Some trailers I've seen recently, and my thoughts on them. (Links are
to youtube. Opinions are thoroughly personal. Calibration: I hate
everything.)
Holmes & Watson:
my ideal film of Sherlock Holmes would start from the same books as
this film did, and then take the opposite choice each time there was a
decision to be made. I absolutely cannot see the appeal here.
Rocketman (2019):
I'm not a fan, but it's hard to do a look inside the mind of an
artist, and this seems promising if this works.
The Upside:
looks like a heavy-handed version of a story we've seen before, but
the cast is surprisingly good. And I never thought I'd say that about
Kevin Hart.
Vice:
yeah, but they don't look anything like the originals, and we've all
seen the originals.
The Mule:
all right, this one does try to work up some sympathy for the
protagonist; but I don't feel it. And "one last job" always goes
wrong in the movies.
Shoplifters:
there's a surprising (to me) appeal here, even with the obvious setup.
Pet Sematary (2019):
seems as though it's at least trying to say something that wasn't in
the original film, though I'm not very familiar with that and nor am I
a King fan.
The Best of Enemies:
can it get beyond "white people are racists and bad, black people are
good"? I have some hope. Good cast too.
A Dog's Way Home:
presumably for the sort of people who like this sort of film.
Ben Is Back:
looks like hard work, but I think, just maybe, it might be worth
seeing. And Lucas Hedges, son of the writer-director, seems to be one
of the very few young actors who's able to give the impression of
having had to make harder decisions than what colour socks to wear.
Jonathan:
I feel no enthusiasm for this. And Ansel Elgort is not one of the
very few etc.
Aladdin (Teaser):
meh.
The Possession of Hannah Grace:
I'd love to see a film that treats the abuse that is "exorcism"
seriously. But this isn't it.
Miss Bala:
why not watch the original? This trailer's aimed at people who haven't
seen it, so it won't tell me whether there was any reason for the
remake other than "money".
The Aftermath:
an interesting setting but a dreary dull story.
The Curse of La Llorona (Teaser):
now James Wan is stealing and abusing myths from other cultures as
well as generic American ones, but they all look the same after he's
had his hands on them.
Destroyer:
the sort of role Sigourney Weaver might have done before she got all
arty; this looks rather interesting.
The Kid Who Would Be King:
unappealing podgy children who can't act meet generic fantasy. I'm
sure someone will enjoy this but I don't know them.
Escape Room:
way to cash in on a trend that's not all that trendy any more; I
suppose actually doing something with it rather than spackling on
generic Horror Product™ would be too much like work.
The Prodigy (Teaser):
more possessed-child crap.
Bird Box:
an interesting mode for an apocalypse, and an effective
playground-game gimmick, but doesn't seem to go much further.
The Quake:
this is actualy Skjelvet, the second Norwegian disaster film. So
maybe it's not by Roar Uthaug, but it still looks fairly decent.
Cold Pursuit:
a remake of In Order of Disappearance (Kraftidioten), with Liam
Neeson replacing Stellan Skarsgård. But we expect Neeson to go all
mad vigilante; the challenge is not whether he can portray that, but
whether he can portray a normal person well enough to make it an
effective contrast.
Vox Lux:
looks as if it's getting away from the generic; might actually go
somewhere. I'll keep a look out, at least.
Head Full of Honey:
everyone must rearrange their lives for the old man, because Family.
Isn't It Romantic:
a lovely conceit, but I fear that the trailer has all the best jokes.
Tyler Perry's A Madea Family Funeral:
these things have their own audience and reviews are pointless.
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