He is also seen shooting at John, and his arm turns into some sort of metal claw, therefore portraying him to be inhuman, and therefore increasing the audiences fear of him.

Media Languages and Forms: The first location we see on the trailer is a deserted alley at night, and there is bright blue electric currents shown in the alley, and those who have seen the first film recognise that it signals the Terminator coming back from the future, and those who have not seen it can identify that it has something to do with the robot we see first. The clip is again very intimidating and inhuman, and therefore it conveys that something bad is coming, almost like the robot was the warning to what was coming. The deserted alley makes it much more scary, as deserted alley's are seen as very dangerous and people tend to avoid walking through them at night, and this only enhances the fear the audience has of the Terminator, and conveys that he is dangerous and someone you would avoid. We then see some sort of institution with Sarah Connor held in it, we can see this as can we see her handcuffs as she looks at the photos of the Terminator, this again enhances the audience weariness, as it conveys that she is dangerous, and the people who have not seen the first film think of her as just as dangerous as the Terminator, and they do not know who to trust, whereas the people who have seen the first film recognise she is in some sort of trouble, and it almost makes them want to help her. We also see other locations such as an empty corridor in the institution Sarah is held in, and this is like most of the locations in the trailer intimidating, as it isolates the characters, and makes them seem like everyone is against them and they are in a lot of danger, and as they're running through the corridor it creates an emotional response from the audience as they are anxious in hoping they get away, and it almost feels like your there with them, as the camera is handheld it is like your running with them. We also see the Terminator and John in a desert and again this isolates the characters, as deserts are commonly known as being uncrowded, and it makes you think of people stranded in a desert, and this again makes the audience feel for them, as they want to help them, as it seems they're on there own. The expressions of the characters convey their feelings, and also this trailer uses a lot of close-ups of the characters faces to help convey their emotions. At the beginning of the trailer is a robot, and you would think that would mean their expression is hard to identify, but you can easily see this robot is not smiling, it looks evil as it is showing its teeth, almost like it is baring its teeth at you, also the eyes look like they're staring at you as they don't move and they almost look red in the trailer, and red is a convention of danger. The expression of Sarah Connor is also scary as she is almost looks quite mad, as her hair is messy and as she looks up she is hid behind her fringe and is visibly trembling, and as she is trembling it conveys that something is happening, something dangerous. Also the expression on the Terminator when we first see him is scary, as he doesn't actually look at the camera, we just see his profile, and it is almost regal like which only enhances his power and control. The film has its own theme tune and it is very low and constant, conveying how the Terminator is constant, he is always there whether he is protecting you or targeting you, and the music also reminds me of a heartbeat, beating steadily like it is waiting for something or someone.

Narrative: The narrative is the media term for storytelling, and this trailer goes against the basic theory by Tzvetan Todorov, as there isn't an initial equilibrium, we first see the robot and this immediately instills fear in the audience. The basic narrative for action is that there is a main hero, protagonist, usually a man, and he is fighting against the antagonist, and in this case the Terminator is the protagonist and the new Terminator is the antagonist. The narrative is that the Terminator comes back to the past to protect John Connor as he will be important in the future, and he has to protect him against the new terminator, and it has the basic conventions of an action film, but it also doesn't follow one convention, as many action films are hybrid, and have some sort of love story in the film, but this one does not although the first film did. The narrative of the film can be fitted into one of the eight types Kate Domaille suggested, the Candide type, the Terminator representing the indomitable hero who cannot be put down. This narrative type can also be seen in many action films such as 'Indiana Jones' and also 'Rocky'. The narrative does follow conventions as the main protagonist is a male, and in the Action films I have researched I have found this in most, but it also has a female lead, which can also be seen in Action films such as 'Mission Impossible', were there is also a female to appeal to the females in the audience. The narrative portrays the Terminator to be at first very dangerous and intimidating, but later in the trailer it shows a nicer side as we see him high fiving John in the desert, and this therefore makes the audience like him, and trust him. The narrative also portrays Sarah Connor to be quite dangerous at first, but like the Terminator we see later in the trailer that she is fiercely protective of her son and will do anything to protect him, and this appeals to mothers in the audience, and as we see her maternal side it makes her seem less cold and more approachable. The narrative also portrays John to be the stereotypical teen boy, rebellious and uncaring, which turns of the audience but later in the trailer we see he is vulnerable and needs protecting, which makes the audience want to protect him. The editing is not as fast as you would expect an action trailer to be, instead it goes with the music of the trailer, an new clip every time the music beats, and it also goes with the tagline. The taglines are not a convention of trailer, and in the Action trailers I have seen they do not have taglines, the taglines are reminiscent of robots, and it is like the way the Terminator sees things through his eye, very cold and just identifies the target, and ignores everything else, and the font is quite big and bold, representing the Terminator, but it is not a harsh font, representing how the terminator is not as dangerous as he seems. The narrative does follow the one main convention that there is a protagonist and an antagonist, and therefore it is identifiable as an action film.

Genre: The genre of the trailer is action, and you can clearly see this as the protagonist is a man, a very strong and intimidating man. He is portrayed as dangerous at first, but then we see he is a hero as he saves John and Sarah, and he is stereotypical of a hero, as he is strong, muscly and is also quite handsome, but he also goes against conventions of hero's as he is not human, also most people see hero's as being blonde, whereas he is dark haired. The major generic theme is protecting someone from an antagonist, and this is the main theme in most Action films, and therefore the trailer follows some conventions of the genre. The trailer also has explosions in the trailer, and we see many weapons and car chases, and this all follows the conventions of the genre, as in most Action trailers there are usually explosions, and car chases, and gun fights. The people cast to play the characters also represent the genre, especially Arnold Schwarzenegger. Everyone associates him with Action films, and he is probably one of the most famous action stars and everyone thinks of him as the Terminator, and if people had not seen he first film they would have known his character and the film, as he is internationally known as an Action star. Also as he used to be a bodybuilder he represents an Action star even more, as he is strong and everyone recognises his strength and power. Linda Hamilton plays Sarah Connor and she is most famous for the role, so if someone hadn't seen the first film they would associate her with action, and the Terminator. She also represents the character as she is very strong, and has muscles, therefore portraying the character to be very strong, and she is also attractive making her seem more approachable. The actors cast are representative of the genre, as when everyone thinks of Linda Hamilton and Arnold Schwarzenegger they think of the Terminator, and Action films.

Media Institutions: The film was produced by TriStar pictures, this is a small film company and is a subsidary of Sony Pictures. Tristar was founded in 1982, and it has produced many Action films such as 'Rambo', therefore it is known for making great Action film, as it is also quite a small company and is not that well known internationally, this film was revolutionary as everyone knows the Terminator, and therefore it brought a lot of revenue to the film, but also the film was revolutionary in its time for its use of special effects, as no other film in that time used special effects like this film, therefore it brought a lot of acclaim to the company.

Media Values and Ideology: The ideology of the film is obviously Action, and everything that represents Action, but it also refers to the ideology of the fututre, as the whole film is based on the future, and Terminators come back from the future, and I think the film plays on the fear that we have forced upon us from different types of media such as film, that we are to dependent on computers, and the idea that in the future that computers are going to take over and will control us, we will all be controlled by robots and computers. The values of the film are the same as other Action films, to create suspense and excite the audience.

Audiences: The typical target audience for most Action films are around the ages of 16-40, and they are mostly aimed at men, as they are the typical people who watch the films, whereas women stereotypically watch romcoms. This film follows that convention and is aimed at people from around the ages of 16-40, as the young men can relate to John Connor, as he is portrayed as the stereotypical teenager; rebellious, and they can relate to his character. The older men can relate to the character of the Terminator, as although he doesn't have an age as he is a robot, the older males can relate to the actor who played him. The film is also aimed at women, as Sarah Connor is one of the main protagonists, this is unusual as most Action films are not aimed at women, but this film is aimed at strong, independent women who can relate to the character. This film is also revolutionary as they used Sarah Connor as one of the main characters, and portrayed her as strong and not needing protection, and this is how women are stereotypically portrayed, so this film is quite pro-feminism, and therefore other films followed suit, and used women as their main protagonists, the most famous one being Lara Croft.