Spectre Case Study
The Basics:
1) Details about the film-
Name= James Bond Spectre
Director= Sam Mendes
Stars (notable)=
- Daniel Craig
- Christopher Waltz
- Ralph Fiennes
- Monica Bellucci
- Naomi Harris
Type of film= Franchise (The James Bond Series)
Location= England
2) When was it released-
Release of film= 26 October 2016
3) Genre of film and generic conventions-
Genre= Action, Adventure and Thriller
Generic conventions=
- Use of weaponry
- Agent style film
- Location is at MI5 (special ops team)
- Explosions visible from trailer
- Tone is dark and gritty
- Use of location destruction
- Fight sequences present during the trailer
4) Critical Reception-
Rating on IMDB= 6.9/10
Rating on Rotten Tomatoes= 64%
Broadcast:
1) MIGRAIN analysis of film:
Media language
Costumes- Suits, dresses, military, Halloween part theme
Lighting- High-key lighting and low key lighting (in some scenes)
Actors expressions- serious tone
Make up- Female make-up present as well as the lighter tone of skin colour on some of the characters.
Props- guns, costumes (suits), vehicle, boat, plane a ring and gadgets
Setting-London, icy climate, luxurious house/building, ancient landmarks
Institution
Spectre had a budget of $245,000,000 which is known as a big budget film. The money used to fund this from came largely from, Sony Pictures who gave the majority of its money towards the films project. In Hollywood, this budget is roughly a normal and healthy budget for any film that is made in Hollywood. There were many different types of institutions involved in the making of this film that are well known for example, Columbia Pictures who helped to distribute the film. Columbia Pictures were involved in the film appeal to larger audiences such as, portrayal through poster, advertisements or even social media management.
Genre
The genre of the film is solely based off of an action genre. This is evident through out the trailer even. The first few seconds into the trailer is about 007 targeting a man in a building, soon after blowing it up. These are clear connotations towards an action related genre. Moreover, there are various types of props that correlate to the genre as the main prop used is a gun. The tone of the trailer and of the franchise is built up of a revenge plot-line which often works best with an action and thriller type film as lots of physical violence is present during this and the other James Bong films.
Representation
The film seems to represent white middle/upper class people as posh and of high education. This is apparent in the trailer where the majority of the characters seen in this trailer are wearing suits. These are connotations and props that all work together to create this representation of well educated people. Moreover, the accent in which most of the characters (in this trailer speak) is very fluent and posh- typical/stereotypical English/British voice. It shows how powerful the British is through the way they speak and even shows how well educated they are as they speak fluently and with tone.
Another representation is the use of males doing the majority of action sequences. We see the main protagonist (who is male) and has co-workers whom are also male. This is present in the trailer where we see 007's boss (who is a male) and also other workers in the background of MI5. This representation that is present in the trailer (and in the past James Bond films) shows how presents British society to be male dominant and still carries stereotypes of male dominance even in the trailer. However, there are some characters who do counter this argument such as the character, MoneyPenny. This is a black female actor playing the role of the assistant of the protagonist. This role does counter the representations that previous films had, however it does still contain strong representations that are still present in today's society.
Ideologies
People who view this trailer will automatically perceive England as a powerful country. This is present in the character of 007 and the actions/things he does in this trailer. It seems to show the power of the country through the protagonist and to create a virtual image of Britain. The message that audiences would see would be 'Britain has many more agents like this...'. The message is trying to make people ideological thinking change by creating a virtual version in their mind.
Another ideology present in this trailer is that Britain if full of rich assets as well as rich/upper class people. This is apparent where most of the scenes take place in mansions or in high end apartments as well as people wearing luxurious clothing. These conventions are all used to portray this picture of a 'rich Britain' as all characters seen in this trailer are wearing expensive looking clothes as well as owning expensive assets. This shows audiences how rich Britain is as well as, how historical it can be as famous landmarks too are shown in this trailer to show the historical theme and context in the film.
Narrative
The narrative that audiences can pick up from the trailer is, a young male MI5 agent comes across an important piece of data that triggers a mission he must proceed with. It is a man of his past that is the villain and he doesn't know what is in store for him once he embarks on this journey.
Often, trailers use a variety of shots from the chronology placement of the entire film, but place little segments in the trailer to make the story flow and come across to the audience.
2)
Different types of promotion for the film- Spectre:
The marketing team behind this idea had made a great move in order to help promote the film. This is because they are suing the most common ways of grabbing peoples attentions- by using cars. Cars that look really good or are just well known such as, Lamborghini get many peoples attention even when they are busy doing something else. This strategy works really well to help make people go and see the movie. They used the actual Aston Martin which was featured in the James Bong film- Spectre and was driving the vehicle through the streets of London to gain peoples attention. Cars make people look at them by revving the engine of the car, so that pedestrians will turn their attention to the thing that is making the sound. In addition, the whole idea of having the Aston Martin there is to promote the film, and is representing the film in this way. People who haven't heard of the film who see this car will now know of its existence as they have seen the car promote it in London,
This is a TV spot for the film. A TV spot is essentially a small preview of the film in 30 seconds and is often played on TV. What's so significant about a TV spot? Well a TV spot would normally contain some of the best action sequences as well as a brief synopsis breakdown in 30 seconds to keep audience entertained as well as want to watch the film, but also it is there to build hype. A TV spot is very different from a teaser trailer as a TV spot will contain mostly the footage seen in the previous trailers, they have just been selected and placed into a sequence to make a different TV spot. TV spots show up on YouTube and social media closer to the release of the film. Furthermore, those who follow and are major fans of the 007 franchise would want to watch a TV spot as sometime the film makers may throw in a new scene that people haven't even seen yet (as in, it hasn't been seen on any trailer or material related to the film).
A great example is Batman V Superman, there is a TV spot where Batman is seen to say the line 'Well, here I am...' which is a scene that was placed into the TV spot rather than the actual trailers for the film. This could be for the people who don't want to learn too much about the film and would rather watch a small brief trailer about the film so that they do not learn everything about the film.
This TV spot was used to promote the film Spectre as TV spots (like the one above) usually come out closer to the films release date. The film distributors would create multiple versions of a TV spot, each containing different scenes etc. The more they release, the more publicity it will have via YouTube (which is where the majority of TV spots get released) as it will fill the YouTube 'latest' section ensuring users should check it out. Moreover, the TV spots (at times) can be considered better than the theatrical trailer. This is because it doesn't give too much away (which some trailer do now days) and builds 'hype' for the movie as some of the greatest scenes are used in the TV spot.
3)
Use of having stars to promote the film?:
One famous celebrity/singer known as Sam Smith has made a song dedicated to the release of this film. The song is entirely based on the film and is now the films theme song known as 'Writing on the walls'. This acts as a form of synergy between he music and film industry by using different artists to promote each other. Sam Smith is a well known singer and has a large fan-base, fans who see his music video would want to go watch the film as he is seen to promote the film through his song (as it is dedicated to the film). Not only is the song based on the film Spectre, the music video contains large amount of footage from the actual film. This is makes the focus of the video all around Spectre the movie as users who see the footage are listening to the music but as watching the film. This makes users want to watch the film as they learn abut the film without knowing, as they are listening to their favourite music artist.
1) MIGRAIN analysis of film:
Media language
Costumes- Suits, dresses, military, Halloween part theme
Lighting- High-key lighting and low key lighting (in some scenes)
Actors expressions- serious tone
Make up- Female make-up present as well as the lighter tone of skin colour on some of the characters.
Props- guns, costumes (suits), vehicle, boat, plane a ring and gadgets
Setting-London, icy climate, luxurious house/building, ancient landmarks
Institution
Spectre had a budget of $245,000,000 which is known as a big budget film. The money used to fund this from came largely from, Sony Pictures who gave the majority of its money towards the films project. In Hollywood, this budget is roughly a normal and healthy budget for any film that is made in Hollywood. There were many different types of institutions involved in the making of this film that are well known for example, Columbia Pictures who helped to distribute the film. Columbia Pictures were involved in the film appeal to larger audiences such as, portrayal through poster, advertisements or even social media management.
Genre
The genre of the film is solely based off of an action genre. This is evident through out the trailer even. The first few seconds into the trailer is about 007 targeting a man in a building, soon after blowing it up. These are clear connotations towards an action related genre. Moreover, there are various types of props that correlate to the genre as the main prop used is a gun. The tone of the trailer and of the franchise is built up of a revenge plot-line which often works best with an action and thriller type film as lots of physical violence is present during this and the other James Bong films.
Representation
The film seems to represent white middle/upper class people as posh and of high education. This is apparent in the trailer where the majority of the characters seen in this trailer are wearing suits. These are connotations and props that all work together to create this representation of well educated people. Moreover, the accent in which most of the characters (in this trailer speak) is very fluent and posh- typical/stereotypical English/British voice. It shows how powerful the British is through the way they speak and even shows how well educated they are as they speak fluently and with tone.
Another representation is the use of males doing the majority of action sequences. We see the main protagonist (who is male) and has co-workers whom are also male. This is present in the trailer where we see 007's boss (who is a male) and also other workers in the background of MI5. This representation that is present in the trailer (and in the past James Bond films) shows how presents British society to be male dominant and still carries stereotypes of male dominance even in the trailer. However, there are some characters who do counter this argument such as the character, MoneyPenny. This is a black female actor playing the role of the assistant of the protagonist. This role does counter the representations that previous films had, however it does still contain strong representations that are still present in today's society.
Ideologies
People who view this trailer will automatically perceive England as a powerful country. This is present in the character of 007 and the actions/things he does in this trailer. It seems to show the power of the country through the protagonist and to create a virtual image of Britain. The message that audiences would see would be 'Britain has many more agents like this...'. The message is trying to make people ideological thinking change by creating a virtual version in their mind.
Another ideology present in this trailer is that Britain if full of rich assets as well as rich/upper class people. This is apparent where most of the scenes take place in mansions or in high end apartments as well as people wearing luxurious clothing. These conventions are all used to portray this picture of a 'rich Britain' as all characters seen in this trailer are wearing expensive looking clothes as well as owning expensive assets. This shows audiences how rich Britain is as well as, how historical it can be as famous landmarks too are shown in this trailer to show the historical theme and context in the film.
Narrative
The narrative that audiences can pick up from the trailer is, a young male MI5 agent comes across an important piece of data that triggers a mission he must proceed with. It is a man of his past that is the villain and he doesn't know what is in store for him once he embarks on this journey.
Often, trailers use a variety of shots from the chronology placement of the entire film, but place little segments in the trailer to make the story flow and come across to the audience.
2)
Different types of promotion for the film- Spectre:
The marketing team behind this idea had made a great move in order to help promote the film. This is because they are suing the most common ways of grabbing peoples attentions- by using cars. Cars that look really good or are just well known such as, Lamborghini get many peoples attention even when they are busy doing something else. This strategy works really well to help make people go and see the movie. They used the actual Aston Martin which was featured in the James Bong film- Spectre and was driving the vehicle through the streets of London to gain peoples attention. Cars make people look at them by revving the engine of the car, so that pedestrians will turn their attention to the thing that is making the sound. In addition, the whole idea of having the Aston Martin there is to promote the film, and is representing the film in this way. People who haven't heard of the film who see this car will now know of its existence as they have seen the car promote it in London,
This is a TV spot for the film. A TV spot is essentially a small preview of the film in 30 seconds and is often played on TV. What's so significant about a TV spot? Well a TV spot would normally contain some of the best action sequences as well as a brief synopsis breakdown in 30 seconds to keep audience entertained as well as want to watch the film, but also it is there to build hype. A TV spot is very different from a teaser trailer as a TV spot will contain mostly the footage seen in the previous trailers, they have just been selected and placed into a sequence to make a different TV spot. TV spots show up on YouTube and social media closer to the release of the film. Furthermore, those who follow and are major fans of the 007 franchise would want to watch a TV spot as sometime the film makers may throw in a new scene that people haven't even seen yet (as in, it hasn't been seen on any trailer or material related to the film).
A great example is Batman V Superman, there is a TV spot where Batman is seen to say the line 'Well, here I am...' which is a scene that was placed into the TV spot rather than the actual trailers for the film. This could be for the people who don't want to learn too much about the film and would rather watch a small brief trailer about the film so that they do not learn everything about the film.
This TV spot was used to promote the film Spectre as TV spots (like the one above) usually come out closer to the films release date. The film distributors would create multiple versions of a TV spot, each containing different scenes etc. The more they release, the more publicity it will have via YouTube (which is where the majority of TV spots get released) as it will fill the YouTube 'latest' section ensuring users should check it out. Moreover, the TV spots (at times) can be considered better than the theatrical trailer. This is because it doesn't give too much away (which some trailer do now days) and builds 'hype' for the movie as some of the greatest scenes are used in the TV spot.
3)
Use of having stars to promote the film?:
One famous celebrity/singer known as Sam Smith has made a song dedicated to the release of this film. The song is entirely based on the film and is now the films theme song known as 'Writing on the walls'. This acts as a form of synergy between he music and film industry by using different artists to promote each other. Sam Smith is a well known singer and has a large fan-base, fans who see his music video would want to go watch the film as he is seen to promote the film through his song (as it is dedicated to the film). Not only is the song based on the film Spectre, the music video contains large amount of footage from the actual film. This is makes the focus of the video all around Spectre the movie as users who see the footage are listening to the music but as watching the film. This makes users want to watch the film as they learn abut the film without knowing, as they are listening to their favourite music artist.
Print:
1) The last THREE reviews-
Source: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2379713/reviews?ref_=tt_ov_rt
2) Examples of print promotion-
This is an advertising poster for the film Spectre. This is a normal poster as it shows off the protagonist (played by Daniel Craig) as well as the logo for the film and the brand of 007. This poster helps t promote the film as it is large in size meaning, that wherever this poster is decided to be placed, it will get the attention of the majority of people who walk by it due to its appealing look. Moreover, it shows off 007 which will familiarise its audience after they see this poster which may make them want to watch it.
This is another example of promotion for the film. The image above is of a bus that is fully dedicated and painted for the film. Here we can see, the entire bus filled with promotion text as well as images that are linked with the film. Because this film is set in London and is from a classic British TV series, Britain wants to do everything they can to promote the film as the film represents the country. Majority of the films that come out in cinemas are big name Hollywood productions and the film Spectre is a film that is entirely based around Britain and publicises British power. This bus is an example of how proud Britain are to have a film that represents it. And by placing images and changing bus colours will really grab the attention of the public as they probably haven't seen anything like it.
3) Example of a print and analysis of it-
4) Film's brand construction-
The main brand that is present is the number '007' and is a very powerful and significant brand for this film. The number defines the film because, whenever someone says that number, people would refer to James Bond as that number represents the film as well as the character. In the majority of films that are parodies or even spy films them self, they would reference James Bond (sometimes) by referring to the code name; 007.
Another brand image that this film has is the title of the film. Each Bond film is differentiated due to the title of the film. The title of the film is what makes the film unique from its other counter parts and in this case it is the title- Spectre. Often (so far) we have seen each title of the Bond film, everything from Casino Royale to Spectre have their own and unique font to represent the film. People can notice a film through its font such as, if a film was a stand alone film however took place in the same universe, the title of that film will convey this. An example is Star Wars, there is a stand alone Star Wars movie coming out in late December 2016 called Rogue One. This film doesn't have the name 'Star Wars' in front of the films name, it is just Rogue One. The name Rogue One is surrounded by another text saying 'A Star Wars story' in the same font that every other Star Wars film has. Therefore, it is the font that creates the brand image as people will see that the font is only specific to that film only and if they see it anywhere else, they would recall the film of where that font actual came from.
E- Media:
1) Films presence on social media-
Facebook
The Spectre Facebook is still active even though it is 6 months past the release of the film. They tend to post screengrabs from the official film to still keep the fans interactive about the film and not forgetting it. There have been a fair amount of likes on both the page itself as well as on each post they do. They have over 1,000,000 likes for the page and usually get under 5,000 likes per post. The like count shows how they are still promoting the film as it shows the number of people who are interested in the film still after its release..
In addition, the screengrab above show one of many ways the film page has tried to promote the film. The post shown above shows the awards that the film has currently received and this form of post acts as a big way to persuade people to watch the film. Those who have liked the page (which is under 1 million) will likely see this post and therefore, may want to see it due to its success for receiving a highly reputable and well known award. The post acts as a way to remind people of how popular and great the film is and that if it receives an award like this, there is no reason why people shouldn't go and see it; this is the message that the post is trying to give out.
Twitter
This is an example of promotion for the film on the films Twitter age. Although the screengrab above isn't of the actual page posting the tweet, but the ability to re-tweet the tweet makes it seem like a form of promotion as the film wants its twitter fans to see this post as well as those who haven't seen the movie. By the films twitter page re-tweeting this post, it is as if they are trying to promote the film using other and actual fans words to do that. This is because if someone sees this post, they are more likely to watch the film after seeing a 'fan' or another person share their opinion for it. Furthermore, by re-tweeting the post, they are trying to get the message to a even wider audience so that their fan base can see the post as well as other Twitter users who haven't yet seen the movie.
Instagram
Here is an instagram post from the James Bond instagram page. This is another form of promotion for the film. In this post, the film is trying to make fans interact with them with a chance of winning the prize. The prize is to go and see the official Aston Martin from the actual film Spectre. This is a form of promotion as it has been 6 months since the film has been released and people will stop 'hyping' and getting excited for it and therefore forgetting about it. However, this post is used to gain those audiences back and make them still remember the film by giving them the chance to win a prize. By posting this, they are making their fans and users interact with them and acts a a way of promoting the film.
2) Analysis of official website-
Source: http://www.007.com/spectre/
The films website is very neat and portrays itself well. This means that it presents itself to the audience of being a big-budget and famous known film. Like most film websites, the protagonist is clearly seen on the first page which is typical for film websites. In addition to this, the banner is updated to the new title of the film known as 'Spectre' and this too is typical of many other film websites. The website seems to draw attention more to the characters of the film more than the production. There is a synopsis of the movie which instantly acts as a way to draw the viewers attention into making the decision if they like or dislike the film.
The theme of the film runs through each link. The website contains mini games to do with spies as well as making the film seem real through the link, Q's workshop which is a way for uses to interact with the films site and content.
There are many forms of synergy seen on the website for Spectre. One of which is the cross promotion of the Aston Martin vehicle which was used for the film. The webpage dedicates an entire page of all the vehicles used to make the movie and this acts as a form of synergy as it is promoting the car as well as the car promoting the film. When people see the exact car, they will refer to the film as it was first sighted there. Furthermore, there is a cross promotion with the music industry as there is a dedicate song for promoting the film. The song as made by Sam Smith who made a song promoting the film. Those who are fans of the film and hear its main theme (done by Sam), then the film is promoting the singer in a way.
3) Any type of e-media based campaign-
There was no form of e-media campaign that was major big compared to the Ill Manors tag London campaign. There was one which I have noticed on Twitter, where the page posted a tweet telling users to wear a suit for the opening weekend of the films release. However, this campaign didn't go as viral as compared to other campaigns which could be the reason for people not knowing of its presence.
4) Examples of the two-step theory online-
There have been posts largely on Twitter where famous celebrates have posted their love for the film Spectre and how the actor had done a fantastic job again. Those who follow these fans but are not aware of this film, once they see this post they are more likely to listen to them and therefore believe that the film is good without even watching it. Another example is on IMDB where there are many famous and reputable critic which most of the public rely on before watching the film- to know if the film is worth it. This is another example of the two step flow model as people will ultimately take in the opinion and judgement of another person and will take it into consideration without even making up their own mind. Reviews and critics for a film come from the opinion of the critic and the review is based off of their experience for the film. However, those who really consider these people's opinion would be influenced through opinion leaders rather than the media itself.
Audience:
1) Target audience for the film-
The film has a 12A certificate which has been judged by the BBFC. This doesn't necessarily mean that the film makers intended their film to reach that audience, it is just what category (or the amount of points) the film has received according to their criteria. If the intended audience was to be 12 and over then, they would be from a middle and higher class background due to the style and theme of the film being about a rich white male who does dangerous things for his country. The film seems to follow a more mainstream story which best targets this class range. In addition, the film would be 50/50 gender split as these films don't always focus around the male character. This franchise is well known for having a Bond girl rather just having a male Bond character. People want to (or feel eager) to know who the new Bond girl is as they tend to change through out each film. As a result, due to this anticipation for a Bond as well as a female Bond, there is likely going to be an equal audience for both genders.
Pyschographics, would generally be aspirer and mainstreamer as they all want a source of escapism from their daily lives. The film involve violence and dangerous missions which is what people don't often see in their daily lives, therefore the film is for escapism purposes. In addition, the story of a man seeking revenge for the death of his family is a very similar story line in films and therefore, it is for a mainstream audience as it is similar to other content.
2) How does synergy target the audience-
There are two examples of cross media platforms linked with this film that target this audience, one of them being the music element of this film. Every Bond film will tend to be sung by a different singer and would have an entirely different tune than the one before and after it. Before Spectre, it was Skyfall and its main theme song was sung by Adele. There is a cross promotion for this film due to the fanbase of the singer. The singer who sung the main theme for Spectre is called Sam Smith. This is a British singer who has a wide fanbase. Now considering, this is a new and well known singer, by using him to sing a song for the main theme for Britain's most famous film would join many fans and consumers. Fans of Sam's content (even international ones) would go and see the film as he has participated in creating and singing the main theme song. Furthermore, those who are fans of the Bond franchise would probably want to hear more of the singer who sung the main theme for Spectre. Therefore, the idea of the main theme song attract audiences from both sides.
3) Possible audience pleasures-
One main pleasure that audiences would have is the historic element to Britain. Stereotypically, Britain is seen to be a country who is built up of ancient and historical laws and aesthetics as there are so many famous landmarks taking people back 100's of years such as, the Big Ben. In addition. audience want to see more difference in the tone and theme of British films. People are so used to viewing American films and they would like to explore into other nationalities of film types such as this.
Furthermore, considering that the majority of films are from America, people don't actually see films based around Britain unless it is filmed in Britain etc. Often, British films tend to show knowledge about the monarch and audiences from America may fee fascinated by this as they haven't experienced a monarch before and this can be portrayed through a film such as this.
4) Similar films for audience-
Grossed- £200,000,000 in USA alone
Opening weekend- $70,500,000
USA- $200,000,000
UK- £623,433,808.69
International- 679,500,000
6) Success nationally or internationality:
1) Representation of people, groups and location seen in the film:
The most common representation is of the British male. The character James Bond is seen to represent the country, portraying it to the world that Britain has men like this; men who take risks and care for society.
Another representation is Britain being portrayed as a white dominant country. There are a few non-white characters in this film and is largely dominated by white ethnic people. This represents Britain being more of its historical ethnicity.
Furthermore, the white characters are seen to be fairly upper class. Even in the scene where James is in public, we see a lot of white people smarty dressed showing their class.
Finally, the foreigners are seen as the villains. We see that the villain (or part villain) is a foreigner and is not from Britain. This shows that the film carries those ideologies of non-Britons being a threat.
2) Aspect of Britishness within the film (extent):
The location of the film is the biggest aspect of Britishness and it is the location than theme that makes this film stand out. Most films that are released are from America and are often set in America, however one of the biggest soy films is British and it is the location and type of character that makes British people want to watch it. It makes Britons proud that they have a successful film franchise like James Bond.
The British people is another aspect of Britishness that is represented through the film. The film seems to be conveying to the world that Britain has people like this, like James Bond who are dedicated towards their country. Its as if the film is portraying the typical British person through their most well known film character.
3) Representation of Britain compared to Ill Manors:
Both films portray Britain is a different way. The slogan of Ill Manors even states their portrayal of Britain. First of all, Ill Manors, basing it off of them, tone and style of the film the audience can see a negative view point of Britain. There is very little colour and if there was, it would be dull and grey colours. In addition to this, the people are portrayed very differently. In James Bond the characters are presented as strong and loyal to their peers whereas Ill Manors have their character speaking slang and dressed like criminals.
In addition, Ill Manors was created on political ground and had a political aspect to it whereas Spectre didn't. The main purpose for creating Spectre was to carry on the franchise of the well known James Bond franchise as well as to continue and entertain the public. Ill Manors director Ben Drew even stated that his film is to create a message to the government and to the people around the world. He dislikes the changes made to the country and its affect on young people. He wanted to make a film that would show how the youth are suffering from this change and how the government are doing wrong.
4) Values and ideologies seen in the film:
The most well known ideology seen in the film is that Britain is proud of its historical state. There are many scene through out the film which take place in famous landmarks around Britain. The film makers are trying to make the audience realise this by setting certain scenes in historical places known to Britain.
Another value and ideology is that Britain can make as good films as America.This film is to counter the American films and show how Britain can still create fine films such as this. The film is seen to represent the country. Furthermore, another film that represents Britain in an equal state is Harry Potter. The film is set around London and is themed around the country. This franchise represents Britain as holding the most amazing franchises as well as authors.
Case study comparison:
Similarities-
Ill Manors and Spectre both take place in the same country/location- Britain. Even though they are both created and set around these locations, it doesn't mean that their portrayals of these locations is going to be the same. Both Ill Manors and Spectre are themed and are known to be set around Britain/London. Their characters are also there to reflect their environments. This is clearly evident as both characters from both films seem to be different due to the different take/portrayal of their environment.
Both films consider and relate to justice in a way. Ill Manors is about, how young teenagers need to watch themselves from the police as they may be seen doing criminal related things. The idea of justice is also the main motive for the director Ben Drew to make the film Ill Manors. This is because he wants to create justice for the youth and how they are being ill treated by society, and by him creating this film he is trying to create a message to society to change their view of the youth. Spectre on the other hand, is about a man who is trying to bring the bad guys to justice due to them harming James and his country.
Differences-
Ill Manors is more accurately based on truth and true event that have occurred whereas Spectre is mostly made up and is not based around reality. Ill Manors isn't a films for just entertainment purposes. It is also their to inform and educate the consumer/viewer of the content. Ben Drew wanted the viewers to understand the problems that the youth face due to the changes made by the government. Spectre on the other hand, is primarily there to entertain audiences and those who are fans of this franchise. Spectre has generated this big fan base that goes back to 70 years worth of James Bond related content. The current James Bond films link with one another and therefore, it is needed for another movie to come about to finish off the story line or perhaps continue a new one.
1) The last THREE reviews-
Source: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2379713/reviews?ref_=tt_ov_rt
- "A truly unexciting 'action' movie"
- "Tedious and overblown"
- "A fairly muddled entry into the Bond canon"
2) Examples of print promotion-
This is an advertising poster for the film Spectre. This is a normal poster as it shows off the protagonist (played by Daniel Craig) as well as the logo for the film and the brand of 007. This poster helps t promote the film as it is large in size meaning, that wherever this poster is decided to be placed, it will get the attention of the majority of people who walk by it due to its appealing look. Moreover, it shows off 007 which will familiarise its audience after they see this poster which may make them want to watch it.
This is another example of promotion for the film. The image above is of a bus that is fully dedicated and painted for the film. Here we can see, the entire bus filled with promotion text as well as images that are linked with the film. Because this film is set in London and is from a classic British TV series, Britain wants to do everything they can to promote the film as the film represents the country. Majority of the films that come out in cinemas are big name Hollywood productions and the film Spectre is a film that is entirely based around Britain and publicises British power. This bus is an example of how proud Britain are to have a film that represents it. And by placing images and changing bus colours will really grab the attention of the public as they probably haven't seen anything like it.
3) Example of a print and analysis of it-
- Actor- Audience get to see the new look of the character known as 'James Bond' as the actor 'Daniel Craig' is largely associated with James Bond now day and whenever people see the actors face, they would instantly refer to a link with James Bond. Therefore, it was imperative for them to include the visual reference of what the protagonist will be looking like in this new movie.
- In most Bond films there will always have a Bond girl which by the looks of it, this poster does include. We see the new Bond girl, who is positioned in a typical way for a female to be presented on a film advert as the promotion would be largely male dominated due to the gender of the main protagonist.
- There is also a glimpse of the antagonist (the villain) of the film behind both characters. This poster seems to take inspiration for Star Wars theme concept art where there is the villain usually portrayed above and in the distance of the main characters to give the poster that equality in terms of heroes and villains. In addition, one key thing in this promotion is that the villain is masked, building that suspense to the audience as those are eager to find out who he/she is.
- Finally, we see the new title of the film and what it is going to be called. This is important as most James Bond films, will have the title of the film in a new font which acts as a form of differentiation from the other James Bond films. It gives off the uniqueness of this film through its style as well as new font for the 'Spectre' title.
4) Film's brand construction-
The main brand that is present is the number '007' and is a very powerful and significant brand for this film. The number defines the film because, whenever someone says that number, people would refer to James Bond as that number represents the film as well as the character. In the majority of films that are parodies or even spy films them self, they would reference James Bond (sometimes) by referring to the code name; 007.
Another brand image that this film has is the title of the film. Each Bond film is differentiated due to the title of the film. The title of the film is what makes the film unique from its other counter parts and in this case it is the title- Spectre. Often (so far) we have seen each title of the Bond film, everything from Casino Royale to Spectre have their own and unique font to represent the film. People can notice a film through its font such as, if a film was a stand alone film however took place in the same universe, the title of that film will convey this. An example is Star Wars, there is a stand alone Star Wars movie coming out in late December 2016 called Rogue One. This film doesn't have the name 'Star Wars' in front of the films name, it is just Rogue One. The name Rogue One is surrounded by another text saying 'A Star Wars story' in the same font that every other Star Wars film has. Therefore, it is the font that creates the brand image as people will see that the font is only specific to that film only and if they see it anywhere else, they would recall the film of where that font actual came from.
E- Media:
1) Films presence on social media-
The Spectre Facebook is still active even though it is 6 months past the release of the film. They tend to post screengrabs from the official film to still keep the fans interactive about the film and not forgetting it. There have been a fair amount of likes on both the page itself as well as on each post they do. They have over 1,000,000 likes for the page and usually get under 5,000 likes per post. The like count shows how they are still promoting the film as it shows the number of people who are interested in the film still after its release..
In addition, the screengrab above show one of many ways the film page has tried to promote the film. The post shown above shows the awards that the film has currently received and this form of post acts as a big way to persuade people to watch the film. Those who have liked the page (which is under 1 million) will likely see this post and therefore, may want to see it due to its success for receiving a highly reputable and well known award. The post acts as a way to remind people of how popular and great the film is and that if it receives an award like this, there is no reason why people shouldn't go and see it; this is the message that the post is trying to give out.
This is an example of promotion for the film on the films Twitter age. Although the screengrab above isn't of the actual page posting the tweet, but the ability to re-tweet the tweet makes it seem like a form of promotion as the film wants its twitter fans to see this post as well as those who haven't seen the movie. By the films twitter page re-tweeting this post, it is as if they are trying to promote the film using other and actual fans words to do that. This is because if someone sees this post, they are more likely to watch the film after seeing a 'fan' or another person share their opinion for it. Furthermore, by re-tweeting the post, they are trying to get the message to a even wider audience so that their fan base can see the post as well as other Twitter users who haven't yet seen the movie.
Here is an instagram post from the James Bond instagram page. This is another form of promotion for the film. In this post, the film is trying to make fans interact with them with a chance of winning the prize. The prize is to go and see the official Aston Martin from the actual film Spectre. This is a form of promotion as it has been 6 months since the film has been released and people will stop 'hyping' and getting excited for it and therefore forgetting about it. However, this post is used to gain those audiences back and make them still remember the film by giving them the chance to win a prize. By posting this, they are making their fans and users interact with them and acts a a way of promoting the film.
2) Analysis of official website-
Source: http://www.007.com/spectre/
The films website is very neat and portrays itself well. This means that it presents itself to the audience of being a big-budget and famous known film. Like most film websites, the protagonist is clearly seen on the first page which is typical for film websites. In addition to this, the banner is updated to the new title of the film known as 'Spectre' and this too is typical of many other film websites. The website seems to draw attention more to the characters of the film more than the production. There is a synopsis of the movie which instantly acts as a way to draw the viewers attention into making the decision if they like or dislike the film.
The theme of the film runs through each link. The website contains mini games to do with spies as well as making the film seem real through the link, Q's workshop which is a way for uses to interact with the films site and content.
There are many forms of synergy seen on the website for Spectre. One of which is the cross promotion of the Aston Martin vehicle which was used for the film. The webpage dedicates an entire page of all the vehicles used to make the movie and this acts as a form of synergy as it is promoting the car as well as the car promoting the film. When people see the exact car, they will refer to the film as it was first sighted there. Furthermore, there is a cross promotion with the music industry as there is a dedicate song for promoting the film. The song as made by Sam Smith who made a song promoting the film. Those who are fans of the film and hear its main theme (done by Sam), then the film is promoting the singer in a way.
3) Any type of e-media based campaign-
There was no form of e-media campaign that was major big compared to the Ill Manors tag London campaign. There was one which I have noticed on Twitter, where the page posted a tweet telling users to wear a suit for the opening weekend of the films release. However, this campaign didn't go as viral as compared to other campaigns which could be the reason for people not knowing of its presence.
4) Examples of the two-step theory online-
There have been posts largely on Twitter where famous celebrates have posted their love for the film Spectre and how the actor had done a fantastic job again. Those who follow these fans but are not aware of this film, once they see this post they are more likely to listen to them and therefore believe that the film is good without even watching it. Another example is on IMDB where there are many famous and reputable critic which most of the public rely on before watching the film- to know if the film is worth it. This is another example of the two step flow model as people will ultimately take in the opinion and judgement of another person and will take it into consideration without even making up their own mind. Reviews and critics for a film come from the opinion of the critic and the review is based off of their experience for the film. However, those who really consider these people's opinion would be influenced through opinion leaders rather than the media itself.
Audience:
1) Target audience for the film-
The film has a 12A certificate which has been judged by the BBFC. This doesn't necessarily mean that the film makers intended their film to reach that audience, it is just what category (or the amount of points) the film has received according to their criteria. If the intended audience was to be 12 and over then, they would be from a middle and higher class background due to the style and theme of the film being about a rich white male who does dangerous things for his country. The film seems to follow a more mainstream story which best targets this class range. In addition, the film would be 50/50 gender split as these films don't always focus around the male character. This franchise is well known for having a Bond girl rather just having a male Bond character. People want to (or feel eager) to know who the new Bond girl is as they tend to change through out each film. As a result, due to this anticipation for a Bond as well as a female Bond, there is likely going to be an equal audience for both genders.
Pyschographics, would generally be aspirer and mainstreamer as they all want a source of escapism from their daily lives. The film involve violence and dangerous missions which is what people don't often see in their daily lives, therefore the film is for escapism purposes. In addition, the story of a man seeking revenge for the death of his family is a very similar story line in films and therefore, it is for a mainstream audience as it is similar to other content.
2) How does synergy target the audience-
There are two examples of cross media platforms linked with this film that target this audience, one of them being the music element of this film. Every Bond film will tend to be sung by a different singer and would have an entirely different tune than the one before and after it. Before Spectre, it was Skyfall and its main theme song was sung by Adele. There is a cross promotion for this film due to the fanbase of the singer. The singer who sung the main theme for Spectre is called Sam Smith. This is a British singer who has a wide fanbase. Now considering, this is a new and well known singer, by using him to sing a song for the main theme for Britain's most famous film would join many fans and consumers. Fans of Sam's content (even international ones) would go and see the film as he has participated in creating and singing the main theme song. Furthermore, those who are fans of the Bond franchise would probably want to hear more of the singer who sung the main theme for Spectre. Therefore, the idea of the main theme song attract audiences from both sides.
3) Possible audience pleasures-
One main pleasure that audiences would have is the historic element to Britain. Stereotypically, Britain is seen to be a country who is built up of ancient and historical laws and aesthetics as there are so many famous landmarks taking people back 100's of years such as, the Big Ben. In addition. audience want to see more difference in the tone and theme of British films. People are so used to viewing American films and they would like to explore into other nationalities of film types such as this.
Furthermore, considering that the majority of films are from America, people don't actually see films based around Britain unless it is filmed in Britain etc. Often, British films tend to show knowledge about the monarch and audiences from America may fee fascinated by this as they haven't experienced a monarch before and this can be portrayed through a film such as this.
4) Similar films for audience-
- Kingsman the secret service
- Johnny English
- Bridge of spies
- Taken
Institution:
1) Details about the film studio:
Production company-
- Columbia pictures
What other films have they produced-
- The Amazing Spiderman
- Robocop
- Men In Black 3
- Terminator
- Surfs up
Track record with the type of film and audience-
Columbia Pictures have a variety of films that they create and is a multi film company that doesn't focus around a central theme or idea. They do tend to base their films under the 12A certificate and do a lot of family related movies. Most of their movies are either PG or under the 12A category. Moreover, they do not just focus on this type of film. They have a wide range of genres that their movies appeal to.
2) Distribution company:
- Sony Pictures Entertainment
Other films they produced-
- Elysiam
- Paul Blart: Mall Cop
- Hancock
- Spiderman 2
3) Track record in terms of audience and type of film:
Sony seems to do the same type of films as Columbia Pictures do as Columbia Pictures is part of the Sony branch and therefore, is likely to produce or distribute films from similar category. Sony often has their films rated below the 12A mark as well as focus of a variety of films, not just one.
4) Budget for the film:
Budget- $245,000,000
5) Financial success of film:
Opening weekend- $70,500,000
USA- $200,000,000
UK- £623,433,808.69
International- 679,500,000
6) Success nationally or internationality:
The data shows that the film did better nationally in England than compared to other countries such as America which is where most of the viewers are from (for other movies). England has made 400,000,000 more than compared to America. However internationally, the film still beat England's box office hit record. The film managed to gain nearly 700,000,000 at the box office. Films now days are not always dominated nationally. This is because it is considered mainstream in one country, but can attract a whole segment of viewers in another. And the type of film can actually attract a larger group of people due to its content being different.
7) Certificate for the film and reason:
The film Spectre was given a 12A and I do agree with this decision to an extent. This is because the film contained a lot of violence and action scene which is the primary reason for the 12A certificate and cannot be viewed by a younger audience. However, I do disagree with this as Bond films do tend to have sexual activity within them and according to the points for a 15 certificate, sexual encounters would be closer to a 15 certificate. Furthermore, the film doesn't structure its entire film around this,
it is mostly filled with action and violence which is probably why it isn't with the 15 certificate as there is not much sexual or even strong language present during the film. This is why the film is a 12A certificate, as it focuses on the action sequences which is what makes a Bond film great in the public's eyes.
Representation:
it is mostly filled with action and violence which is probably why it isn't with the 15 certificate as there is not much sexual or even strong language present during the film. This is why the film is a 12A certificate, as it focuses on the action sequences which is what makes a Bond film great in the public's eyes.
Representation:
1) Representation of people, groups and location seen in the film:
The most common representation is of the British male. The character James Bond is seen to represent the country, portraying it to the world that Britain has men like this; men who take risks and care for society.
Another representation is Britain being portrayed as a white dominant country. There are a few non-white characters in this film and is largely dominated by white ethnic people. This represents Britain being more of its historical ethnicity.
Furthermore, the white characters are seen to be fairly upper class. Even in the scene where James is in public, we see a lot of white people smarty dressed showing their class.
Finally, the foreigners are seen as the villains. We see that the villain (or part villain) is a foreigner and is not from Britain. This shows that the film carries those ideologies of non-Britons being a threat.
2) Aspect of Britishness within the film (extent):
The location of the film is the biggest aspect of Britishness and it is the location than theme that makes this film stand out. Most films that are released are from America and are often set in America, however one of the biggest soy films is British and it is the location and type of character that makes British people want to watch it. It makes Britons proud that they have a successful film franchise like James Bond.
The British people is another aspect of Britishness that is represented through the film. The film seems to be conveying to the world that Britain has people like this, like James Bond who are dedicated towards their country. Its as if the film is portraying the typical British person through their most well known film character.
3) Representation of Britain compared to Ill Manors:
Both films portray Britain is a different way. The slogan of Ill Manors even states their portrayal of Britain. First of all, Ill Manors, basing it off of them, tone and style of the film the audience can see a negative view point of Britain. There is very little colour and if there was, it would be dull and grey colours. In addition to this, the people are portrayed very differently. In James Bond the characters are presented as strong and loyal to their peers whereas Ill Manors have their character speaking slang and dressed like criminals.
In addition, Ill Manors was created on political ground and had a political aspect to it whereas Spectre didn't. The main purpose for creating Spectre was to carry on the franchise of the well known James Bond franchise as well as to continue and entertain the public. Ill Manors director Ben Drew even stated that his film is to create a message to the government and to the people around the world. He dislikes the changes made to the country and its affect on young people. He wanted to make a film that would show how the youth are suffering from this change and how the government are doing wrong.
4) Values and ideologies seen in the film:
The most well known ideology seen in the film is that Britain is proud of its historical state. There are many scene through out the film which take place in famous landmarks around Britain. The film makers are trying to make the audience realise this by setting certain scenes in historical places known to Britain.
Another value and ideology is that Britain can make as good films as America.This film is to counter the American films and show how Britain can still create fine films such as this. The film is seen to represent the country. Furthermore, another film that represents Britain in an equal state is Harry Potter. The film is set around London and is themed around the country. This franchise represents Britain as holding the most amazing franchises as well as authors.
Case study comparison:
Similarities-
Ill Manors and Spectre both take place in the same country/location- Britain. Even though they are both created and set around these locations, it doesn't mean that their portrayals of these locations is going to be the same. Both Ill Manors and Spectre are themed and are known to be set around Britain/London. Their characters are also there to reflect their environments. This is clearly evident as both characters from both films seem to be different due to the different take/portrayal of their environment.
Both films consider and relate to justice in a way. Ill Manors is about, how young teenagers need to watch themselves from the police as they may be seen doing criminal related things. The idea of justice is also the main motive for the director Ben Drew to make the film Ill Manors. This is because he wants to create justice for the youth and how they are being ill treated by society, and by him creating this film he is trying to create a message to society to change their view of the youth. Spectre on the other hand, is about a man who is trying to bring the bad guys to justice due to them harming James and his country.
Differences-
Ill Manors is more accurately based on truth and true event that have occurred whereas Spectre is mostly made up and is not based around reality. Ill Manors isn't a films for just entertainment purposes. It is also their to inform and educate the consumer/viewer of the content. Ben Drew wanted the viewers to understand the problems that the youth face due to the changes made by the government. Spectre on the other hand, is primarily there to entertain audiences and those who are fans of this franchise. Spectre has generated this big fan base that goes back to 70 years worth of James Bond related content. The current James Bond films link with one another and therefore, it is needed for another movie to come about to finish off the story line or perhaps continue a new one.
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