Twittering @nickawgomez
- This Week in X – 15/5/14 - 15 May, 2014
- FREE COMIC BOOK DAY - 3 May, 2014
- We want TRAILERS not SPOILERS! - 30 April, 2014
Once in a while – a very long while – I can sit down and watch a trailer for a movie that’s coming out in only a few months time and be thrilled with anticipation causing me to eagerly Google its release date at any nearby cinema.
However, ninety nine-bloody-percent of the time I’m bombarded with things I don’t want to see in a trailer; they’re THE THINGS I’M WATCHING THE MOVIE FOR! The suspense and drama, action and twists, the laughter and the tears are entirely the point of an entertaining movie. If the trailer manages to cram most of the decent shots and meaningful looks in two minutes (including starring cast shots and release credits and details) then what is the point in even releasing the 90-minute+ movie?!
Pretty much the only time that this is acceptable – at least for myself – is when the film is an adaptation of a book. Still, you don’t want it SPOILED for viewers who haven’t read the book. But the fans of the original text want to get a flavor for the style of the adaptation and a reassurance that it’ll stay true to the essence.
I take as an example the following trailer for The Fault In Our Stars by John Green. If you haven’t read this book but plan to because you are still one of the few people who reads a book instead of just waiting for ‘‘anything decent to be made into a movie’’ then maybe skip watching the clip below…
Having read the book, I find myself enthused and happy to see this adaptation of one of the most gripping and wonderful books I’ve ever read. The text resonated with me so much that I found the trailer to be the perfect accompaniment to the book.
In the trailer you see a dramatic scene, a couple of funny moments and a sweet one or two, but you will note the whole story is not explained, just the premise. That is what a trailer should be.
Not the atrocious nonsense like you would find in the ‘‘THIRD TEASER UK AND AFRICA 2014 [INSERT CHARACTER NAME]!’’ that litters the internet as the weeks go by and the release of a movie gets closer and closer.
I get that the studios demand hype and publicity and feel the need to nearly blind us with images layered over orchestral music and out of place sound effects from the film but people will still go and see films! We will, I promise. Carefully taking the key elements a film and scattering them into a dozen ‘‘teaser trailers’’ doesn’t make it very hard to figure out the whole film!
And breathe. [I would like to take this opportunity to apologize for the CAPITALS throughout, however, I feel like they are the only true representation of my emphasis on the page, other than making a trailer for this article.]
To end, here’s a fitting example of what not to. This movie was meh anyway, but they still didn’t need to pre-ruin it…
