Trailer Analysis - Sorority Row

The audience are told the title of the film right at the end because the trailer consists of clips that all contribute to the narrative and in order for the title to be memorable and effective it is placed last.

The audience are not told who is starring in the film as they are not well known actors/actresses in the film industry yet and appear to be an ensemble cast, however some of the actresses are well known with teenage audiences such as Leah Pipe who starred in 'Drake & Josh', 'Malcolm in the middle' and 'Ghost Whisperer'. Briana Evigan is most well known for the hit film 'Step Up 2' whilst Audrina Patridge is recognisable for starring in 'The Hills'. These actresses will draw in female teens. It is rated 15, therefore its target audience will be for teens aged 15 and over.

The establishing shot of the trailer is the high school building which is then followed by the shots of the pool party, which establishes their age group and the target audience. They're having fun at the beginning which is the equilibrium. Thirty six seconds into the trailer, we are introduced to the disequilibrium which is that five sorority girls inadvertently cause the murder of one of their sisters in a prank gone wrong. The resolution is introduced at one minute sixteen seconds as they agree to keep the matter to themselves and never speak of it again, so they can get on with their lives, only they don't realise the disequilibrium will haunt them as at one minute fifty seconds, their dead sister appears to have come back from the dead to kill them.

More action in the trailer contains religious connotations, as a male uses a cross as a weapon to kill the sister. The mise en scene of the ensemble cast conforms to the conventions of a horror as guns are used and the cast dragged a body into a well or ditch which is a sinister act, which indicates possession, evil and terror. The use of iconography conforms to the horror genre as blood signifies danger, alert, anger, devil, violence and warfare. The fire is symbolic of love being spoken as an internal flame; it can be used for strong emotional feelings such as love, hate, desire and determination. Also, it has chaotic and war related connotations.

The speed of the editing throughout the trailer isn't consistent. It is steady paced at the beginning and has quite lengthy shots until the disequilibrium sinks in and the shots become quicker and shorter. It then goes back to being steady paced as a potential resolution is present, however, the disequilibrium continues and the speed of the shots get faster and shorter again. As the trailer comes to an end the speed of the shots is viscious, showing a gun, spinning weapons, an actress trying to escape, fire, screams and shocked facial expressions, blood and the cross weapon near the females neck pointing towards it. The last shot is of an anonymous antagonist in a black cape. This signifies a devious feel, mystery and terror.