Thursday, 30 June 2016

Gone Girl Front Cover Analysis

Masthead and Title
As Entertainment is a well-known magazine and has a developed brand identity the masthead is one of the first things the reader will look at. Two heads from the feature photograph are in front of the masthead and slightly cover some of the letters. Entertainment do this in order to show their high status and how well known they are, as the reader doesn’t need to be able to see the whole masthead in order to know what it reads. The masthead is a white on a scene-background is conventional for a film-magazine.This connotes to the reader that the magazine will be in a conventional style and will stick to the ‘rules’ of magazines throughout, such as colour schemes, columns, although it has a lot of negative space. The font of the Entertainment in the title is very sophisticated, which connotes to the magazine audience that it will be a well written magazine, for people who are serious about films to read to get useful information from about the films they're interested in.  

The name of the magazine 'Entertainment' connotes positivity and encouragement, implying that the magazine will engaging be to the reader. The colour of the masthead, white, contrasts to that of the picture, which makes it boldly stand out and will immediately catch the readers attention. The laid back font creates an informal house-style and informs the reader that it will be an easy, relaxed read. The fact that it is superimposed, positioned behind the image portrays that it is an established and well known brand. The word 'weekly' is included within the last four letters of the masthead. This not only exaggerates the fact that they're a well-established brand but also emphasises to the reader that the magazine is weekly and therefore they should read it each week.

Feature Article Photograph

The colours of the photograph are cool toned and clinical, which are commonly associated with mental wellbeing. This connotes sadness and loneliness, provoking emotion in the viewer. The shot is a birds eye view shot and a long shot. The combination of these shows of the protagonist make her seem exposed and in danger. The protagonists mise-on scene of her blank facial expressions connote vulnerability and death. 

The theme of death is highlighted again through the rest of the mise-en-scene (the table filled with medical equipment beside her, the tag on her foot and the metal bed that the two characters are lying on). This establishes the mystery genre as it makes the reader intrigued about what has happened to her. The male character next to her intensifies the sense of mystery as he appears to be possessive and his entirely black costume connotes evil and danger. There is binary opposites used between the two costumes as she is in white which connotes purity and innocence, whereas he is wearing very dark, harsh colours. 

Coverline and Plugs
The cover line is used to anchor the polysemy of the feature article photograph, as it has an ambiguity surrounding it. This leaves the viewer unaware of why the protagonist is in the situation - and therefore intrigued to watch the film or trailer. It is written in a bold font which makes it clear to the reader that it is the title of the film. The block capitals intensify it and highlight the significance of the words. The white font creates a strong house style. There is also yellow and blue colours used which match the plugs and the cool tones of the feature article photograph. The plugs are flushed left and flushed right and are successful in fulfilling their purpose of promoting the contents of the magazine and encouraging the reader to read the magazine. The plugs follow conventions by using the same colour scheme as the rest of the front cover to create a strong house style and brand identity.

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