1. Goodfellas Trailer Analysis<br />1. The name is shown three quarters of the way through, and at the end of the trailer, this is so the<br />title of the film is clearly conveyed and no ambiguity may occur. It is also because, if it is at the end it<br />keeps the viewer watching, thus the audience can grasp the storyline and gangster genre of the film.<br />It adds a sense of suspense and anticipation.<br />2. It says the name of the director ‘Martin Scorsese’ at the beginning because it is a unique selling<br />point that this critically and commercially accepted director is involved with the film, as he is<br />associated with gangster films. It says the name of the big named actors at the end, including Ray<br />Liota, Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci, this is also a USP as they are stars and critically respected,<br />especially De Niro who had established himself in the gangster genre with ‘Godfather II’ and ‘Once<br />Upon A Time In America’.<br />3. It shows Henry involved with crime and the mafia from an early age, smashing cars and setting<br />them on fire with his mother shouting “you look like a gangster”. Then it shows him getting married,<br />counting money, burying a body with his gangster friends and involving himself with an airport<br />jewellery heist.<br />4. The music is an old fashioned 1970s song, completely unrelated to the gangster genre, creating a<br />severe contrast, with the cheerful and light hearted song being played but the brutal and bloody<br />actions, creating a chilling effect. Scorsese chose the songs for the soundtrack using only those that<br />commented on the scene or the characters quot;
in an oblique wayquot;
. The only rule he adhered to with<br />the soundtrack was to only use music that could have been heard at that time For example, if a<br />scene took place in 1973, he could use any song that was current or older.<br />5. The voiceover is Henry talking about how he ‘always wanted to be a gangster’ and his criminal<br />activities, this adds a sense of reality and helps the audience to establish a relationship with the main<br />character Henry, a must for a good gangster film, it also gives a clear insight that this is a gangster<br />film. AT the end there is a theatrical voiceover as this is a convention and clearly establishes<br />Goodfellas as a theatrical film.<br />6. This voice was chosen because it sounds like a gangster voice, with swag and confidence, thus<br />giving an indication into the genre. It also makes the audience form a relationship with the main<br />character Henry either choosing to like him and feel sympathetic or dislike him and wish on his<br />downfall.<br />7. The shots are sped up, to how we would see them in a film, this is so the audience can see all<br />different aspects of the film, for example Henry getting marries but also burying a body, it also is<br />supposed to promote the film so it shows the most interesting parts.<br />8. Yes, at the end the speed increases as opposed to how it was actual shots, not sped up at the<br />start, this is because it is a convention that there is montage at the end to show all the interesting<br />parts of the film. This has been done because it shows a range of aspects of the film and packs all the<br />good parts in a trailer.<br />9. The very last frame of the trailer shows the name of the film ‘Goodfellas’ and the strapline ‘Three<br />decades of life in the mafia’ this is because they wanted to discard the name and strapline until the<br />end this is so the title of the film is clearly conveyed and no ambiguity may occur. It is also because,<br />if it is at the end it keeps the viewer watching, thus the audience can grasp the storyline and<br />gangster genre of the film. It adds a sense of suspense and anticipation.<br />10. The trailer is more effective as it shows all the different aspects of the film, not just the gangster<br />aspect of crime, but the moral issues of marriage, and it shows a broader view of the film not just<br />one shot. The poster is quite mundane as it focuses on the big named stars and just shows a picture<br />of them, it gives no indication of the film.<br />11.<br /> a) You would expect to see this film before other gangster films, like ‘Once Upon A Time In<br />America’ and ‘Casino’. So it directly relates to the genre, and you would see it before other 18+ films,<br />which are gruesome, maybe horror.<br />b) You would expect to see this film before gangster TV programmes or gruesome 18+ shows,<br />horror programmes, so it directly relates to the genre.<br />