It's no secret that Hollywood is sequel crazy, but it's gotten to the point where it's hard to tell at a glance if a movie is a sequel or something new all together. Here are five trailers I had to closely scrutinize before I could determine whether or not sequalization was occurring.
Fast & Furious Yup, this one's definitely a sequel, the fourth installment in the series launched by 2001's The Fast and the Furious. First off I give the whole franchise kudos for having the originality to give each of the films its own title and not just slapping on an escalating series of numbers. Furthermore, despite never having seen any of the others in the series, this trailer piqued my interest. Vin Diesel and co-star Michelle Rodriguez are seen here hijacking a tractor trailer hauling multiple tankers of gasoline, and the action is downright spectacular. Granted, the almost subliminal lesbian make out scene doesn't hurt either, but I could get behind seeing this. Here's what William had to say on the trailer.
Sukyaki Western Django At first glance one might think this was a belated sequel to the 1966 spaghetti western Django. In reality this is an ultra violent homage to the genre with Takashi Miike at the helm and with Quentin Tarantino appearing in a supporting role. I've seen a few of Miike's film's, but the one I remember best is the bizarre and brutal Ichi the Killer, so I'm curious to see how he does with a Western. The preview is a frenetic barrage of action scenes with plot details being of secondary concern, but there's some wild stuff here, including bullets being deflected by samurai swords much in the way a Jedi would deflect a laser blast with his light sabre. The film is shot in English, though according to Jeffrey's review of the film, the mostly Japanese cast's unfamiliarity with the language is a drawback. Still, this looks pretty cool. Sukyaki Western Django goes into limited U.S. release this weekend, so I don't imagine it will be long before it's available on DVD.
Trailers are taking to the air this week as we discuss five previews that make me think of flying.
Up This is a real quick little teaser but it makes me smile every time I watch it, and I'm pretty certain that's Ed Asner voicing the single word used. I suspect this brief bit of film will not even end up in the final flick, but it's already sold me through its ability to be charming as hell. This is Pixar's tenth animated feature, though not having seen Wall-E yet I'm starting to fall behind. In addition to Asner the voice cast includes Christopher Plummer and Pixar mainstay John Ratzenberger, and is described as "a 'coming of old age' story," in which "a seventysomething hero, alongside his clueless wilderness ranger sidekick, travels the globe, fighting beasts and villains, and eating dinner at 3:30 in the afternoon." Fireflies in the Garden If Willem Defoe were my father and he was half as crazed as he looks here I'd be pretty screwed up too. This is a semi-autobiographical feature from director Dennis Lee and deals with a family trying to deal with an unexpected tragedy. Defoe plays the father and presumably the source of much of the dysfunction and Ryan Reynolds is the son publishing his memoirs and stirring up the muck. Julia Roberts is there too, along with Carrie-Anne Moss and Hayden Panetierre. The trailer comes off as fascinating but grim, so if you're looking for the feel good movie of the year you should probably look elsewhere. Here's what Eugene thought.
Music plays a vital role in nearly every film, but for these five it's of particular importance.
Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist Michael Cera has become the go-to guy for filmmakers looking to cast a romantically befuddled teen, and I have to say he's pretty darn good at it. Whether he's mooning over the best friend that he's recently impregnated (Juno) or harboring a forbidden affection for his cousin (Arrested Development), you can't help rooting for the little perv. This time out he's playing an angst ridden kid nursing a broken heart who finds himself falling for his new acquaintance Norah as the two spend a hectic night in New York City trying to find the location of a secret gig their favorite band is playing. The story is only of moderate interest, but Cera's presence has me wanting to check out the movie. Here's William's take on the trailer.
Beer For My Horses The eye-catching title comes from a Toby Keith song. Keith is starring in and co-writing this action comedy about a Texas deputy who has to rescue his girlfriend from a dangerous drug lord. Willie Nelson puts in an appearance, apparently as a Yoda-style adviser to our hero. At first I suspected something along the lines of a Larry the Cable Guy movie, and while this is still no Oscar contender, I can see where it might make for entertaining viewing once it hits DVD. I even found myself chuckling at the "peeing in the coffee" joke despite myself.
Once again we're bouncing around the trailer-verse, finding a preview of interest and letting word association zig us into one trailer before zagging into another. Here we go ...
The Spirit The Spirit teaser made the movie look a bit too much like a Sin City sequel, but this full length trailer seems to give a better look at what it's all about. Tons of bizarre imagery to digest here, with a strong emphasis on The Spirit's love interests, which appears to be pretty much every woman in the cast. I've only read a few Spirit comics over the years so I wasn't sure what to expect. Still, Frank Miller is giving this a major dose of visual style which has me looking forward to the December 25 release date. Here's Elisabeth's take on it. And speaking of all things spiritual... Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Up through Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire I felt the film adaptations of J.K. Rowling's novels improved with each installment. I also liked Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, but for the first time I thought too many details from the book were glossed over or left out entirely, making the movie feel more like highlights from the book than a complete adaptation. I'm hoping I don't get that feeling when the Half-Blood Prince hits theaters because I'm liking this trailer. We really get the feel of the series' increasing darkness as we see a flashback of Professor Dumbledore's first meeting with Tom Riddle, the boy who will grow up to become Lord Voldemort. I'm expecting great stuff for Harry's sixth year at Hogwart's. Here's what Erik had to say on the trailer. And speaking of school...
For every hero, heroine, and sidekick, there's a nuisance -- that person who's there to mess things up and foil the plan. This week, we've got a bunch of men who make trouble and quickly become the thorn in someone, or someTHING's side.
Terminator Salvation As if Christian Bale taking on Batman wasn't enough, now he's taking the shoes once filled by ol' Eddie Furlong and becoming John Connor in Terminator Salvation. That's right -- it's the future and Bale wants to bring those metallic jerks down. It's 2018, and John's understanding of the future has been changed by the appearance of a stranger named Marcus Wright. Connor and Wright head for the heart of Skynet and discover "the terrible secret behind the possible annihilation of mankind." Bale's being all breathy, there's lots of flashes and demolition, and Connor gets a bit of a surprise from one Hulk-sized machine. Erik thinks it's the perfect teaser trailer. Me, I'm not sold, but I'm not disappointed yet either.
The international trailer for Body of Lies has just arrived online, and the combo of Russell Crowe and Leonardo DiCaprio is enticing to say the least. Based on the novel by David Ignatius (and scripted by The Departed's William Monahan), Body of Lies tells of a former journalist (DiCaprio) who's hired by the CIA to track down an Al Qaeda leader in Jordan. The film was directed by Ridley Scott.
Cinematical's Eugene Novikov recently used Body of Lies as part of his From Page to Screen column, and on the book he says: "Body of Lies, the novel, is pitched as a spy thriller informed by the author's extensive experience in the field and knowledge of the way the CIA really operates. (The back cover offers a fawning quote from former CIA director George Tenet, claiming that the book is "fiction but reads like fact.") It's certainly intelligent, plausible, and sometimes exciting." The trailer seems to focus more on that "sometimes exciting" part, showing DiCaprio in all sorts of iffy situations, while his CIA boss (played by an overweight and somewhat unattractive Russell Crowe) rides his ass until something gives. Body of Lies hits theaters on October 10.
Sometimes I enjoy films with multi-layered stories and intricate characters, and then there are times when I just want to see people blowing sh*t up. I blame the testosterone. This week we've got five trailers that are all about the action. Hell Ride No, he's not directing, but Quentin Tarantino is producing this one which should turn a few heads, as will the fact that this is a red band trailer that earns its crimson hue. Three bad ass biker types played by writer/director Larry Bishop, Michael Madsen, and Eric Balfour are out for revenge against a rival gang for killing one of their bros. Dennis Hopper and David Carradine are in their too. The trailer embraces its b-movie action roots, not even caring that the shot of three figures nonchalantly walking away as a building blows up behind them has become something of a cliche. In his review of the film, Cinematical's Eric Snider makes the point that grindhouse style cinema is a niche market that appeals to a restricted number of people. True enough, though on a purely personal level, I'm a big fan of the old school grindhouse flicks and this looks like it's going to be pretty awesome.
Once again the Independence Day holiday proved successful for Will Smith. Hancock launched on Tuesday night, had a total of $103.9 million by weekend's end and provided Smith with his eighth consecutive film to open at number one. Kit Kittredge: An American Girl, which went into wider release last weekend, finished in eighth place. Here's the top five: 1. Hancock $62.6 million 2. Wall-E $32.5 million 3.Wanted $20 million 4. Get Smart$11.1 million 5. Kung Fu Panda $7.3 million
Three new ones this week with (surprise) yet another superhero flick gunning for the top spot.
Hellboy II: The Golden Army What's It All About: Ron Perlman returns as Hellboy, a demon employed by the U.S. government to do battle against the things that go bump in the night. Denizens of a mystical world of supernatural creatures are about to wage war upon humanity, and Hellboy, the scarlet skinned scourge of evil, must stop them. Also returning are Doug Jones as the aquatic Abe Sapien (voicing the character himself this time, and not being dubbed by David Hyde Pierce) and Selma Blair as the pyrokinetic Liz. Why It Might Do Well: In a nutshell: Guillermo del Toro. The man behind the original Hellboy film is back. In addition to being rejoined by the original cast, Hellboy creator Mike Mignola collaborated on the script. Also, we're talking 90% from Rottentomatoes.com. Why It Might Not Do Well: Who's going to go see a movie based on a comic book? Oh, wait... Number of Theaters: 2,900 Prediction: $42 million
They say truth is stranger than fiction. To that I say "you obviously haven't seen Naked Lunch," but reality is certainly a fertile ground for film makers and today we've got five trailers for films based, to varying degrees, on real events. The Perfect Game I've never enjoyed watching sports so baseball movies usually leave me cold, but this one has a couple of things going for it: a true tale of a bunch of kids rising up from poverty to become world champions, and former drug culture icon Cheech Marin playing a priest. Based on true events, a former coach for the St. Louis Cardinals (Clifton Collins Jr.) takes a group of poor Mexican kids under his wing and teaches them the fine art of baseball, which ultimately leads them to the 1957 Little League World Series. There are the usual sports metaphors: "Love ain't like baseball," says Collins' character. "Yes it is," replies one of his bright eyed proteges. I'm teetering between cute and cringe-inducing on that one, but this kind of rags to riches story is pretty appealing and the period setting is pretty cool. The Perfect Game hits theaters on August 8.
I love a good horror flick, but it's rare that I can find five trailers with some kind of connection to horror worth talking about in a single week. Huzzah! This is just such a week. Take a look at these Tales to Horrify. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Undead
This light-hearted take on vampirism reminds me a little of Roman Polanski's The Fearless Vampire Killers, with the "theater of vampires" bit making me think of Interview With The Vampire. I gotta say this looks awesome. An unemployed actor played by Jake Hoffman (son of Dustin) lands a job directing a bizarre off-Broadway version of Hamlet. The play has actually been written by a Romanian vampire, and things get complicated when the lead actor suddenly becomes one of the undead as well. Ralph Macchio is in there too playing a mobster/vampire hunter and, according to Monika's post from a few months ago, Sean Lennon has written the score. This looks like a classy production all the way through.
Mirrors are everywhere, but there's still something inherently creepy about them. Kiefer Sutherland plays an ex-cop and some kind of malevolent force is using mirrors as a gateway into his home to threaten him and his family. There are some creepy moments here, but I'm not sure about this one. These days I see Sutherland and I can't get past his Jack Bauer character, and that kid in the trailer is trying way too hard to sound cute. This is also from the director of High Tension, which is not a score in the plus column for me. The trailer is pretty slight, so I'll have to see more. Here's what William thought.
Once again using my own take on the classic Seven Degrees of Kevin Bacon, I'm bouncing from one trailer to the next via connections both insignificant and profound. Let's start with...
Pink Panther 2 When I first heard about the 2006 Pink Pantherremake I, like many, cried "blasphemers!" Who could possibly fill Peter Sellers' shoes as the endearingly idiotic Inspector Clouseau? Well, if anyone could do, it it would be Steve Martin, and even if the film wasn't a total success Martin brought some inspired silliness to the role, and now he's back for more. This teaser trailer is kind of funny, though I don't care for the more up-tempo version of the classic Pink Panther theme (was that in the last film? I don't remember). The good inspector sneaks into a sold out movie, and while I won't give away the joke, I will say that it will definitely work better in theaters than online. Eugene posted about the trailer here. And speaking of remakes... Death Race It's unfortunate that this one starts with one of the worst cliches of all time. "The rules are simple," says one character, "there are no rules." Gag me. I've always liked Death Race 2000 from 1975, and while this new version apparently strays pretty far from the original, it looks to be a fun bit of brainless action. Jason Statham is a former NASCAR champion who has been framed for his wife's murder so he can participate in a three day auto race for convicted felons. In its few years of existence Death Race has garnered a bigger audience than the Super Bowl. Cars are armor plated and armed with a potpourri of exotic weapons. The trailer is non-stop action and if the film is the same I'll be willing to overlook that godawful cliche. Here's Erik's take. And speaking of Jason Statham...
There have been war movies pretty much for as long as there have been movies. If and when we finally get to see Tarantino's long-promised Inglorious Bastards, and if it proves to be a hit, I'm betting we see a surge of war flicks. For now, though, we've got five trailers for war-related movies, starting with...
Punisher: War Zone Between Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk, Marvel properties are pretty hot these days, but I just don't see this one coming anywhere near that kind of success. Much like Batman, The Punisher started his career driven by vengeance, but instead of fighting crime with his fists, he selected the admittedly more practical weapon: guns, lots and lots of guns. Thomas Jane chose not to return for this sequel and this time we have Ray Stevenson wearing the skull emblem and firing the automatic weapons. His delivery is particularly stump-like, but there's only so much that can be done with lines like "sometimes I'd like to get my hands on God." I've never liked the comic book and I haven't seen any of the other Punisher movies, so maybe fans of the character will find this more interesting.
Miracle at St. Anna This new one from Spike Lee should be worth waiting for. In 1983, a postal employee named Hector Negron gives a customer a look of recognition before shooting him in cold blood. Police find an ancient Italian artifact worth $5 million in Negron's apartment as well as a purple heart from World War II. The details are told in flashback as we see him and several other black American soldiers in 1944 trapped behind enemy lines in Italy. This is based on a novel by James McBride and it opens on September 26. Here's Christopher's take.
No, I'm not talking about Paul McCartney and Wings' "Venus and Mars" (though that is a pretty awesome tune). I suppose you would be hard pressed to find a movie with no romantic angle at all, but these five trailers focus specifically on male/female relationships. Nights in Rodanthe No, this doesn't have anything to do with that radioactive pterodactyl occasionally seen hanging out with Godzilla (that's Rodan to the uninitiated). Actually this one (which Erik first posted about here) stars Richard Gere as a doctor on his way to reconcile with his son. His trip takes an unexpected turn when he begins a love affair with an innkeeper whose loveless marriage is on the skids. Christopher Meloni plays the estranged husband, which doesn't seem all that different from his role on Law and Order: Special Victims Unit. It looks like a competent production, but it just reeks of Bridges of Madison County. There may be something worthwhile here, but it's not my cup of tea. He's Just Not That Into You If nothing else, the cast of this adaptation of the novel by Greg Behrendt and Liz Tuccillo will make you sit up and take notice. Drew Barrymore, Jennifer Connelly, Scarlett Johansson, Jennifer Aniston, Ben Affleck, and Justin Long star with Barrymore also producing. The film follows several interconnecting stories, with the trailer showing us several romantic missteps that could easily come from any romantic comedy, but the cast is so top-notch that I find myself wanting to see more. This one hits theaters on October 24. Here's Elisabeth's take on the trailer.
Have you ever read a film review in which the critic went to great pains to find meaning and symbolism that really wasn't there? I was reminded of that practice just now as I struggled in vain to find a common theme with which to bind together five previews for today's Trailer Park. Rather than trying to find structure where none truly exists, I'm just going with five trailers I find interesting. Cool?
Zack and Miri Make a Porno Yes, I'm a big enough Kevin Smith fan that I stayed up for the midnight launch of this trailer on the Quick Stop Entertainment site. Unfortunately I didn't realize they meant midnight on the West coast, so I was slightly sleep deprived when I finally caught the trailer this morning. As Erik pointed out in his recent post, Smith states that this is just a teaser and doesn't contain even a second of footage from the actual film. The title characters (played by Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks) are lifelong platonic friends who decide to produce a porn flick together. The teaser shows them auditioning talent, but we only see the two of them as they struggle through the unfamiliar process. No belly laughs, but it is quite funny and charming, while being verbally graphic. This is a bit of a relief, as the "I'm F***ing Seth Rogen" video that was circulating a little while ago featured the two stars riffing on Sarah Silverman's hilarious "I'm F***ing Matt Damon" video without really adding much. More importantly, I learned a new word today: "manscape."
This week I'm feeling kind of fond of the fauna. Here are five trailers for films related to the animal kingdom. The Dark Knight Bats: nocturnal flying mammals who occasionally star in hotly anticipated summer blockbusters. I know I'm not the only one who's been waiting for this one ever since the end credits rolled on Batman Begins. Once again Christian Bale dons the cape and cowl of the tortured Batman, this time to do battle with Heath Ledger's sublimely psychotic Joker. This newest trailer gives us plenty of both hero and villain, as well as what appears to be the start of District Attorney Harvey Dent's (Aaron Eckhart) career as Two-Face. Michael Caine is also back as Alfred, and as much as I liked Michael Gough in the role, now I can't imagine anyone else polishing the silver at Wayne Manor. July 18 can't come fast enough. Here's Elisabeth's take. Eagle Eye You know that scene in The Matrix where Morpheus calls Neo on the cell phone and tries to instruct him on how to get out of the office before The Agents find him? That's exactly what this trailer plays like. Shia Labeouf plays a character who suddenly finds an extra three-quarters of a million dollars in his bank account and he comes home to find his apartment filled with a couple metric tons of terrorist accoutrement's like explosives and automatic weapons. A mysterious voice calls him and tells him that the FBI will be there in moments. Arrested and framed, he must go undercover with a terrorist organization to clear his name. I was intrigued until I found out this was from D.J. Caruso, the man behind the stunningly mediocre Disturbia. Still, the trailer is kind of cool and the cast also includes Rosario Dawson and Billy Bob Thornton. Eagle Eye starts playing U.S. theaters on September 26. Here's what Erik thought of the trailer.
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Hellboy II: The Golden Army
