DVD Cover Analysis

The First TV show DVD cover I will be analysing is “Max & Paddy’s Road To Nowhere” firstly as we can see the cover is very colourful and uses a wide range of different colours, the colours used mainly reflect those of the logo using the colours red and yellow.  On the front cover we can see the main protagonists of the TV show with them standing back to back and using direct mode of address looking at the audience on the front cover of the DVD.  The front cover also has a cartoon effect on it with it showing different parts from the TV show but in a cartoon drawing.  One of the main focus points of the front cover is the campervan which is centre aligned and the main focus point along with the characters above it.  The DVD cover also uses quotes from other sources of media in this case from the tabloid newspaper “The Mirror” which is to make the audience see that it is a highly regarded TV show.  There is the use of the channel 4 logo on the cover as they were the people that showed the TV show.  The TV show is in the comedy genre we can see this from the DVD cover with the images used and the characters used as Peter Kay and Paddy McGuiness are both famous comedians.  The back of the DVD cover includes a paragraph of text briefly explaining the story of the TV show.  There are also a few images from the show which are for the viewer to see.  The TV show is age certified as being a 15 this means that the language or the storylines used in the TV show aren’t suitable for a younger audience.  The TV show is a representation of Northern English men as both characters play on the stereotype.        

The second DVD TV cover I will be analysing is the TV show Prison Break which is an American TV action, thriller TV show.  The DVD front cover is very dark with the colours black, red and white being used.  There is the use of lots of shadows with the text and on the background images.  The front cover has three of the main characters of the TV show on it with the main protagonist standing closest to the audience.  The characters dress codes are in prison clothing showing that these characters must have also done something wrong.  In the background image there is the image of a man’s body with a large tattoo on his body this is an enigma at what this tattoo means.  On the front cover in the background there is also the use of barbed wire showing the TV show could also be violent, we also know this as the age rating of the TV Show is 15 meaning there will be violence or some other content which isn’t suitable for a younger audience.  There is the use of the Fox logo showing it is well recognised and supported by major people.  The back cover of the DVD cover has the text in white with a black background the text mainly says the names of each episode on the DVD.  There is also the use of small images from the TV show on the back of the DVD cover letting the audience see clips from the show in images.  There is the use of barbed wire again splitting each paragraph.  At the bottom of the DVD cover on the back there is the technical details and lots of images of the HD logo and other sound Dolby Digital logos.      

Finally the third DVD cover i will be analysing is the tv show Hawaii Five-0 which is a remake of the original tv show which was first released in the 1960s.  The front of the DVD cover shows four characters from the show all the characters are the most important part of the film the main protagonist is positioned closest to the audience on the DVD cover.  There is a nice water effect on the front of the cover which goes across most of the characters this shows the semiotics on the dvd cover show that the show is based in Hawaii.  The text on the cover is white and bold and is large on the cover which can clearly be seen by the audience.  The background colour of all the DVD cover is blue which also can indicate that the location of where the show is set is warm and hot which is iconic of Hawaii.  The way the characters are positioned also shows power and authority with the main protagonist standing tall and the other lead character in the show wearing sunglasses showing dominance and power.  The genre that the tv show is a action and thriller we are hinted towards this as all four characters are in a team/squad and could mean that they will work together to solve crimes and mystery's.  The front cover of the DVD also includes three logos which can be recognised the first being the standard DVD logo and the Dolby Digital sound logo indicating the tv show is good quality and finally the logo of the American tv channel CBS indicating the tv show is very popular and gets good tv airtime.  The back cover of the DVD cover has lots of text giving a brief description and introduction into what the TV show is about and some of the characters personalities.  The back cover also has the four main characters again directly addressing the audience showing power and dominance.  The bottom of the back cover includes a barcode and lots of different technical details about the DVD and the tv show.