Representation in a Film Trailer

Representation in a Film Trailer

The trailer I chose was the Wonder Woman origin trailer. This trailer shows a representation of many aspects of society. These include female empowerment, society in World War 1 and a pre-equality era. The trailer shows immediately off a lot of women fighting which changes the norm of the stereotypical action movie. This subverts the gender stereotypes of women as typically in media, as typically in this genre, women can often be seen as weak and submissive. 

Firstly, The Warner Bros and DC COMICS logo are coloured gold which compliments Wonder Woman's weapons and further portrays her warrior spirit. The first few seconds also shows off a number of different weapons and fighting styles. These are able to change the norm of what the usual action/superhero movie may consist of. With a large female cast, the trailer is able to alert audiences that Diana (Wonder Woman's actual name) is not going to be the only female fighter in the movie. The trailer editor also focuses the camera on the actual fighting instead of the women's sexuality. This goes for her costume as well as although it does show quite a bit of skin, it is not skin-tight and the camera does not show close ups of her that may distract the viewer from the concept of the film.

About a minute into the trailer, you witness a crashing plane indicating that that is how Diana's adventure into civilisation will begin. By having a male character acting as the 'damsel in the distress' role, it also changes the idea of men always saving and being dominant over women. As a result of this, and the fact that the male is a love interest and a secondary character, it shows that he will not be overshadowing the main purpose of the film. As well as the lead, the villain is also a female and a good one at that. The villain looks mysterious and like she has depth unlike some other villains who are only used as eye candy. The fight scenes between the characters also seem genuine and well-choreographed instead of just average cat-fights that does not bring anything to the film.

The trailer also shows the setting and time period in which the movie was set. For those who know about the historical context of World War 1 will know that women were not seen as fighters and as such, they were not allowed to fight in the wars. However the slow moving scene of Wonder Woman walking through a section known as no-man's land is symbolic of everything that the director is trying to portray in this film. Also the actors and script-writers did a good job of portraying the supporting cast's surprise at the fact that she was able to defend herself in a pre-women's rights era.
As well as the camera shots, the music also bring a sense of battle to the trailer. The choice of theme music for the majority of the trailer also compliments Wonder Woman's warrior spirit and brings a sense of determination. This happens especially at the end of the trailer when she introduces herself proudly as "Diana. Warrior of Themyscira . Daughter of Hippolyta…." The director's choice of doing this at the end of the trailer shows that she is someone to be remembered. The trailers then ends with an electric guitar riff which leaves you hanging and looking forward to watching the film

Adding all these points into the trailer tells the audience what they can look forward to when they go to watch the film. Also, the fact that they are small details and do not feel forced into the movie to cater for a certain demographic also helps the audience as they do not feel like they are obliged to watch it if they are a certain type of person.