Van Helsing Analysis

In Van Helsing the main props are weapons such as a sword. This connotes that the film is to do with violence. Also this helps provide an idea of what kind of genre the film is. For example the arrow gun and sword suggests that it is a violent film which would include killing or murders. These are examples of action which allow the audience to make a direct link with the genre and the props used in the advertisement, which means that when the audience see a weapon, they will link it to violence and action and will give them a better understanding of the narrative.

The characters are wearing mainly black. There is not much colour which can represent that the time period is much older, were colours were not really more than just black and grey. The main character is also in black, and is standing in front of dark clouds and a moon, which suggests that although he is the hero of the narrative, he also possess an anti-hero side to him as well, and could be seen as a villain even.

The lighting in this poster is very low key. This is seen because the atmosphere is mostly foggy and cloudy which is not natural and almost man made. This low key lighting helps show that the setting is going to have elements of dark events and evil character roles.

Van Helsing's poster has a building with a lot of cloudiness and the moon in the middle. This creates a gloomy effect as there isn't much light. This gives the impression that there is a lot of darkness throughout the film. This is an example of narrative enigma, which means that because the mis en scene is so confusing, we will make assumptions about who is or isn’t the hero or villain.

Also the two central characters have a serious expression and are looking straight ahead. This gives the impressions that are involved in something significant in the film, giving them a more important role in the storyline. There are another two characters in the background which could suggest that they are less important to the main two characters in the front. It could also signify them as the villains or characters.