Clueless trailer analysis by Charles Cadman

Themes and ideas:

· Wealth

· Puppy love

· High School clichés

Textual Analysis:

Camera shots:

· Mostly mid-shots used, as they are extremely important in establishing and exaggerating the character’s lavish lifestyles and the locations they visit. Most mid-shots include the high school campus, classrooms, homes and restaurants

· The first shot (mid-shot) of main character (Cher Horowitz), gradually zooms in on her whilst jumping to close-ups of different people’s facial expressions about what she is saying gives audience clues to her personality and nature as a character

· There is a close-up mid way through the trailer of ‘Cher’s’ facial expression when ‘Christian’ complements her, after this, the camera pans up her legs implying sexual energy between the characters

· Short mid-close-ups showing different relationships throughout the film as to give the audience some knowledge

· Last shot is of a humorous nature leaving the audience wanting more entertainment

The camera shots in this trailer generally help to establish status between characters and to reflect the setting and location of scenes. The shots also convey the difference in personalities and status.

Mise En Scene:

· Costume consists of teachers and parents in formal dress representing there authority over the teenage characters

· Most of the teenage characters at the school are shown to be wearing expensive designer casual wear reflecting their wealth

· Costume also plays a role in terms of conveying the character’s personas e.g. ‘Cher’ is shown wearing lots of bright colors and strong patterns emulating her extravagance

· Black boards, books, desks all show the location and setting of the film

· Lighting is mainly high-key reflecting a natural setting of a school

· Shadow on ‘Christian’s’ face as opposed to the brightness on ‘Cher’s’ face conveying the difference in status and personality

Mise En Scene plays a key role in separating characters in terms of wealth and personality. The costume tends to relfect the importance of wealth and social strata. Lighting and other props are used to assist the camera shots in reflecting the environments of the school and the character's houses.

Editing:

· Slow cuts between the first shots of the trailer, though gradually getting snappier, keeping the audience on edge not allowing them to get bored

· Spinning transitions between some shots in keeping with the energetic feel of the film

· Credits pop up at regular intervals throughout the film in a colorful and youthful font which represents the immature personas of the characters

· Unlike most comedy film trailers, this one doesn’t have a narrator talking throughout, this is because the shots used for the trailer are informative and humorous enough to get an audience into cinemas without the use of voice-over

Editing is used mainly to create enigma and pace in the trailer keeping the audience engaged with the preview and information about the film. It also tends to be in keeping with the comedy genre.

Sound:

· Rock/pop music is used in the trailer, like that of the music the characters would listen to creating a bond between the audience and characters

· Music changes twice throughout, playing three different sound tracks at pivotal moments in the trailer causing the mood to change as well

· Music tends to stop altogether for a second when there is a particularly important or hilarious moment

· A car screeching sound effect is used, also to symbolize a particularly significant moment

The music used in the trailer is used to reflect the characters' ages and stereotypical cliques they fit into. The other sound effects are used to put emphasis on particular humurours or romantic moments/shots.