From the trailer of Saw I can conclude that the film is of the horror genre. The trailer builds tension to engage and provoke emotion within the audience throughout the trailer. The trailer does this through the use of horror genre trailer conventions such as the use of a dark and dirty room, where I man is submerged in water. These things could often be thought of as people’s fears. These conventions continue to be used throughout the trailer as well as a dead body and blood.
The use of Mise en scene develops tension throughout the trailer through the use of props such as chains for example that are tied to both characters’ bodies. We can denote that the men are being held against their will as they try to set themselves free, props such as chains connote things such as prisons and locking something away, this evokes a sense of worry in the audience for the characters as they want to know how and why they got to this point. This creates enigma and the audience will want to know the answers to their questions. Another aspect of Mise en scene is used, for example the lighting is dark and dingy, this connotes a sense of fear for the unknown and the things that the characters and audience cannot see. When the lights are turned on there is a blue tinge to the lighting which still creates these feeling that despite the fact the characters can now see, the lighting may forebode that all is not clear and things are not going to go well for the characters as there is still no natural light which reinforces the idea that they are trapped and an escape is not easy. The main location for most the scenes is a boiler room or a ware house, this use of a large space adds to the idea that the victims are helpless, with no way out. All of the locations however seem to be run down giving the impression that they have been abandoned. Through using the props of a saw the audience can witness first-hand how the film is full of gore. It depicts the sheer violence involved in the film and therefore allows the audience to decide if they want to watch the film. Another prop used in the trailer is newspaper articles, these show the narrative behind all the gore and this for some viewers of the trailer who like murder mystery type films may enjoy this aspect of the film. It also creates narrative enigma as we want to find out who is behind this ongoing problem. The articles look old and worn down suggesting this problem has been going on for a long time. The use of these props are effective because the audience are shocked by the danger and horror of the film trailer. Mise en scene is also used through costume, when we see “jigsaw” during the trailer he is in a suit and a bow tie, whereas both the victims in the same room are in scruffy clothing which creates the idea that there is a hierarchy and he is in charge. It also highlights his power and the scruffy clothing represents how the victims have been supressed. In addition to this the clothes of the victim are wet and dirty, indicating that they are being held against their will. The film trailer starts in the dark with a character saying ‘is anyone there’. The audience is kept in suspense, not knowing who is there and not knowing what is going on. This creates tension as the audience want to know what is going to happen, this is a typical convention of a thriller trailer. As the scene continues the guy who is speaking is taking pictures that are flashing, giving the audience snippets of the scene but almost making them feel like they are trapped and in the same position as the victim. By using such dark lighting the audience are kept guessing therefore creating narrative enigma.
A range of camera angles are used in the trailer but the cinematography used in Saw is mainly medium shots, this creates tension as you can see the character’s emotion as well as the area surrounding them which will evoke the most sense of horror within the audience due to the dirty, dingy and strange location the characters seem to be stuck in. As well as this as the camera angle change the shot starts of either zoomed in, which gradually zooms out to reveal the setting, or the shot starts off blurry and unfocused which then become clear. This would create tension as the audience may feel as though they are there in the room and experiencing the situation as well as it creating more of a build-up to reveal the setting, therefore building tension.
In the trailer of Saw non-diegetic and diegetic sound is used to build tension. At the beginning the sounds of splashing in water and choking are heard, this is diegetic sound, this creates a build in tension, as the man seems to be struggling, when he finishes chocking more diegetic sound is heard to create enigma, piercing screams for help create this emotion. This connotes that the character is in trouble and wants to get away from where he is. This as a result causes the audience to question and become intrigued by the story line. This also foreshadows the events to come in the film and the bad events that will happen to the main characters as the narrative continues to develop.
At the beginning, we cannot tell character types as two characters are seen in distress and neither do very much about their situation apart from helplessly screaming and trying to set them self-free. But this in its own way develops tension as the audience will want to know more about the characters and are therefore interested in the story line and what their characters are like.
In my trailer, I can use aspects of the conventions and features displayed in Saw, as they create and build tension well, as well as engaging the audience and making them feel emotion which is what the audience want to feel, due to the results of our questionnaire and focus group, when watching a horror. For example, I can use the screeches for diegetic sound for similar effect to express the horror the character in my trailer is experiencing creating a gripping overall trailer. This will develop enigma and make my trailer more effective towards its target audience.