PLANNING: POSTER ANALYSIS

Inception Film Poster Analysis

For A2 media studies I have been studying and analysing the film poster used to advertise Inception, the Hollywood produced wide-release film which was directed and created by Christopher Nolan.

The poster depicts a male character standing in the turmoil of an ever increasingly flooding city, surveying his surroundings as he remains stationary. This is illustrated by the ground being covered completely in deep knee high water and the presence of dark rain clouds, which dominate the skyline. The water that runs along the ground of the unnamed ground appears to be flowing erratically, something which creates a sense of impeding danger and peril for the inhabitants of city, and the character that is situated in the midst of apparent turmoil. The character in question is that of male, and appears to be well groomed, brandishing a formal suit. This creates an impression of authority and professionalism on behalf of the character for the audience and hints upon the characteristics he possesses. The fact he is wearing a suit in conjunction with a well groomed, slicked back hairstyle suggests that he is a wealthy receives a large economical income due to the fact it is stereotypically associated with young American Businessmen, or ‘Yuppies’. The man appears to holding a gun in his right hand. This image connotes a sense of power on behalf of the character to the audience, and potential danger that could be created due to the presence of this weapon. This weapon could also create an impression of unpredictability as to the nature of the character and the motives he has, this is further emphasised by the manner in which he is surveying his surroundings. The presence of this prop also brings to question the nature of the character, and the cause that he is fighting for, it is possible that this character could be a protagonist fighting for good causes or an anti-hero with a volatile personality, that is not necessarily fighting for the most possible cause. It is also notable that the face of the character is not shown in the image. This further enhances and supports the feeling of anonymity towards the character and the motives he possesses. The fact that he is facing away from the camera also suggests that he is possibly ashamed of an event or action that he takes during the film something which creates a sense of mystery.

It is also notable that the character is captured in a mid shot, on a wide camera lens, which enables the onlooker to see his surroundings and the grand scale of the events occurring around the character. The character is captured in a mid shot to create a feeling of intimacy between the onlooker and the character, and also a sense of empathy for the viewer, as it enables the audience to see the surroundings from the perspective of the main character. The shot is also takes from the perspective of a low angle shot, which creates the image from below the character, and the vast skyscrapers which surrounds the character. This also creates a sense of scale and danger for the audience, and also reinforces the authority of the character which is created.


In addition it is noticeable that the poster takes a dim lighting, using low key, low contrast lighting, which creates a possible sense of misery and depression, something which has been created by the flooding.