30 Days of Night Notes

Thirty Days of Night is a 2007 vampire movie, signifying the fear of lack of technology and isolation in today's globalized electronic village. The fear is signified through the vampires themselves being intelligent enough to turn the power supply off before hunting the village in Alaska which the film is set.
This film is very distant from the generic conventions of previous vampire films, making it a very post-modern take on the genre. The first element that differs from the conventions of traditional vampire films  is the screen portrayal of the vampire themselves. They seem to have a language of their own which humans are not able to comprehend, but can easy manipulate humans into being bait for them, which is a strange identity for a vampire to have due to our exposure to previous vampires. Another sign that these are unconventional vampires is the lack of bats or capes in the movie, which tend to be a cultural element of any vampire film to date. The location of the film is also very unconventional, as most traditional films of this genre are based in Eastern Europe, whereas 30 Days of Night is based in Alaska to symbolize and represent the fear of isolation. There is a central scene in the film which shows a mass killing of the community living in this village, where the view is portrayed from above. In this scene, it can be argued that we are seeing the killing from a fellow vampires view, which changed the mode of address slightly and lets the audience see and feel how a vampire would when hunting down their next killing. The generic narratives that are valued in vampire fictions are unusually displayed here, such as love, sex, romance and desire. The broken relationship of the protagonists is an unconventional way of showing love and romance. Love is also shown through the father and son relationship between two survivors who stay with the group. When the ill father forgets there s an invasion of vampires and runs out into the streets, his son unquestioningly runs after him which signifies the narrative of love in all forms being played here.

Applying Vampire Fictions to the Key Concepts and Theoretical Approaches

Dark Shadows - Applying Mode of Address
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6tVdffCr_M

How is the vampire represented? - We are meant to feel sympathy for the vampire, as as the start of the trailer he explains how he became a vampire, and throughout the trailer shows signs of not wanting to be who he is with lines such as "Witch, you cursed me to be this hideous creature".
Is the text entirely serious in  its tone or is there an element of humour? - The trailer is humourous and therefore situates the movie under the comedy genre, rather than horror, which is unconventional for a vampire movie.
What are the assumptions made about the audience from the trailer? Who seems to be the target audience and what does it suggest about the people who will enjoy watching it? - As the movie is a comedy, this means that the assumptions made about the audience are that they are supposedly young adults or teenagers. As there are elements of sex involved this shows that the audience are intended to be of this age also. As the year is also set in 1972 it is possible that the suggested audeince for this movie would have been people of this era, or people who enjoy the style of the era.
What are the texts attitudes to the traditions and repertoire of elements of the genre? - The traditions and elements of the vampire genre are here made into a joke, not in a disrespectful way, but to add to the humorous side of the film. At first we are shown a 200 year old house which the vampire once owned, along with old style clothing and all aspects of a horror film you would expect from the 19th Century. We later see him rising from his coffin very fast, not as dramatic and slow as would have been seen in a traditional vampire film. This is nontraditional as it is set in the 200 year old house which has been redecorated to suit the 1970s, with a disco ball and very colourful furniture, as well as a TV which is introduced by the vampire being confused by, again making humour of the traditional conventions.

Bram Stokers' Dracula - Applying Narrative
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMvD2Jlyy9U

Repertoire of Elements which are traditional of a vampire film such as the burning cross, bats, sharp teeth, rising from the coffin and medieval scenery such as the large dark house and fires for light, arew all featured in this trailer. Iconography for the genre is all represented in these elements, as well as the character types associated with this genre also being features, such as sexualised women (main woman Mina) and a being who can change forms (Dracula). Rising from the coffin and transforming into mist are both iconic narrative moments expected of a traditional vampire film, which is what is given here.
This particular film, as it is so traditional and conventional, is made with room for adaptation and evolving, as theorist Douglass Pye states "the generic context is narrow enough for recognition to take place but wide enough for enormous individual variation".

The Lost Boys - Applying Ideology
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_lwtRMg0ts
Fear of teenagers in the 1980's is shown through the vampires of the film being featured as 'ruthless' teenagers. This metaphorical fear is said to be common in vampire films, shown as a prevalent fear within contemporary society shown through the main characters or plot twist in the story.

Vampires and the Narrative Key Concept

The theory of Genre - it can be argued that Vampire fiction are a sub-genre of horror fiction, though some also argue it has created a genre of its own.

Genres can be identified through their signifiers - the repeated style, iconography, characters, events and settings used.

Terms related to the Genre Theory:
Iconography - Images, objects and sounds associated with the genre. (Stake to the heart - garlic - blood - coffin - capes)
Style - Ways which the iconography is presented - colours, edits, camera angles etc.
Setting - Locations typical to the genre (Graveyard - medieval castle)
Characters - Key types of characters associated with the genre (pale vampires, usually male)
Narrative moments - Set pieces, events, expected by the audience (Rising from the coffin - turning into a bat - biting - stake to the heart)
Themes - Deeper meanings to these films which are associated to the genre.

Everyday Racism: Video on The Guardian

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/video/2015/mar/18/everyday-racism-what-should-we-do
A short video in the style of a moviemaker presentation on how everyday racism effects the lives of black people and how the dominant ideology of black people creates a norm of white supremecy