Blog 1: Oculus

Oculus Movie Poster 

This poster compared to the other Oculus posters is the most misleading to the plot. This was done on purpose because the movie itself is about a mirror that kills and hinders everything in the environment surrounding it, a prop such as a mirror isn't quite as scary as hands being imbedded into the main characters face. This poster well depicts how scary the movie is. The marketing tactic used was to bring viewers in for it being a horror movie, not necessarily for the plot itself.

The Oculus movie poster uses pathos to bring in audiences that enjoy thrilling movies. The first thing that drew my attention was the girl on the front cover. Seeing the actual movie you’d know that she doesn't get attacked like that, nor does “the bad spirit” show itself in that form. Her eyes being covered bring a sense of fear, any of our senses being covered would scare us but not being able to see whats around us is something that could bring fear easily while looking at this poster. In small letters underneath her face it states “You see what it wants you to see”, and due to its color and size it could easily be missed. I believe the word placement and color was done on purpose because it introduces a major plot point to the people looking at the poster. The plot point in the movie about the mirror showing the characters what it wants to could be missed for half of the movie, but since the poster introduces it beforehand, people could go into the movie understanding what they're about to see and what the mirror is trying to accomplish throughout the film. Also the fact that it states “You see what it wants you to see” introduces an element of surprise of pathos since we are unaware of what it is, we are on edge for the unexpected throughout the whole movie. 

The ethos of this poster is expressed on the top where it directly quotes a critic from a Sci Fi Now Magazine saying “Nail-Biting, Mind-Bending and Very, Very Scary.” This shows to perspective audience members some credibility that Oculus is indeed scary because someone from Sci Fi Now Magazine said so themselves. Another indicator that showed ethos was that Oculus is produced by Warner Brothers. Warner Brothers is a known producer, therefor people who have liked their past work are more likely to see this movie.

Friday the thirteenth has always had superstitions about it. It’s eerie and dark because it’s a day that brings bad luck. Putting the date in bold on the bottom of the poster shows logos since it gives the audience information about when it will hit the theatre. But the date doesn't only form logos, in this case, it also shows pathos making the audience feel like its scarier because of the release date it is set on. It is often scary movies are set on Friday the thirteenth and thus definitely a marketing strategy. People are likely to go to the movies on Friday the thirteenth since it is a weekend and its a day that is supposed to be scary and often full of new releases. 

The Oculus movie poster shows all components of ethos, pathos and logos to attract audiences. While the poster doesn't reflect the movie well; it is a bit misleading to the plot, but still gets people wanting to see a good thriller.