Some trailers I've seen recently, and my thoughts on them. (Links are
to youtube. Opinions are thoroughly personal.)
The Osiris Child:
really heavy-handed blue and orange tinting, "tough" woman who's
useless when it comes to the actual action, little girl in peril,
looks like cliché by the numbers.
A Bad Moms Christmas:
may have some appeal to people who aren't me.
Hostiles (Teaser):
spends most of its time establishing that it's a Western, and little
time telling me what's special about this Western. And steals a
Clint Eastwood line.
Insidious - The Last Key:
jump-scare exorcist horror. Looks just like every other James Wan
film. I suppose that's what his fans want.
Lady Bird:
nothing to do with Mrs President Johnson; a moderately expensive cast
(OK, half the budget probably went on Saoirse Ronan alone) but this
looks like just another troubled teen growing up flick. Yeah, it's a
female troubled teen, and a female writer/director. and that counts
for something.
The Man Who Invented Christmas:
Dickens comedy, which seems to spend most of its time laughing at the
creative process. It might work but it really doesn't grab me.
The Square:
seems like a huge bag of not fun, but it's not aimed at me.
Jeepers Creepers 3:
for people who already know and like the series.
Mudbound (Teaser):
I don't normally enjoy Serious Historical Drama, but there's something
about this one that appeals to me.
Early Man:
if it weren't for the Aardman look this would be just more kidvid. If
there more to it than the look? I hope so. I really do.
The Current War:
ah, yes, Edison is of course a put-upon genius and not at all a
ruthless exploiter of other people's ideas. I suppose a
dramatisation of these events has to have someone to cheer for (I
often call for that sort of thing myself), but that role doesn't seem
to fit any of the historical characters who were involved.
Downsizing:
there's a (rather good) SF book in which the plot is about discovering
something like this. But what's the plot here? The trailer is just
showing a picaresque.
The Commuter:
looks rather as though Liam Neeson is doing the Liam Neeson Thing
again, guy who's wronged, world against him, etc.; and really, a
blatant dolly zoom in this century?
The Disaster Artist:
looks better than the teaser did, though still perhaps a somewhat
protracted look at a Guy Who Screws Up.
All the Money in the World:
basing it on real events just makes it feel like a whole heap of not
fun.
Red Sparrow:
er, yes, and? That's the setup; what's the film about? (Or is it
just about looking at Jennifer Lawrence in a succession of sexy
costumes?)
TRUST ME:
you can't leave the past behind, but build some sympathy for the
protagonist please.
November Criminals:
this could work, though up-and-coming charisma vortex Ansel Eigort is
one strike; it all depends on whether the payoff is worth it.
All I See Is You:
add Jason Clarke to the list of actors who just look wrong to me, I
guess. This setup seems like a pretty paltry reason for a relationship
crisis.
Just Getting Started:
old men wave their genitalia at each other. Both Freeman and Jones
have done so much better.
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