Propp's Narrative Theory Applied to 'Spider-man'

The narrative theory can be applied to the film Spider-man made in 2002. The story consists of the outcast Peter Parker in love with Mary Jane. Peter Parker suddenly gets super human power and is able to climb up walls, jump off buildings etc. Although each character may carry more than one role, Propp's theory applies to the film. The hero in Spider-man is Peter Parker, as well as him being the seeker hero in which he helps others, he slowly starts to become the victim hero as he becomes the centre of the 'Green Goblin's' attention. The Green Goblin is the villain as well as being the false hero. This is due to the fact as well as playing the Green Goblin; the character also plays the dad of Peter's best friend Harry. Harry's dad acts like a father as such when Peter's uncle dies. The princess in this film is Mary Jane, not only does she have the love of Peter Parker she also seems to convey the 'damsel in distress' role when getting caught up in the action and therefore Spider-man must rescue her. Peter's uncle and aunt both act as the donor and dispatcher in this film because although they do not know he is the super hero he is, they still offer advice which helps in the resolution of the narrative.

The purpose of trailers

A trailer is an advertisement that is used to preview a different film that would later be shown in the cinema. The term “trailer” originally came from the fact these previews would usually show at the end of the films however this did not last for long as it was realised people actually left when the film finished so the trailers started being put at the beginning of films. Trailers shortly became part of the cinematic ‘ritual’ as the audience would expect them to show. Film trailers are now also used on DVDs before the menu to the film and are watched a lot online.

The purpose of trailers is to market a new film to the public. Generally the trailer was all about first impressions to hint the storyline to the audience however some trailers would give away more than others. Each trailer would have to be interesting and unique due to the strong competition in the film industry. Through the 4 micro elements it would entice the audience to go see the full film and through manipulation, the marketing team would decide how they would want the audience to perceive the film and therefore making it look better than it is. Over all, trailers help people decide on what they want to see.