The Boy in the Striped Pajamas Visual Analysis

My historical movie analysis is on “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas.” I chose this poster of the movie because of both of the images of the boys.  When you first look at the poster you see the big image of the two boys back to back. Instantly you can tell there is a difference between the two. One of the boys has no hair and is wearing pajamas whereas the other is wearing a clean collared shirt with his hair nicely combed.  When looking at the poster a little closer you can see that there is a second image of the two boys  sitting on opposite sides of a barbed wire fence.  Sitting face to face as if the fence isn’t there but unable to play with the ball that is placed right beside them.  In the image there is also a quote that says “Lines may divide us, but hope will unite us.” This is a powerful quote

because it demonstrates a sense of imagery based on the fence in the poster.

The creator of this poster aims towards your sense of compassion and sorrow.  By viewing the two boys sitting by the fence you get the feel as though these boys want to enjoy their time together but simply can’t because they are from two different worlds.  The creator’s message from the poster is that even though they are from two different worlds it doesn’t necessarily mean that all hope for them is gone.  There is still hope for these boys to be able to enjoy each others company.

The intended audience may be for young adults or even adults in general. This film educational and demonstrates all of the difficulties that Jews went through during this time period.  It also demonstrates the side of a German family. This film brings out both sides of the the concentration camps.

The visual element that grabs my attention the most is the barbed wire fence. When I first saw the image I could see by the way the artist portrayed the fence in the poster that  it just as much importance as the  young boys do.

The persuasive strategy being used would be pathos.  The imagery aims towards your feelings in compassion and sorrow.  The creator of the poster wanted the audience to see the poster and feel compassionate for the young boys, especially the boy in the striped pajamas.

The words “Lines may divide us, but hope will unite us,” of the advertisement emphasize the picture based on the fence.  As mentioned above these words are powerful because of its imagery that it portrays with the fence but also the sense of compassion with the word “hope.”