Sunday, January 24, 2010

Some "Bad" Previews I've Seen Recently

I haven't actually been to the theatre at all this year, which is rather unusual for me. This Friday I'll be going to see Zooey & Adam, however. I did want to bring attention to some really poor trailers I've seen recently (let's face it, I just want to mock something).

Valentine's Day



Here's a checklist:

-Knock off of Love Actually-check
-Padded cast for no real reason, other than being able to say "look at all these FAMOUS people"-check
-Stupid movie about an even stupider holiday-check

When I first saw the trailer, I thought of the deplorable He's Just Not That Into You, which I wrote about here. Clearly, they're aiming at the exact same audience. Here's another thought: Bradley Cooper is a pretty funny guy. Why is he doing movies like these? Give me more of The Hangover and less He's Just Not That Into You, please.

And Hollywood, please churn out some intelligent and witty romantic comedies. Stop making drivel like this.


The A-Team




You will notice that Bradley Cooper is in this one as well. I understand this one a little better, because the guy's career is on fire right now, it's a major blockbuster, and he's probably getting a decent paycheque for it. Same with Liam Neeson. This movie looks like it will be similar to G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, which I have not seen (and don't intend to, unless I'm making some sort of game of it). I didn't know a lot about The A-Team before I saw the trailer, and my parents told me the basic premise after I told them a movie version was being made. It sounded like campy fun to me, but I find that many TV to movie adaptations fall flat. Generally you have to recast the roles, and most actors can't capture the "magic" of the original actors.

The new Star Trek is an obvious exception though, but it was placed in the expert hands of J.J. Abrams, creator of Lost; the best show on television.


Clash of the Titans




I don't much care for trailers that are merely a display of all of the "action scenes" to be contained within a film. I find this one cuts from clip to clip far too fast, so it's difficult to follow, and I had difficulty concentrating when I first saw it before Avatar. That being said, I might actually see this one. There are a lot of movies out there with terrible trailers that have ended up being fantastic. The cast is what makes it seem a bit more promising to me. I like Liam Neeson, and Sam Worthington probably has a great career ahead of him. I think Avatar will do for him what Titanic did for Leonardo DiCaprio. Worthington was also pretty good in Terminator: Salvation.

And here is one that I shouldn't find enjoyable...but I just can't help myself.

MacGruber (this is the 'Red Band' trailer, therefore it is not safe for work)

It looks enormously stupid, but I'm a sucker for the MacGruber sketches on Saturday Night Live, so I'll be going to see this. At least it'll be rated R, which means they can go farther with the humour than they ever could on the show. I'm not overly familiar with Val Kilmer, but I've liked everything I've seen him in, and he was very funny in Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang.

The movies based off of SNL sketches have had mixed success. Wayne's World is legendary, but there is also It's Pat!, which bombed magnificently at the box office. I have hopes for this one, it looks like it will be dumb fun at the very least.

12 comments:

  1. The Valentine's Day trailer makes me ill, for every reason that you've listed, plus their use of overplayed songs that weren't very good the first time I heard them. It seems that the only industry insider making romantic comedies with any heart these days is Apatow; thankfully, we still have movies like 500 Days of Summer to remind us that originality isn't dead in the romantic comedy realm.

    The A-Team, I'm not gonna lie, that final shot of the tank on the parachute being used to blow out a plane means I'll see this at some point. But it does look like forgettable entertainment that won't offend, like GI Joe (which I saw, and it was just that). I have no qualms with that, but i don't see why that's all that these movies strive for. Is it too much to ask for ambition? Apparently it is. I have the same thought with Clash of the Titans (which also has Ralph Fiennes) and Prince of Persia.

    MacGruber looks like stupid fun in the vein of Zoolander. I'm cautiously optimistic for it, since I did (and still do) love Zoolander.

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  2. Zoolander was good fun, I never thought of associating the two, but it makes sense now that you say it.

    I wasn't impressed with the Prince of Persia trailer either, but Jake Gyllenhaal is pretty nice on the eyes. That being said, unless it gets really good reviews, I'm not going to pay to see it in theatres. It'll probably be the same for Clash of the Titans, unless a friend wants to go to it.

    The Valentine's Day trailer causes me physical pain.

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  3. Yeah, I'm not going to pay for those two either (or for The A-Team), but I will seek them out through, erm, other means eventually. Maybe. I remember last year I said I was going to see Terminator: Salvation in theatres, guaranteed, and I have yet to see it, so there's a big maybe attached to all my statements.

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  4. I couldn't help but notice that the 3D trailers before Avatar looked like lame excuses to throw crap toward the screen. Whatever the technology, we find a way to make all of our movies dumber!

    Still, I'd rather watch crap in 3D than Valentine's Day, which is flat on every level.

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  5. Here's a question: Would you see Valentine's Day if it was in 3D? I sense a selling feature!

    And yes, 3D has become far too over used today. Seems like every other movie comes out in 3D now.

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  6. It's true about 3D being a gimmick. I watched My Bloody Valentine in regular 2D, and i could pick out all the moments that were shot for the sole purpose of looking "cool" in 3D.

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  7. I never saw that. I'm not sure I could watch a horror movie in 3D, I'm such a wimp, I think it'd kill me!

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  8. If the horror didn't get you, the boredom would :p

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  9. I know my wife is going to want to see Valentine's Day. I pretty much can't escape it. Hopefully I'll get away without seeing the A-Team.

    Bradley Cooper is approaching critical mass where pretty soon he'll have to start playing multiple roles in movies just to keep up.

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  10. I would venture to say that 3D isn't going anywhere. In a few years I think it'll be the primary thing keeping theaters in business.

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  11. Dan: Ooh, I guess keeping the wife happy is most important. I may end up getting dragged to it by friends. And yes, Bradley Cooper is everywhere nowadays.

    Gustavo: I'd agree with that. It has gotten huge in the last few years, and with Avatar being such a success, it will only get bigger.

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