Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was the first full-length cel-animated feature in motion picture history, as well as the first animated feature film produced in America, the first produced in full color, the first to be produced by Walt Disney and Walt Disney Productions, and the first in the Walt Disney Animated Classics canon. Walt Disney, who features in the trailer, says that "The first duty of the cartoon is not to picture or duplicate real action or things as they actually happen, but to give a character life and action; to picture on the screen things that have run through the imagination of the audience and to bring to life dream-fantasies and imaginative fancies that we have all thought of during our lives or have had pictured to us in various forms during our lives... I definitely feel that we cannot do the fantastic things based on the real, unless we first know the real. This point should be brought out very clearly to all new men, and even the older men."
I think Walt Disney needed to talk in the first trailer to represent the characters and it was also a new stage in Disney films because of it being the first motion picture, the first animated film, the first produced in full colour and the first produced by Walt Disney. The trailer doesn't have the conventions of what a trailer should have, it shows different images of the film, but doesn't show the film itself. Walt Disney then introduces the characters, this doesn't really advertise the film to the best because its not pulling the audience in. The trailer also doesn't show what the story is really about, compared to what trailers are like now in the present, its all about the story and instead they have spent too long on selling about the characters and not the plot. Generally on current trailers, they like to leave the audience wondering how the plot goes and keeps the guessing and therefore wanting to see it which this trailer fails to do.
Gone with the Wind- December 15, 1939
The trailers have now introduced the film and the credits to collaborate and match eachother. By this, when the characters are introduced, their name comes up and therefore introduces the characters and plotline better. By introducing some clips from the film, they are able to entice the audience to see it more than introducing the characters which seems quite monotonous for the audience to listen to, like the Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs trailer. A problem with this trailer is that it shows some clips from the film for too long, nowadays clips are nomally snippets that last around 3 seconds which entices the audience more. If a clip is too long, then it can give away the films plot and could possibly be predictable about where the story goes and therefore people won't want to see it. Now the trailers can be as long as two and a half minutes constrained by the MPAA which this trailer successfully does at two minutes and thirty-eight seconds. The text that the credit was in seems dated and traditional, also the transitions reflect on the film being traditional compared to trailers nowadays. Music in the background reflects on it being dramatic which is a technique used in trailers presently and therefore could set a tone for the film. The compostion of the trailer has definitely improved compared to the Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs trailer.
Casablanca- November 26, 1942
This trailer is about Casablanca, even though it is a romantic drama, the music doesn't really reflect on this emotion and reflects more on the war. This doesn't give off the correct genre in the trailer and may be misleading, also there is a narrator who speaks quite harsh and loudly in which I also think doesn't reflect on the meaning of the film. The song fluctuates quite a bit, at the beginning it seems to reflect on war, then goes softer into the romantic side and then goes sinister. Between clips there seems to be transitions, at thirty-eight seconds there seems to be a shattered glass transition which I think is irrelevant to the film and doesn't keep the flow of the composition to be consistent; more so I think it looks unprofessional. Compared to now, in between clips the transition is just a quick cut and the music is consistent throughout which doesn't give away the plot too much. As in the Casablanca trailer, since the mood of it fluctuates, you can predict what happens as the soft tone reflects on a romance happening and the sinister music reflects on a problem.
Roman Holiday- August 27, 1953
The Roman Holiday trailer seems to have a lot of factors that resemble the Casablanca film like having it in black and white and there is still the 'traditional' looking text over the clips showing credits in which nowadays they don't use as much or as the main feature of the trailer. The narrator seems to be doing a lot of voice-overs than the Casablanca trailer like 'So come along! Share their gay and giddy holiday, because all the things happened to them that you'd always hoped for on the happiest day of your life!' The narrators seem like they are really trying to persuade the audience more so than sell the film. In trailers now, the narrator would never normally address the audience to 'Come along!' but sell the plot of the film and concentrate on the characters. Also you can tell that this trailer was from ages ago and times have changed because narrators would never use the word 'gay' in a happy term as now in the present it has other meanings referring to sexual orientation, in which the audience of today would see to that reference. This shows how the language and attitudes are different and would have to be altered for present trailers.
Breakfast at Tiffany's- October 6th 1961
The Breakfast at Tiffany's trailer seems like a new era for trailers as the quality looks better and the fact it is in colour makes the film seem more appealing. The techniques of the narrator to try and persuade the audience are still the same, as are the credits and transitions between clips. The opening narration of the trailer seems too long and has a crowded use of adjectives which don't relate to the film but rather try and make the film seem 'special'; such words used are 'glorifies', 'glamorous', 'shimmer' and 'glitter' which seems like its trying too hard to sell it. 'Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly, who typifies and glorifies the glamorous playmates of this dizzily spinning world, as she and George Peppard breeze through the glitter and shimmer of New York, as it has never been captured before. You have a special invitation to attend Audrey Hepburn's open house on the wildest night New York ever knew!'
Grease- June 16, 1978
There is a huge transition in the composition of the trailer for Grease compared to the previous trailers. The quality of the trailer is definitely clear and entices the audience in more by having quicker snippets of the film and seems consistent throughout as the transitions between clips are quick and match with the upbeat music. There is still a narrator there but the voice doesn't sound traditional but in beat and mood of the film which may persuade the audience rather than a slow, low voice that makes the film seem serious. The introduction of the narrator is definitely shorter and lets the clips intrigue the audience rather than the narrator by saying 'Paramount Pictures invites you to the 20th anniversary of the greatest musical of all time!'. Also the title for 'Grease' seems to be in a red and white cartoon text with a blue background, showing that technology has improved and has made a logo for the film making it recognisable and good for marketing.
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The Little Mermaid- November 14, 1989
Here is another animation film from Disney, comparing The Little Mermaid to Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs has so many differences because now this trailer is actually showing the animation. There are so many types of features and edits which intrigue the audience more and market the film better. The Walt Disney logo at the beginning of each Disney trailer which is like a signature shows the film as a brand and generally the video has better quality. The narrator is also quick to sell the plot of the film than rather try and persuade the audience about a plot they don't know which is like the previous trailers and shows that the 'trying to persuade the audience' technique has improved. 'It's the story of Ariel, a beautiful young mermaid who wants to become human.' this tells the audience the basic of the story and the snippets of the film coincides with that. The only credits really are at the beginning and the end of the trailer, which is normally the main feature in all of the older trailers.
Titanic- December 19, 1997
The trailer for Titanic definitely shows the resemblance between the trailers we are now used to today. The trailer seems consistent when the different clips fade in with each other and matches the soft music, the technique of this reflects on the romance and history of the plot. There is no narration in the trailer and the plot line is sold solely on the clips from the film, I personally think that this technique is better than speaking at the audience as it isn't trying to force them to watch it and the audience can actually get into the mood that the story is trying to give off and therefore become emotionally drawn to it. In the previous trailers, when a narrator was speaking to the audience, it didn't really capture the tone that the film was trying to set off. You can also see that the camera edits are much better as is the quality. The length of the trailer is too long at four minutes and could therefore give away too much of the story but I think because there are snippets of the film that it successfully didn't do so.
The Notebook- June 25, 2004
There aren't many differences between 'The Notebook' trailer and 'Titanic' other than that some of the clips have been slowed down which reflects on the tone of the film with it being romantic. At the beginning it shows the logo of New Line Cinema which sells the brand for the film which they didn't have in previous trailers and is also better for marketing as it is recognisable. The characters sell the story from the clips in the film and therefore the audience will get drawn to it. With the help of the narrator, little sentences are used which are aided and match with some of the clips but do not go over the film which is good because the audience can still listen and get enticed by it. An example is 'From the best selling novel from Nicholas Sparks...Comes a Story...About what we long for...'. A saying is also used at the end of the trailer to make the audience wonder about what the story is about, for example. 'What we settle for...and who we're meant for' this sets the tone for the film.
The Vow- February 14, 2012
This film is out next year and therefore is one of the most up to date trailers. As another romantic film, it is seen as modern with the quality of it. It starts with upbeat music as Channing Tatum narrates the trailer which makes it seem more emotional and says "Life's all about the moments of impact and how they change our lives forever, what if one day we can no longer remember them?" and cuts to a scene were a car crashes and the music stops. Now as it is meant to show the audience that something dramatic happens, the music stops and cuts to a emotional and climatic scene until the climax, the music changes into emotive music and reflects on the change of the plot line. Then the upbeat music starts again and this emotionally draws the audience as to what will happen next. The fact that Channing Tatum is narrating the film makes it seem more personal as he is the main character and the audience can see how he feels.
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