Magazine analysis

Film magazine analysis

On this ​ Empire​ magazine front cover we can clearly see the main cover images used is placed in centre composition on the page to show that he is the main feature of the magazine.

Everybody knows the actor that is on the front of the the magazine so the creates believe is of a higher importance and that he himself will sell the magazine which is why he is superimposed over the Masthead. In the image he is wearing all black which has connotations of death but in this case his clothing makes him see more masculine which is anchored by the gun he his holding in this hand. His finger is placed on the the trigger to show that he is ready to attack something and by the look of disgust and worry on the characters face, he is not looking forward to doing it. The gun also represents danger and often protection its up to the audience to try and figure out which it is used for.

There is a bright light behind the character's head in the background, this creates small areas of where you can see the setting but is hard to make out, this is an enigma and leaves the audience guessing. They have also included fog to add to the mystery as it is usually placed in films to hide the truth from the audience before something is made to appear.

The masthead of the magazine is in bold red which is common feature found throughout this magazine cover, It stands out against the darkened background to still show the audience who the magazine is by and to catch their attention when they see it on a magazine stand. The red is also used to highlight the most important parts of the cover lines so they audience can just glimpse at them to see if they will be interesting to help attract the audience. The main headline is in a bold white, with the word ‘Legend’ Standing out the most to suggest to the audience that is character could be the hero of the film.

Horror magazine analysis

This front cover for the magazine 'Horror' contains typical conventions of a horror magazine. In centre composition they have placed three well known villains to help sell the magazine, also by doing this they will attract the audience to the magazine as many people who love horror films will know and like these characters. To further this they have all of the characters doing a direct mode of address to the audience to entice them in or in this case scare them.

The background of the magazine is a very common feature found among horror poster as it shows the night which is when most villains attack in horror films, so it sticks to horror conventions. There is also blood splattered and dripping down from the top of the page which again is a common horror feature as it suggests death and brutality.

The main headline is in white to stand out against the darkened background so the audience will be drawn in. They have also made the word ‘Horror’ bolder than the rest to anchor the fact that they want the audience to notice this part of the magazine.

The creators of this magazine cover have continued this in the cover lines by making the font bold on the most important parts but also adding red boxes or font to do this as well.

At the top of the page they have included a puff word ‘Free’ in big bold capital letters which stands out to the audience but they have also placed it in a white box to help attract the audience's attention. By adding free gifts to a magazine it makes it more worthwhile buying when they know they will receive something free on a subject that they enjoy.

Horror magazine analysis

This front cover for a horror front cover breaks stereotype as they have used calm colours instead of harsh ones that connote different meanings than to what we see now.

The main cover image is focused on the villain of the film, which can be easily seen by the paleness of his face and by the old fashioned clothing that he is wearing.

Also his dark hair along with is pale face blend into the background to create almost a dark and gloomy effect. He is also giving a direct gaze to the audience to try and draw them into picking up the magazine.

They have also placed the text around his face to show that once people recognize who the actor is on the front of the magazine they will want to buy it due to his high popularity.

This is anchored by the fact that they have only included the film title that his he supposed to be promoting is small text under the actors name as they believe the actor will be able to sell the film and the magazine better than the title of the film. Which is also why they have included the actors and actresses that will be featured within the magazine underneath as they will see the magazine.

The colours of the fonts used link in with the image and the background colour, for a horror film cover they usually use black, red and white which all suggest death, blood and danger. But on this cover they have used light blue, white and a tiny bit of red, the slight red suggests that within the character that they are promoting there will be death and blood but because of the connotations of blue and white being completely different it juxtaposes what the red is showing.

Blue has connotations of calm, sadness and serenity and white has connotations of innocence and peace.