Empire magazine analysis- The Hulk

Empire- The Hulk

This magazine is very unique and would therefore stand out from others due to the unusual design. As you can see the main focal point is the green figure ripping open the concrete in the centre of the cover. Having this figure within the centre emphasises that they are the main character of the film and will have the most dominance within it. We believe that the character is 'The Hulk' due the font located at the bottom left corner. This font is in large, bold, upper case format which is in two colours; white and green. The green associates with the figure as they are obviously both green suggesting this is 'The Hulk'. Having used two colours for the title allows them to contrast from each other, as the white allows the green to stand out more. This font could emphasis the strength and power the character has due to the boldness of the font; however as green connotes jealousy, it could imply that the character is angry and annoyed therefore maybe the antagonist. This would make the audience want to read the magazine to see if you gain any more information about this character and film. The gritting teeth of the character implies he could be fuming and is supported by the devastation he is causing, which creates an enigma as the audience wants to know more about this character. The main image doesn't reveal much compared to other film covers I have researched, such as the 'Potter 7- Empire Magazine post', as you can only see the character and no sign of the location, other characters or anything. This would intrigue the audience as they would want to know more about this film due to the minimal elements within the main image. The figure used suggests the genre of the film as being an action, Sci Fi, genre due to the figure being green and due to the strength and devastation they are causing which are all conventions of an action or Sci Fi film. 

As I have said, this magazine is very unique, which is due to the ripping effect splitting down the middle and splitting the masthead of the magazine, 'Empire'. Stereotypically, what happens in the main image, stays in the main image and does not disrupt the masthead or any other elements within the foreground of the magazine, however this cover subverts this as you can see. The masthead 'Empire' is in red therefore making it eye-catching from the rest of the magazine. From my research 'Empire' is usually red, which is following the conventions of the traditional 'Empire', however through the recent months they are beginning to make the colour suit the rest of the colour scheme. Having this font red, to an extent, disrupts the cover due to the colours contrasting and not matching. On the other hand, even though the colour does not go with the colour scheme, it does allow the masthead to stand out and there for make the audience pick it up and read it. This could explain why the 'P' is cracked, to add a further curiosity to the main image. 

To furthermore make the masthead stand out, the editors have added a 3-D effect and shadow to make it seem as though the title is coming out of the page. Reinforced by the slogan 'Incredible! The World's First Fully 3-D Cover!', it makes the audience want  to buy the magazine just because of the cover as it’s the first of a '3-D cover', which is an unique selling point as it’s the first of its kind. The colour scheme used for this slogan is also green therefore complimenting with the rest of the colour scheme used. 

This magazine is furthermore different to other magazine cover as there is no skyline on the cover. This skyline is traditionally at the top of the cover, giving further insights of the contents of the magazine, therefore attracting the audiences of those films mentioned. Not having a skyline could be a clever way of making the audience pick up the magazine and buy it as they would want to know what else is within it. However, it could also mean that they lose some audiences as some people do not like a Sci Fi action film, so would not be bothered to buy it as it does not interest them, as they do not know what else is in it. 

The bar code is also nicely placed vertically in the bottom right corner therefore not disrupting the atmosphere of the cover which it has created. Below the barcode is the word 'Unleashed!' This suggests that the character is some sort of monster as it is like they shouldn't be out, which could suggest that the green figure is escaping, enigma.