Some trailers I've seen recently, and my thoughts on them. (Links are
to youtube. Opinions are thoroughly personal. Calibration: I hate you.
I hate everything. Open that damn' door and let me out.)
Shaft:
so in updating it for a new generation, they make it a comedy, bring
in a young and presumably bankable actor as the comic relief, and keep
all the sexism because A Man's Gotta Do etc. Yeah, the mouthbreathers
are going to love this one.
The Curse of La Llorona:
well, at least it's based on an actual legend. But the James Wan gets
over everything and it ends up looking (and sounding) like every other
film he's touched.
The Sun is Also A Star:
smug smartass guys get it all. Well, I'm not really in the market for
teenage romance anyway.
Child's Play:
yet another remake nobody was asking for. Even if it does have Aubrey
Plaza in it; on the basis of this trailer she just seems to be playing
Generic Mom.
The Hustle:
good cast, good core idea (even if it is basically Dirty Rotten
Scoundrels), but damnit they will always push Rebel Wilson into crude
fat-girl comedy and she can do much more.
Tolkien:
claimed to be "trailer #1" but looks more like a teaser to me. And
indeed a cash-in.
Yesterday:
interesting conceit (for all it'll fall apart the moment you think
about it), but is that enough to carry the film?
Frozen 2 (Teaser):
"here are characters you liked before, doing something mysterious.
Including the Odious Comic Relief, whoopee."
Ma:
ho-hum horror.
Long Shot:
if you're going to be a comedy about the asshole loser guy who "gets"
the smart successful woman, don't raise my hopes by pretending to be a
film about the woman. I might actually have wanted to see that.
Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase:
well, the lead seems decent. But did anyone really believe that this
story needed a second film adaptation?
Poms:
from the Script-o-Matic: women's movie plus underdog sports comedy
plus just a dash of serious cancer movie. Yay.
The Highwaymen:
on the good side: doesn't make Bonnie and Clyde into romantic figures.
On the bad side: yet more old men being macho.
Dragged Across Concrete:
well, it looks like a generic retro cop show with a bunch of actors
who should have stopped doing this years ago, but will it make up for
the mistake of hiring Mel Gibson?
Her Smell:
looks more appealing than stories about unpleasant people usually do.
I might take a look, at least.
The Angry Birds Movie 2 (Teaser):
good heavens people paid enough to justify a sequel.
The Kid:
yes, but it looks like all the other grunty macho modern westerns from
the last few years. As far as I'm concerned, the job of a trailer is
to tell me why I should see this film, why it isn't like all those
others.
The Man Who Killed Don Quixote:
oh, right, it's finally out. That's nice.
Hail Satan:
doesn't look as if there's anything much new here, but it looks fairly
interesting.
Stockholm:
feels rather prurient. Maybe it's just me.
Hellboy (Red Band):
why on earth make another version of this? It's not exactly a huge
property, and the last version was pretty decent; and this is coming
into a crowded market.
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