Empire is the biggest film magazine in Britain and is highly acclaimed of their movie reviews and features. I chose Empire because I am a regular reader of their magazines and website and they encourage film fans in keeping up with the latest in the film industry.
The denotation of the magazine cover is that it consists of a colour, long shot image of a futuristic man on a very advanced motorcycle. The magazine cover is focused on the forthcoming science fiction film ‘Tron Legacy’ which is a sequel to the 1982 film, Tron. The male character on the cover is ‘Sam Flynn’ played by Garrett Hedlund and the film was directed by Joseph Kosinski. The background of the photograph is dark black-ish blue, with very bright laser lights shooting out in line with the motorcycle, from a bright concentrated glow on the left side of the cover. The dateline shows that the cover is very recent (August 2010) and it shows the price, which is quite high for a magazine. The price suggests the content of the magazine is world-class publishing and contains a huge amount of information a film fan would be very pleased with. A barcode is also included in the bottom left corner and indicates that the magazine has to be bought.
Behind Sam’s head is the Empire masthead- which is normally a bold, red colour, is illuminated in the same way as the futuristic motorcycle so the whole magazine cover has a consistent theme of bright lights. The font used is sans serif and three dimensional which emphasises the modernistic and leading-edge themes that run through the cover. The style of the font is also very similar to the way ‘TRON’ is written on the theatrical poster of the film. Above the masthead reads “HUGE COMIC-CON PREVIEW!” with ‘comic-con in bold yellow fonts and this is Empire selling exclusive ‘sneak peek’ photographs, features and articles on the comic convention that is hugely popular with film fans.
A key selling point of the magazine cover that Empire has used is the “Magazine of the year 2010” label they have included to he cover. It shows their esteem within the press industry and gives a ‘passer-by’ a reason for them to buy the magazine. It also highlights the good reputation that Empire is known for and is a credit to their name.
The main cover photograph of Sam Flynn shows him looking serious and intense. He is looking away from the camera to his left and this suggests he is looking back at something or someone that is possibly chasing him. His costume is very protective and hi-tech and is almost robotic with bright coloured lights on his outfit, complete with an aerodynamic helmet. The cutting edge motorcycle which in the Tron franchise is known as the ‘Light cycle’ takes up most of the cover has a huge and intimidating presence. This image was used to promote the film and create a buzz because the Light cycle has been regenerated since the first film and is a significant vehicle to the franchise. Sam Flynn’s non verbal communication is very deep and depicts the tone of the film which involves a chase of life and death.
The main cover line reads “TRON LEGACY” and is described as a ‘world exclusive’ which connotes that Empire magazine has a first hand scoop on Tron Legacy which should entice the reader. ‘TRON LEGACY’ is written in large, block and brightly lit font which follows the same theme of the colour scheme of the cover. The subheading coverline reads “First look at the most incredible 3D movie ever” and is capitalised and written in bright yellow fonts. This is a selling point for the film and the magazine as Empire’s opinions are highly respected. 3D films have become a reproduced phenomenon this year with almost every film having 3D versions. Empire describing Tron Legacy as “the most incredible 3D movie” is meant to encourage readers to go and see the movie, both the younger generation who might not be familiar with the first film and the 80s generation who would be curious to see how the sequel will compare to Tron.
Other cover lines focus on upcoming films due for release with a slight focus on those adapted from comic books like Captain America, Green Lantern etc. This correlates with the text above the masthead as there is clearly going to be a lot of content on future comic book films. The other ‘+’ feature that reads ‘Spielberg Cameron & Zemeckis reveal the future of movies’ is another selling point of the magazine as the names mentioned are highly acclaimed film directors. Their opinions on the future of movies would be highly respected and sought after and avid film fans would be very interested in reading the article/interview. The font used for the cover lines are also sans serif which again, connote modernity and the bright yellow and silvery-white colours correspond with the cutting edge, futuristic theme of the magazine cover.
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