For Lord of the Rings, the excitement of the trailer begins immediately with the camera beginning to pan across the location of the enemy stronghold surrounded by fire, thunder and lightning. The scene is set by catchphrases said by the main characters such as ‘the end has come’, which instantly gives the viewer the knowledge that the end of the world is near and indicate that the genre of this movie is war. Pictures flash before the screen to create huge dramatic effect and keep the viewer enthralled at the trailer in front. Shrieking and growling of flying creates create the image of horror and dismay, for someone who hadn’t seen the previous movies they could be persuaded that the world is finished already.
The Pearl Harbour trailer starts by showing the two main characters at a young age playing in a small fighter plane, this immediately tells the viewer that the genre of the movie is war, and the appearance of the plane and surroundings that are zoomed in on show that the movie is set a long time ago. A voice from a radio says aggressively, ‘How long is American going to pretend we are not at war’. The media are putting pressure on the American Government to join in the war and to stop letting other nations fight the battle for them. The trailer goes on with the voice of the radio and eventually the one of the main characters is shown being sent off to war as a sign that the government has given in and decided to join the fight. The first scenes are hardly dramatic which is quite unusual for movies consisting of so much action, but briefly set the scene of what it is like at the time.
The most spectacular part of the Lord of the Rings trailer is also the ending. The final part of the trailer uptakes the highest tempo, the music builds up gradually and reaches its peak at which time images are flashing on the screen constantly of hero’s fighting to save the world for future generations, you are made to feel intensely grateful to them and hatred for the enemy. The last words of the trailer are said by Aragorn who responds to a statement that they cannot beat the evil through strength of arms with ‘But we can give Frodo a chance’. They refuse to give up even though the odds are stacked against them. After this quote the music reaches its climax and pictures flash rapidly from the whole movie showing the severe ferocity this war has caused all over one little ring that hangs around Frodo’s neck including close-ups of the character’s faces show complete terror and torture. The final clip is of Sam yelling helplessly amongst rings of fire, this tells the viewer that the ending will be highly eventful. After watching the trailer the key question flashes though your mind, ‘Will Frodo destroy the ring and save the world?’ The only way to find out is to watch the full movie.
The most electrifying part of the Pearl Harbour trailer is when the trailer starts to speed up with the yell, ‘Warning of Japanese aggressive movements,’ and the people in view are running away in fear from the soaring Japanese planes coming from the skies. It is now clear that Pearl Harbour is under attack! An interview with the president of the USA confirms this and then the footage of the attacking Japanese planes and bombs is shown, it is quite distressing and very realistic with state of the art scenes of boats and buildings being exploded into balls of flame. Close-ups on the faces of nurses rushing around frantically trying to save lives and soldiers trying to defend themselves in vain truly portrays how fearful and horrendous this attack was.
The final dozen seconds of the Pearl Harbour trailer begin to flash different pictures of the state of Pearl Harbour during and after the invasion, the aircraft carrier which proved the braveness of the main characters, and with pictures of the American flag still flying high, and the happiness of the one of the main characters to be back in his lover’s arms. During this small trailer, the viewer has seen the Americans suffer at setback, but refuse to lose determination and show the rest of the world that they are not the cowardly ‘playboys’ that they are made out to be by the media.
The Lord of the Rings Trailer is set in a world thousands of years less technically advanced then we are today, with clips constantly switched from daylight and dark I.e. hope and despair, to create dramatic effect and keep the viewer enthralled. The situation relentlessly reminds us of the storyline and the need for war to save the world for future generations. The special effects used are extravagant and modern but still clearly portray the setting of living in ancient times.
The Pearl Harbour Trailer is set in 1941, when America was just getting to grips with the fact that the world was at war. Technology was not as advanced as it was today, however the difference isn’t completely perceptible. The dark is never shown in the trailer as it represents fear and abhorrence whereas the light is meant to represent hope and honour for the fact that U.S.A. is staying strong. The situation doesn’t change much, this is to ensure the audience are completely focused on what the film is trying to achieve.
There are many different characters in Lord of the Rings making it difficult to decide on a main character. Without any of the main characters the ending may have been different so they are all equally as important. They dress for war and despite wearing less armour then anyone else they are so skilled In battle that they rarely get a scratch. The main characters divide into small groups and each follows a particular quest, all as fundamental as each other.
In Pearl Harbour there are two main characters, both are fighter pilots, both are good friends, but both love the same woman. They are shown to be role models of what American soldiers stand for, bravery, hope and glory.
The music used in Lord of the Rings goes with the ancient feeling throughout the trailer, and is nearly all classical and, like the trailer, varies between gloomy and sombre, heroic and glorious, and dramatic and flamboyant. The soundtrack used is very tuneful and memorable and fits perfectly with the storyline and surroundings to the trailer.
The music used in the Pearl Harbour trailer is all classical, and starts off quietly but builds up to a more melodious, heroic tune that symbolises the American soldiers bravery at Pearl Harbor. However, the music is not used to create great dramatic effect like in Lord of the Rings, the sounds of planes zooming past, guns blasting and explosions create this effect.
The text used in the Lord of the Rings trailer is large and in yellow writing, the same colour as the ring. It gives the viewer even more of an idea what is happening towards the end of the trailer, and phrases such as ‘There can be no triumph without loss’ and ‘No victory without suffering’ reinforce the idea that war in this movie is something to be accustomed to, and to save the world for future generations sacrifices must be made.
The text in Pearl Harbor appears just at the end of the trailer and is large and white. White is the colour of peace and this tells the viewer that the soldiers were fighting to make peace in the future. The text is used to strengthen the aim of the film and trailer of showing the future how brave and selfless the American soldiers were and how much the citizens had to suffer during the Japanese invasion, it portrays U.S.A. as the strongest nation that can never be dissolved by war.
On the whole the Lord of the Rings-Return of the King trailer was more effective as techniques used within the trailer completely matched the genre chosen. The viewer is kept enthralled right from the very start till the last second of the trailer, and anyone who watches the trailer will almost certainly go and watch the movie at the first possible opportunity. Effective use of music, storyline and camera-work makes the Lord of the Rings trailer the most competent trailer I have ever seen. Pearl Harbor is not bad by any means, but was not made as powerful as Lord of the Rings, and the music should have played a bigger part in making the trailer a success and making people rush to see the movie at the cinema. Furthermore, the two trailers show very different attitudes to war. Lord of the Rings portrays war as something not liked, but accepted and all men able to pick up a sword must do it. Pearl Harbour depicts war is a horrific and terrible thing that should only be the last resort in a bid to create future peace, the citizens are not forced to fight like in Lord of the Rings, but merely treated like heroes if they do.
