Room 1408 Trailer Analysis

What attracts the audience to the film? What is the unique selling point? How is this highlighted?
The unique selling point of this film is the story line which attracts the audience to the film - it is about a hotel room '1408' which apparently is haunted and the main character is warned but doesn't listen and is in fact provoking these ghosts; this suggests that he will get what he is asking for. Also, the main character is John Cusack, who is a huge American star. Another character in the film is Samuel L. Jackson is also a well-known actor.

How is the trailer structured?
The trailer begins with the film company name. A brief introduction of the main character and his family is shown. The voiceover then basically tells us about him and what he is trying to do – when his daughter passed away, the afterlife became his obsession; a scene of him is then shown trying to find ghosts/spirits. The history of Room 1408 is told but he still wants to enter the room. The next part is the door opening; it then goes pitch black, which is shown using slow pace shots. The next clips are shown using fast past shots – the room is then empty and flooded with water. The ending of the trailer is of the daughter in the room. The credits then appear. These are shown by the use of slow pace shots.

How is sound used to create suspense/shock?
There are a variety of sounds used throughout which all add to the spooky atmosphere. These include: the background music, which is played throughout the whole trailer. This is rather slow and spooky which builds up tension. There is also drumming sound to show the corridor of the hotel which adds suspense and immediately lets the audience know that the hotel is ‘haunted’. When the door of Room 1408 opens, it opens squeakily, again adding to the atmosphere. The sound of silence even adds to the spookiness as it makes the audience wonder what is going to happen next.

What editing techniques are used? How do they help create suspense/shock?
There are many fast fades to blacks used, almost after every shot – this helps create suspense because we don’t know what is going to happen/appear next. There are also dissolves used to show the next shot.