Year of Release: 2007
Director: Rob Zombie
Production by: Dimension Films. Nightfall Productions and Spectacle Entertainment Group
Actors: Scout Taylor-Compton, Malcolm McDowell and Tyler Mane
Synopsis: Michael Myers, a grown and dangerous man, escapes from the mental institution having being committed for 17 years. He was committed to the mental institution as a 10 year old. After his escape, he immediately returns to Haddonfield, where he is on a quest to find his baby sister, Laurie. Anyone who crosses his path is in mortal danger.
Budget: $15,000,000 (estimated)
Opening Weekend: $30,591,759 (USA) (2 September 2007) (3472 Screens)
Gross: $80,253,908 (Worldwide)
Target audience: Halloween seems to be a clash between zombie and slash horror. The ideal target audience would be those of age 18-23. This is due to the fact that the age is 18 certificate and those above the age of 18 will not be affected by the negative connotation of Halloween that the movie will portray.
Denotation:
In the magazine poster there is an outline of a face which features different activities varying from two people fighting to the face of a clown. The face is in bright orange with a brown shadow surfacing. We see this face through close up shot. Looking directly at the face with a back to the audience is a male figure holding a knife and a head. This character is wearing all black and we witness this through the use of a long shot . In the background of the poster we are introduced to a house which looks to have been burning and particles of waste on the left hand side next to the house. This is believed to be in the woods. At the bottom of the poster there is the release date and above that is the title of the movie. At the top centre of the poster is the tag line.
Connotation:
The title of the movie is ‘Halloween’. On the poster the word Halloween is in bright yellow and orange block writing. The use of the orange and yellow text connotes fire and flames. This corresponds with the genre of horror in which the movie is. ‘Halloween’ is a zombie horror meaning risen from the dead. It is common for people to die in fires and this represents a link between the genre of horror and the colours used in the text. The use of the orange and yellow text also represents Halloween itself. Halloween pumpkins and lights are always orange so the text was creatively and effectively done.
Props: The knife and head in the characters hand connotes death. The representation that we receive from the knife in the context of the movie is that it is the killers main weapon. Knifes and blades are commonly used in slash horrors and often present gory content. The head in the characters hand also makes the audience aware that he is the killer in the movie. We are not introduced this characters identity.
The tagline ‘EVIL HAS A DESTINY’ connotes that many negative events are going to take place. Destiny means ‘events that will happen to a person or thing in the future’ and this corresponds with the events that are framed in the outline of the face. As the character is walking towards this face, he is walking towards all the evil events that are due to occur and he is going to play a huge role within these events.
Setting: There is little setting although in the poster it seems to be the woods where there is a burnt out house. This yet again links to the theory of burning and zombies.
Lighting: The lighting used towards the lower area of the poster is low key. I believe this was done to contrast with the text of the title and make it stand out. Low key lighting is often used in horror movies to create a sense of fear amongst its audience. Although the upper half of the poster uses bright colours it is still dim and therefore low key. If high key lighting was used then it would take away from the effectiveness needed to create a horror poster.
Costume: The character is dressed in all black, which seems to be a leather jacket and trousers. The colour black connotes alienation, hate and depression. These feeling would all correspond to his role within the movie as the killer. The characters composition is stern and upright, almost as though he is about to begin a mission.
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