Thursday, September 20, 2018

Media Critique - "Enemy" Poster Ad

         Enemy (2013) is a psychological film directed by Dennis                                                                        Villeneuve and stars actor Jake Gyllenhaal. The film was produced by M.A. Faura and is based on the novel, The Double by Jose Saramago. Enemy is regarded by some to be one of the most complex, and mind bending films of all time. Besides it’s intriguing plot and brilliant direction, the film has a seemingly simple but interesting poster ad. By taking a semiotic approach, we can appreciate the complexity found in the poster ad, and why I like it so much.
            Enemy is the story of a professor played by Jake Gyllenhaal who find’s a doppelganger of himself acting in a film he rents one night. Confused, he then searches for the man in the film and ends up meeting up with him. The two men are identical and from there the film is unclear whether or not there truly is another man, or if this is all in the head of one man. Throughout the film, there are “random” shots of spiders that are very unsettling. One specific scene has a giant spider walking around the city of Toronto, where this film takes place. At the end of the film, the viewer is left with many questions along with an indescribable set unsettling and uncomfortable feeling. With such a complex storyline, it is only fitting that the movie’s poster ad shares the same connection.
            Enemy’s poster ad consists of lead actor Jake Gyllenhaal side portrait. He is glancing down, in an almost ashamed manner. This look coincides with Gyllenhaal’s character’s emotional feelings towards both his mother and his pregnant girlfriend throughout the film. Another look at the poster and we can see that where Gyllenhaal’s head should be, there is the skyline of Toronto, this is semiotic in both presenting the location of the film but more importantly suggest the idea of the psychological battle he deals with throughout the entire film. At an even closer glance we see the previously mentioned spider crawling through the city’s skyline. With this small detail, the poster produces an entirely different feeling, a feeling of uneasiness. This symbol of the spider not only does a fantastic job as a theme in the film, but also adds that indescribable emotional feeling carried throughout the film. The entire film is from the point of view of Gyllenhaal’s character and the battles he faces in his head. I believe the poster did the film justice by having his headshot take up most of the space, with all the details taking place in his head.
            I believe this movie poster ad does an excellent job at not only drawing connections to the themes of the film, but presents it in a visually simple, emotionally unsettling way, parallel with the film.

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