Empire Analysis

It's obvious that my project would be advertised in some sort of film related magazine, so I analysed the key elements of another Empire Magazine front cover in detail.

Empire Magazine 271 uses very similar design features to the other recent cover I analysed. Cover Lines give a clear indication of what's going to be included in this issue. The Batman logo fits onto the cover and adds to The Dark Knight Rises being the main feature with this use of Iconography. The pose of the main focus; Bane, is difficult to judge. His pose is very much straight and with his mouth hidden it's difficult to see a lot of his facial expression. This leaves only his eyes which are very bleak and show little emotion and then his size which mainly shows his dominance and negative character. 

It's quite clear that Empire is mainly aimed at a male audience. I'm sure that girls also read the magazine but even from looking at the adverts inside, you can tell that it's mainly aimed at guys. This is reinforced by the dark colours on the front. Also one of the cover lines tells of an article inside on the "years best fights, sex scenes and in jokes", perhaps stereotypically popular things in a male's life. Ages could range from late teens to adult. The use of lots of exclamation marks emphasises excitement that perhaps a male would seek. Also the use of the magazine being "ultimate" makes viewers believe they are buying the best. 

The magazine's selling points clearly bases itself around exclusive news and up to date film reviews for readers who are looking for more details than just what's on the screen. It reinforces this in ways such as saying they have the "first official pics" of the new Batman film and revealing the "secrets of Skyfall". These statements suggest that Empire are one of the first film magazines to receive up to date information. It clearly would appeal most to film enthusiasts.

As discussed yesterday, Empire uses convergence by having their magazine and their website.

This issue of Empire can be bought with 2 different covers. One with Batman on and the other with Bane. This gives this issue more of a collectors item feel and would perhaps even persuade some people to buy both editions. It also enforces the binary opposite of the characters in The Dark Knight Rises. 

The mast head - EMPIRE, is in red. The name Empire suggests it's well known, forceful and strong. A magazine that is popular, dominant and confident in its sales.