Where the Wild Things Are (Oct 16)

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April 10, 2009

[imdb Where the Wild Things Are]I think it is a good sign when a trailer leaves you with tears in your eyes.  I am among thousands of readers that can claim Where the Wild Things Are as a classic favorite, so I’m sure I’m not the only person that get goosebumps watching this trailer.  The author did an amazing job of capturing the desperation Max feels that pushes him to take refuge in his imagination.  The little details in his real life juxtaposed with mirrored clips in his imagination gives the viewer a very quick view into the theme of the film.

The song chosen is perfect; the syncapated notes remind me of the part in the book where the wild things and Max dance around their campfire.  The right music can make a trailer flow nicely, and, paired with the video clips, the song can ilicite just the right emotions.  The crecendos in the music are timed nicely with epic moments in the story, like the dark clouds rolling in the crashing of the waves.

The moment in the trailer that gives my heart a little squeeze is the cascade of running clips, with Max in his adorable little wolf suit running away from the camera in different settings.  The small touch shows the breadth of settings in the film.  It also, at once, puts the audience in Max’s shoes, running with him, and makes it so that we feel he is just out of our grasp and we’re racing to catch up with him.  It’s a very cool technique.

I’m super excited to see how this film adapted the book, but just from seeing the few clips in the trailer, I’m bouncing in my seat!  The only thing I can think to criticize is that I know this is just a teaser and there will be another trailer to come…but I wish there wasn’t.  I wish the promotional people would just push the teaser and not spoil the rest of the film as they no doubt will.  What is with trailers having to give away all the good parts?  Is it by demand of the audience, or do trailer authors simply see us as mindless drones.  When it comes to trailers, I think we should leave them as a fine amuse bouche:  a delight to the senses that leaves us hungry for more (which we will eventually get, by shelling out $11-$14 bucks).

Rating: ★★★★★☆ 

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Posted in: Reviews, Teaser – 1 Comment

12 Rounds (Mar 27)

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March 16, 2009

[imdb 12 rounds]If I had epilepsy, this trailer would trigger a seizure.  There is some pretty heavy plot elements happening in these two and half minutes, so I tried hard to concentrate on what the story was about, but the clips were so choppy, I got nauseous.    Not only are the clips truncated, but each one ends in a whole fade to black.  It’s very sloppy.  It’s as though the trailer author recently found the fade to black button and wanted to use it…a lot.  I love the effect, don’t get me wrong, but only when it is used sparingly, with a point.  It is very good as a transition.  Many trailer’s use it to emphasize a reveal or a plot twist.  Fast & Furious used it very nicely at the end of their first trailer,  punctuating the overlayed music.  This trailer uses the effect to give me a headache.

I feel like the author is teasing me.  The short tidbits of scenes do not give me time to focus on the actors or action.  I get almost a peripheral view of who the actors are, enough to think, “Oh, that might be so-and-so.”  From this trailer, I get the feeling that I could simply rent Die Hard 3, or 88 Minutes, or Ransom, which have the same sort of forced time limit, puzzle game atmosphere.  I get nothing from this trailer to make me think there is anything novel or innovative in this film.  The main actor is a wrestler, but I could go see a Dwayne “The” Johnson movie for that.  The villian sounds suspiciously like a bad John Malkovich impersontor, but I could watch Con-Air for that.  If I want cool actions stunts, I’d rather watch Die Hard 4, or any other action film that puts all its energy into awesome action scenes.

This trailer refused to answer my biggest question I have when I watch previews:

Why should I bother?

Rating: ½ 

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Race to Witch Mountain (In Theaters)

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March 14, 2009

[imdb race to witch mountain]I have disliked this trailer since the first moment I saw it, which is why I’ve been avoiding the review of it.  I just think it is too blah.  There isn’t anything terribly intriguing that would make me want to see the film.  The effects are nothing special.  The plot has been done before, so it’s nothing to write home about.  I was never very taken with the escaping witch series, but at least the old-school films had something eerie about their style and tone.  I still think fondly of those films because they creep me right out.  This new rip-off looks much too slicked up and sassy; it’s lost any of its old appeal.

I also find it weird that The Rock (or as I like to call him, The) tends to talk to himself a lot through the film.  I feel like he’s got a little bit of schizonphrenia, which makes him as awkward as the aliens.  The trailer author chose to splice big action cut scenes (explosions, car crashes, UFO’s taking flight) in between witty remarks of The talking to himself.  That just made me feel weird.  What’s worse, the catchy phrases aren’t that hilarious!  The only example of his wit that I found at all amusing was his remark reminding the adorable twins that they crash landed. 

I don’t feel like this trailer leaves anything to the imagination.  I can pretty much guess exactly whats going to go down, and personally I’d rather watch Monsters Vs. Aliens, which at least is a new twist on a tired old plot.  The sloppiness of this trailer makes me cringe whenever I see it, it’s just too predictable and bipolar.

All in all, no amount of The’s sexiness can make up for shlock.

Rating: ★★☆ 

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The Haunting in Connecticut (Mar 27)

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March 14, 2009

[imdb haunting in Connecticut]A trailer reflects the tone of the film; that’s obvious and self-explanatory, right?  Of course.  Ideally.  However, a trailer like The Haunting in Connecticut perfectly demonstrates the idea that the trailer is a mini version of the film.  The most obvious example I can point out is that there is a definate beginning, middle, and end to this trailer.  It probably is not the same three points as the real film, but for the trailer, it works perfectly.  It leaves the viewer satisfied. 

The beginning is nice, calm.  The family moves into the house.  The middle is an incline of events, starting with brief glimpses of entities, some paranormal happenings, the kids do research, and then a slue of actions sequences involving major haunting incidences and somebody wielding an axe.  The end is not a resolution, but just a slowing of the clips and music and then a final kicker with the scream and the scary face.  Fleshing out the trailer in such a way gives the audience the sense that the film is probably well fleshed out.  This may or may not be true; The Unborn is an example of a film failing to live up to its trailer.  That is why the other parts of the trailer are so very important.

The music in the trailer of The Haunting in Connecticut is perfect in its creepiness and chilling nature.  The forelorn piano notes drift around, lending a cold rhythm to the chaos errupting around it.  The piano being used sounds slightly tinny which connotes old age or something from the past.  A tinny piano, when used in a horror film, has much the same effect as a kaliope.  There is something innately creepy about those instruments that pull at our nerves, especially when those nerves are already on edge.

I’m excited to Elias Koteas in a movie again.  Some of you may remember him as the awesome Casey Jones in the Ninja Turtles movies.  Ahh yeah.  On the other hand, if you’ve watched any Veronica Mars, you’ll know why I’m not so sure about the main kid, Kyle Gallner.  He’s a pretty good actor, but he’s also really creepy.  I just hope the film doesn’t turn out like The Unborn and have Gallner barely clothed throughout the film.

Rating: ★★★★★☆ 

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So, Green Hornet, huh?

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March 2, 2009

I don’t have an article or anything that I read about this, I just thought it was worth mentioning.  Seth Rogen is pretty much set to play the Green Hornet in 2010; I know because it says so on IMDB.  The detail I find interesting is that a few months ago, when I checked this, it said Stephen Chow was set to play Kato.  I looked back three weeks ago and Chow’s name had been removed, and I was terribly upset.  However, I happened to look again just now and Chow’s name is back.  What’s going on in IMDB land?  Is somebody waffling or is there an intern out there who keeps deleting names?  I just can’t take this roller coaster of emotion!

http://splashpage.mtv.com/2009/02/26/seth-rogen-expands-on-michel-gondrys-secret-green-hornet-audition-tape-fight-scene/

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Funny People (July 31)

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February 23, 2009

[imdb Funny people]Yikes! There are three movie plots crammed into this dinky little trailer! How much information do they expect us to process in just three and a half minutes? Adam Sandler’s funny, Seth Rogen’s funny, Adam Sandler’s dying, now he’s not dying, now he’s a home wrecker. Yeesh. It should have ended with a simple Adam Sandler may not be dying, that gives the essential conflict without having the whole film laid out.

This trailer feels cramped, like the editor had some important points to get across to the filmgoers, and a) didn’t trust us to pick up on small hints, and 2) did not have an outline. It’s like one of my high school essays about why I like summertime; the type of essays I would leave off till the very last second. It has no order to it. This does not feel like a cohesive montage with a single point (the plot) clearly focused upon. It’s much more a hack job of the two-hour film. I feel exhausted just watching the preview, and I don’t think I need to bother seeing the film; I know everything that’s going to happen.

Most trailers, not teasers, I’ve seen recently are usually 2.5 minutes long. It seems as though the extra minute the Funny People trailer had could have given us even more insight as to why we should see the film. Instead, that extra minute hurt the trailer, dragging it along like so much dead horse.

Beautifully crafted trailers need to have some sort of harmonic flow to them. They need to leave the audience asking questions that can only be answered by seeing the film. The trailer also needs to whet the viewer’s appetite. While the trailers of films I’m chomping at the bit to see usually end up making me even more hungry for the actual film, the trailer itself is usually so fun to watch by itself, it can usually allay my painful need to see it.

Funny People’s trailer leaves nothing to the viewer’s imagination. Omg, is Adam Sandler going to die? No. Oh. Well, is this woman going to stay “the one that got away?” Probably not. Oh. Is Seth Rogen going to develop and uber man-crush on Adam Sandler? Well, don’t we all? Oh yeah. Pshaw. As far as I’m concerned, I’ve already seen the film. There is going to have to be some major twist in the film to make me shell out $15 to see it.

Rating: ½ 

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“Twilight” Director not to do “New Moon”

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February 18, 2009

Originally I heard from a very excited friend, who also happens to be a diehard Twilight addict, that director Catherine Hardwicke had been cut from directing the next films in the series.  I was personally not a fan of Hardwicke’s directing style.  I think she took a potentially over-the-top, melo-dramatic script and made it even more ridiculous with her grandiose style.  Plus, the way she directed the actors was just down-right bad.  They had no emotions, and the beauty of Stephanie Meyer’s novels and her characters is that although these people are in extraordinary circumstances, they are still people, with feelings, and humor, and lively-ness.  I don’t know, Hardwicke’s style seemed to suck all the life from the book.

I do think at times the book gets a little full of itself; I mean, come on, what’s so spectacular about Bella that every guy in town wants to carry her school books and carve their initials on the lush flora surrounding Forks, WA?  However, if I were going to direct the movie of “Twilight,” I would have made everything more mundane, to contrast the weird goings-on.  All I get from the film is drama, drama, drama, running up trees.  Boring!

So apparently Hardwicke, the innovative indie director who likes to throw tantrums, was a little too emotiional and artistic for the Summit company to handle.  She wanted to take her sweet time in nurturing the next film, while Summit had a Thanksgiving release in mind.  What’s really interesting is the discrepancy in the story.  I found numerous articles stating the decision to can Hardwicke was all Summit’s idea.  They needed a product, she was in their way, so they dealt with her.  However, I also happened to find a little piece from MTV giving Hardwicke her side of the story, saying that despite the ENORMOUS sum of money she was offered to take on “New Moon,” her artistic sensibilities just would not allow it.

Poor Catherine.  Well, I’d feel bad for her losing all that money, if I didn’t think that her strong belief set could keep her fed and warm through the harsh winter ahead.  To Summit I say, you better find somebody that can actually make Kristin Stewart smile, or this is one Stephanie Meyer fan that will not be giving you a second chance.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/the_big_picture/2008/12/why-twilight-di.html

http://www.mtv.com/movies/news/articles/1604966/story.jhtml

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Friday the 13th (Feb 13 & 1980)

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February 18, 2009

[imdb tt0080761]Despite what my friends will tell you, I was not the only person in our group to say “What are they counting to?” when we first saw the new Friday the 13th trailer.  Plus, I figured it out quickly enough, so there.  Although these trailers aren’t any longer than other theatrical trailers, for some reason, with them counting to 13, it feels like they go on forever.  I get that they are trying to be clever, and I also like the nostalgia it conjures from the original film’s trailer, but it did seem to drag a little.

The original (from 1980) Friday the 13th’s trailer has some fun with its music, to get some spines chilled in the 2.5 minute montage.  It also uses clips with some pretty heavy built-in suspense, like where we see the kid ascending into the cabin, from pretty much the killer’s perspective; as he enters the cabin, the camera pulls away, and the audience is left to wonder what’s going on. 

However, it takes away from the tension you’d get if you actually watched the movie, because it shows how each character dies.  Now, when you watch the film, you’re going to be primed for the deaths, instead of being surprised.  I don’t know, but maybe the trailer wasn’t shown as often in 1980 as trailers are shown today, so maybe people would have forgotten by the time they got around to seeing the movie, but it still seems a little anticlimactic.

[imdb tt0758746]The new film’s trailer is a little less blatant.  It uses some clever editing (i.e. fades, flashes, quick cuts) to try to detract from the fact that they are still giving away the murders…only more creatively.  We can still gleen who’s going to bite it when, but it happens in such quick sucession, we tend to doubt what our eyes just saw.  The quick cuts are slightly misleading, but essentially we’re shown the murders. 

The new film was rumored by some to be a remake of the first, but it was plainly a sequel.  So it’s interesting that the new trailer is mimicing the original.  While I dislike the original giving away climactic points, I love how it draws out the suspense.  The new trailer does not give me goosebumps until the end when it uses the creepy “kill kill kill” sound effects and has the mother talking about Jason in her eerie little voice.  I liked the original movie, despite being long and drawn out, because it seemed a study in the animalistic sort of hunting of camp counselers, and of course the baiting of the audience.

The new film’s trailer shows the audience exactly what they should expect from the film, a little sex, a little suspense and a LOT of blood and gore.  So, for present-day trailer standards, it’s a pretty decent trailer, despite practically handing us the punchlines of all the murders.  I will say, though, that having seen the movie, if you’re a fan of creative, gruesome murder scenes, this film is pretty good at that.  Not the best, but not bad. 

Rating: ★★★☆ 


httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEgahzAwOy8

Rating: ★★★☆ 


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Posted in: Comparison, Deja View, Retrospective, Reviews – No Comments

Austen’s World to be Massacred by Alien Monster

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February 17, 2009

There is going to be yet another remake of Jane Austen’s classic staple of western literature, Pride and Prejudice.  That Elton John’s production company is making it is a weird prospect.  What takes the cake, though, is that the story is getting just a little twist, by having the nasty, blood-thirsty alien from the Predator series is going to be landing in Regency England and forcing the residents of Longbourn to run for their lives.

It’s bad enough that Wickham breaks Lizzies heart and runs away with her little sister and destroys her reputation…but it seems as though we’ve found an even bigger jerk than Wickham. 

Not long ago I had mentioned to my roommate that I wanted to make a Friday the 13th-esque film during American colonial times.  This comes pretty close to my idea, which is why I need to see it!  I want to see Darcy running with Elizabeth, hiding in Pemberley.  I hope Kitty and Lydia get thrown to the Predator first, and Mrs. Bennett.

They must have been high when they came up with this idea, and I applaud them for it.  And, hey, anything would be better than that piece of crap with Kiera Knightley.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/18/arts/18arts-AUSTENMEETSA_BRF.html?ref=arts

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2009/feb/17/pride-and-predator-to-give-jane-austen-extreme-makeover

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He’s Just Not That into You (In Theaters)

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February 17, 2009

[imdb he’s just not that into you]I know this film has been out for a while, but I enjoyed the trailer so much, I needed to review it anyway.  I’m not usually a fan of ensemble pieces; I usually get invested in one or two of the characters and get bored when the others are on screen.  However, this film does a really good job of balancing the time and energy put into developing each character. 

The trailer nicely showcases the characters, plot lines, and humor evident in the film.  It gives the audience some very good examples of the jokes they should expect to hear, the banter, the neurotic characters; without the irritating habit most trailers have of giving away the end.

From the trailer, the viewer gets the sense that the film is a little deeper and more heartfelt than your typical romantic comedy, but still a comedy with romance, nonetheless.  However, the trailer doesn’t have a single scene with one character chasing after another one; we are not told outright how the film will end.  If you are a seasoned film-goer, there are many cinematic clues you can glean from the scenes chosen by the trailer author, but even when you’re watching the film, you still do not quite know where it’s heading.

I absolutely love every clip the trailer has of Ginnifer Goodwin.  I must admit that it was mainly her little expressions, like when she dismissively waves her hand towards the phone, that made me really want to see the film.  I must say, I was not disappointed.  Her character alone was enough for me to like the film, despite her innate neuroses.

Rating: ★★★★★☆ 

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Posted in: Deja View – No Comments
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