Rue Morgue Magazine (The Woman in Black)

Image - 

The main focus of the cover is a long shot of Daniel Radcliffe, which fits convention in that the main star of the film is used, however, using a shot from the hips upward is not as common as most keep the focus on the face. By doing this, they have managed to creates more of a 'scene', as a ghostly face can be seen in the background. Because it is a photographic image it adds more realism to the face (whom the reader can assume is the 'women in black'), and gives an insight into the other 'main character', as it is conventional to have the title character on the cover. The image is darkly lit as is typical in horror movies, as they arouse mystery and a sense of the unknown echoed in the little background you can see (making the woman's face even more contrasting).  Motivated lighting is used as Radcliffe holds a candle stick; this use of props helps adds to the 'setting' and realism as he appears to be focused on looking towards there and not the camera, but also helps draw the audiences attention into the centre as according to the rule of thirds this is where our eyes are naturally drawn to. It also simultaneously (appears) to lighten the text around it, which in this case is the main cover line which highlights the name of the film (which is exactly what the magazine is trying to promote).

Rule of thirds - 
This image does conform to the rule of thirds, however some aspects of its layout could be seen to challenge it. The main figure is positioned in the centre third, as this is where a reader eyes are normally drawn to and usually conveys that this is the most important character. However, you could argue that the ‘woman in black’ is equally as essential, especially considering the film itself is named after her, and so including her off centre could be seen to break this convention. However, as she is supposed to be a mysterious, unknown character, positioning her behind Radcliffe means the audience may not immediately see her, reflecting the ‘chase’ that the audience goes through in the film. The main cover line is positioned half way down the cover, which is common as it provides some ‘black space’ around all sides allowing it to feel almost ‘framed’, and not overcrowded by lots of other text. Slightly unusually, the other cover lines are all positioned along the bottom, however, this allows the womans face to be seen clearly on the left hand side, and has the central model is staring in that direction, it adds more realism to leave it ‘blank’.

Colours - 
The cover uses a dark colour scheme of black, brown and grey, which reflects the mystery and horror genre as it is darkly lit, with dull, gloomy colours. The background of the image is very darkly lit, however this is sued to make the women’s white face more visible. It also allows for the central character to be shown more prominent. Often covers use black fonts as this is a clear, easy to read colours on bright backgrounds, however, as this uses darker colours in the image itself, they have used more of an of white/cream; this contrasts against the dark background thus making it easier to read. The gradient of cream into brown of the masthead ties in with the cream cover lines and the brown cover lines, giving the magazine a well put together looks. Radcliffe is wearing a white shirts underneath the black waist coat, meaning they contrast against each other and adding more variation to a monotone outfit, and allowing him to be easier seen. The masthead has a purple 'cobweb' like pattern behind it, which helps frame it and project it against the image. This colour is then replicated else where on the magazine, for example by the bar-code and, it matches the wall to the right of Daniel. It is common of Rue Morgue magazine to take one colour from the picture, and then use this behind their masthead and to accent other parts of the cover as it helps keep a minimalist look, while still including more than the slightly mundane black and grey's.  

Masthead - 

The mast head is positioned at the top of the cover, as this is conventional meaning most people look there when trying to find the name of a magazine. It is in the same font and position every issue, however the colour does change in keeping with the colour scheme of the cover. For this issue, the masthead is in a dark beige with a gradient and darker as it goes down. This helps add extra texture and dimension on the cover. The masthead also uses a crescent, giving it almost its own font completely unique to any other magazine, and also enhances the fact that it is a horror focused magazine as the moon is associated with the vampires, were wolves and other night time dangers. While the font matches that of the cover lines, it includes the extra feature of lines running through it - this gives the impression of something old, cracking and fragile, projecting the time period of the film. The magazines magazine's namesake is Edgar Allan Poe's short story "The Murders in the Rue Morgue'', and while not every person may immediately make this connection, those who are fans of the mystery genre will most likely know of his work, thus immediately knowing the magazine will be of a similar theme.

Cover lines -

All the text is in serif font, and this is typically used on old fashioned items such as 19th century books (in keeping as this is the time period the film is set in). Conventionally, magazine covers features four cover lines, and the largest is that that 'matches' the image. Against the usual positioning around each side, the other cover lines are positioned along the bottom of the cover. This allows for more attention to be focused around the cover star himself, and creates a well thought out design as they are all the same height and read seamlessly from the barcode in the bottom left corner.

Genre -

The name of the movie itself helps convey it’s genre, as the use of personal pronouns over a name adds mystery and suspense. The fact that she is in ‘black’ also shows the genre, as black is a colour associated with the devil, evil and terror (that the film contains). The expression on Radcliffe’s face invokes a feeling that he has been shocked or scared by something he has seen, or frightened of hat he will see, portraying the mystery of the film and the fright that the audience may also feel if they watch it (and as people often go to movies to get this sense of scared, this may attract them to inquire more). As previously mentioned, the fonts also show the genre as they were more commonly used in older books, such as from 1889 when the film was set.

Demographic - 
As the mystery/horror genre is very clear with this magazine, its target audience is obviously those who enjoy these kinds of films. That is most likely to be of the older teens and adults, as films with a darker overtone are generally considered inappropriate for young children. The dark colours also shows this, as magazine with a younger audience usually contain more uplifting and bright shades. They also tend to be more, with more cover lines and people featured on them, as this mirrors the ‘busy’ minds of children/younger teenagers, whereas the older, more cultured audience tend to find more minimalistic, artistic images appealing.