SCARFACE: ADVERTISING AND AUDIENCE

Narrative can be defined as the things that we see for example in the movie trailer the narrative is the content, what is said and seen. The creators use the narrative to target their audience. There is a voice over that sets the scene of the movie that is, the time and place. This appeals to Americans, the movie is set in America specifically Miami. The time is 1980. This appeals to people who enjoy 80's films. You can tell Tony Montana is of Latin decent, this also appeals to the Latin community. The trailer contains clips of violence. We know that violence is a convention used in Gangster films so that also appeals to the audience. By portraying images of the lavish lifestyle, money, loyalty and betrayal, the trailer paints a picture of the Gangster life of Tony Montana, his uprising but it also predicts his downfall. The narrative, gives the audience a hint of the movie without giving away too much information. I feel that the target audience through the narrative is mainly male; this is because of the way they make Men the target focus of the film and also the way they objectify women in the film as some what a possession.
As per the film poster. The colours used show the audience are conventional Gangster film colours Black connotes death and evil, White connotes serenity, purity and innocence and red connotes blood, love and vengeance. People who have an interest in the story line of Gangster films are aware of this and attracted to it. The creators use the colours to attract the audience. The image of the protagonist elegantly dressed in black an white appeals to the male audience, connoting the lavish lifestyle that he may have. Although his facial expression shows that he is probably going to face some trials and tribulation. On the left hand side of the poster, there is a short summary of the movie, showing the audience what is to come without giving away too much information. The creators also use the Tag Line "He loved the American Dream with a vengeance." This implies that Tony Montana was set to do anything to live the American dream. The use of the actor and directors names on the poster give the audience of what to feel if they have ever watched a De Palmer or Pacino film.
In the trailer there are four main characters the audience takes notice to are the protagonist that is Tony Montana Played by Al Pacino. The other three are his best friend, the boss Frank and the Love interest. What the trailer does is link all of the other three characters to the protagonist. His friend the one that was there in the beginning. The person that's willing to go on this dangerous journey with him, his boss the one that was his ticket into that lifestyle needed to take over him to get on top and then he would be able to acquire the girl to fit into the ultimate gangster profile. The trailer portrays the connection between the characters and tells a story of loyalty, hard work, determination, love, success betrayal and failure.
I the movie poster only focuses on the protagonist, it has a large image of a very sharply dressed Tony Montana in the middle over the poster under the cover line AL PACINO SCARFACE. This connotes the role of Al Pacino as the protagonist and the focal point of the film. He is carrying a gun as well. This appeals to the violent nature of the audience.