Horror Poster Analysis 3: "Eden Lake"

This is an English Horror Film which was released in 2008. The key signifier consists of a young, attractive female victim who is hiding from the three killers behind a tree. This suggests she is in danger and is vulnerable. She is wearing a feminine dress which connotes her sexual appeal. The three killers seen in this image are hidden in the background of this poster in shadows so we are unable to see their identities. Considering this they still have a powerful presence due to their stance within their body language and the sense of mystery about them. The setting which can obviously be seen within the poster is the woods, a secluded and isolated location adding a more tense and eerie atmosphere. Many darker colours have been used within this poster, behind the female, on the setting and on the killers. However lighter colours have been used on the female perhaps to show her innocence and femininity and also behind the killers at the back of the forest to maybe imply that there is some hope for the victim. The main title is almost red stained which draws the audience’s eyes instantly towards it and shows us that this film will involve violence or gore. The title also is placed towards the bottom right of the poster showing us that the image of the victim and killers are important to notice. Obviously the title is the largest size as this is the film title but then the sizing of the quotation at the top is also noticeable, this will try and draw the into the film and what it is about. The font type itself it bold and dominant on the page adding an essence of seriousness and giving the poster overall more initial impact. The tagline within this poster is ‘They wanted to get away from it all instead they found Eden Lake’. This hints to the audience that the setting in which this film is set has negative connotations and that in fact they will not be ‘getting away from it all’. Based on the things discussed above I feel that the aimed target audience is males, this can be seen through the use of an attractive female, dark colours and the overall impact and dominance of the poster.