Analysis of Dinner For Schmucks trailer

Dinner for Schmucks is a comedy rated a 15, as a comedy this film is most likely to attract both genders. The film follows the story of a man who wants to get a promotion in his job, however in order to do this he has to attend a dinner which is a competition as to who can bring the biggest idiot. 

The trailer begins with the three production companies appearing with barely a second each on screen, this indicates to the audience that this film may potentially be successful and worth seeing as the companies are Paramount, DreamWorks and Spyglass entertainment. By having them fast paced it also immediately draws in the audience and catches their attention. The first 20 seconds of the trailer focuses on the introduction of the two main characters, this is done by presenting the ambitious one in his suit then freezing the screen and having inter titles introducing him. The humorous character is introduced in a similar way however he is shown to be strange which encourages the audience to continue watching the trailer to find out more about him. 

The next scene establishes the problem of the film where the idea of the dinner is introduced, this is further highlighted through the contrasting views his girlfriend and work colleagues have on the matter. This encourages the audience to keep watching as the main issue of the film as been shown so they want to know how it is dealt with. There is then a close up and another frozen screen shot of Barry on the screen with his face squashed against Tim's car window this makes the audience laugh. This is followed by a pan of Barry's weird hobby - collecting dead mice, this is another funny aspect to the film and makes the audience want to continue watching as they want to know what will happen next between the two characters.

There are then black title screens which show the films the producers have previously produced, by  using big names such as 'Meet The Parents' and 'Meet The Fockers' it draws in an audience and raises expectations of the film as both are successful comedy films. There are then a series of scenes highlighting some of the funny moments of the film which further encourages the audience to go and see the film as they want to see more humour. The events of dinner are then shown whilst black inter titles appear showing the actors names and finally the name of the film. 

The film ends on a humorous note which is effective as it reminds the audience of the genre of the film and by ending the trailer with a funny scene it makes the audience remember the film. Throughout the trailer the same non - diegetic soundtrack plays which fades out during funny moments, this is common in comedy trailers. The trailer also conforms to many comedy conventions for example as Barry and Tim's friendship develops Barry becomes the cliche humorous best friend and physical comedy is also apparent in the trailer.