Horror Poster Analysis (2)

Shaun of the dead is another comedy horror released on the 24^th September 2009. It was directed by Edgar Wright, and written by both him and Simon Pegg. The dominant colours in this image are both red and black. The connotations of both of these colours immediately allow the audience to get a sense of feeling for the movie. The red obviously connotes evil and death while the black compliments nicely with darkness and despair. The text however is the next big clue in also understanding that the film is a comedy too. ‘A romantic Comedy. With zombies’.  This phrase is so ridiculous that to see it as anything other than funny banter would be stupid. This silly sentence is the first hint that the film to come will be a comedy. Another hint that this is a horror is once again the text itself. ‘Shaun of the dead’ not only has a bloodied hand in the title, but also has a zombie holding up a critics review. If that doesn’t scream horror satire, I’m not sure what does. The Image is also a very good indicator into what the film is all about. Three average people wielding typically British things as weapons, all whilst in a tie?  The clear use of props, conventional to the genre, and the general gore mise en-scene screams comedy-horror and when coupled alongside a few hundred zombies trying to squeeze into the frame it’s made extremely clear that the film will be a comedy fuelled, zombie splatting couple of hours.  The bright lighting is also a good indicator that it is a comedy as the lack of darkness leads the audience to believe it can’t be all conventional scare. We also have Propp’s conventional character types, with the guy at the front as the protagonist, his helper on one side, and the eye candy on the other, conforming to Laura Mulvey’s male gaze theory. The fact it is also made by Working Title also adds a sense of authority to the movie as they are well established, following Andrea Bazin’s ‘genius of the system’.