Black Swan

Music: a menacing orchestral piece in a minor key. The orchestral instruments represent the elements of Swan Lake in the storyline, and the dark tones in the track are there to show that Nina will face serious problems. The build-up of stringed instruments towards the end of the track complements the increasing pace of the clips, and also gives the impression that there is a growing loss of control in the film.

Pace: The pace of the clips increases as the trailer goes on, building tension for the audience and also emphasising Nina’s loosening grip on reality.  

Dialogue: There is rather a lot of dialogue in this trailer, as almost every clip involves someone talking. This creates an uncomfortable atmosphere, as it feels as if everyone is ganging up on Nina (the main character), highlighting the uneasy storyline and presenting Nina as a weak character who is likely to be influenced by others.

Voiceover: There isn’t a voiceover present in this trailer, which gives it an artistic ambiance. This suggests that Black Swan is jumping on the “artsy bandwagon” in order to appear more credible and worthy in the film world. It also means that there is more focus on the dialogue (as the dialogue does not have to be stopped for the voiceover), implying that the speech in this film is very important.

Shot types/camera angles:

Shaky/unstable movements: these indicate the uncomfortable and tense nature of the film.

Close ups/mid shots: these shots mean that, for the majority of the trailer, we are focused on faces, emphasising that the mind will play a large part in this storyline (psychological thriller). These shots also convey emotion clearly, and so by seeing Nina’s torn expressions so frequently, the viewers are left feeling very awkward.

Intertitles: Film festivals, Natalie Portman and Darren Aronofsky are all mentioned in this trailer, and I feel this has been done to draw in a large audience. Academy award winner Natalie Portman will appeal to the mass audience, but then the film festivals and Darren Aronofsky (director of some very artistic and hard-hitting films, such as The Wrestler) will appeal to the smaller, more artistic audience who hope to achieve real meaning from a film. The intertitles also contain squirming black feathers as a background, giving a sense of something creeping up.