Noise Annoys

By Thomas Willett

There is an old saying that goes “in space, no one can hear you scream.” Even if you are not at all familiar with the sci-fi classic Alien, that line has been ingrained into the culture. I cannot argue about the heftiness a tagline like that has. However, with director Ridley Scott’s presumed prequel Prometheus, I have found myself wondering if no one can hear you scream in space, then where does this movie take place, and how come I have to listen to it?

I have stated before that I find the trailers for Prometheus to be an audible hellhole. Don’t get me wrong, I kind of want to see this movie. It is the trailer that’s counter programming me against it. Since the podcast forces me to see a lot of blockbuster movies, I have succumbed to a Russian roulette contest involving various adaptations of this trailer. It all started with the teaser attached to the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo last December. It was the first time I heard the loud thuds of Marc Streitenfeld’s boisterous score. I’ll admit that at first, it was kind of an endearing marketing campaign that signified something big, dark, and expensive was on the way. Also, it kind of had that spacious vibe that I have come to expect from this franchise.

However, as the campaign closes in on six months, I have seen a lot of movies and many more trailers since December. None have reached the pantheon of making me groan as much as Prometheus. There are actually a lot worse trailers that I have seen. The Three Stooges and That’s My Boy immediately spring to mind. However, where those are expected to be bad, Prometheus has some clout going for it. It looks pretty cool, and the pedigree includes: Ridley Scott, Michael Fassbender, Noomi Rapace, Charlize Theron and Patrick Wilson. This is probably the second easiest sci-fi alien movie franchise sell this summer (Men in Black III rekindled my love of the black suit).

When doing research for this article, I tried to find an elaborate piece about why it is the trailer was annoying. At most, I found a dissection of the trailer and commenters complaining about possible spoilers. I argue that what is shown can already be assumed, as the plot revolves around a quest to find life on other planets. Also, it is an Alien movie. There needs to be something tragic happening. At most, I found the Fassbender promo video for his character titled David 8 to be a spoiler; though not to an unrealistic degree (his secret is similar to that of a character in the original Alien). And yet, none of this really helped me to comprehend my irksome nature.

It all comes down to that 18 second moment where a high pitched whine occurs. This has been in every incarnation of the trailer. I believe more than anything that it’s my distaste for certain pitches that keeps me from liking it. While the thuds preceding this seem reminiscent of Inception (not to mention also the font), they are tolerable introductions to the chaos about to arise. However, with the most recent trailer being two minutes and thirty seconds that is an awful lot of bangs and whines. The chaos is present, but it still feels somewhat distant of the visuals. Besides some random cuts, the audio never lines up and we never get a sense like these two elements should co-exist.

Probably the biggest offender is that so far, Prometheus has only promoted itself with this piece of music. I admire that it doesn’t take the traditional route of inter-splicing longer scenes to give the back story, but there is little distinguishable between the teaser and the final trailer. I don’t feel like these have been building up to something grand. It has always looked like an Alien prequel, and it feels like they gave up on the idea of approaching trailers in different, interesting ways. Simple moments of silence between characters would have been a sigh of relief.

I realize that many trailers have been conceived to some as “just noise.” I still hold the original teaser for David Fincher’s the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo to be the right element of an aggressive Karen O cover of Led Zeppelin’s “Immigrant Song” and gritty visuals, but Andrew detests. If I approach Prometheus’s trailer with the same inexperience that Andrew had towards Fincher’s (none), then it all makes sense. The song wasn’t necessarily the best thing in the world, but it fit tonally and wasn’t layers of two repetitive patterns. It all comes down to how much you know from the Stieg Larsson books and can tolerate Karen O. However, the one benefit was that this was only present in the teaser trailer. It evolved later on to be future-cliché of ominous piano score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross over melodramatic scenes.

Another difference is that the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was relatively young in its promotion when that trailer hit. I never saw it on the big screen. I was never forced to watch it every time I bought a ticket to a movie. In a way, it made me disappointed. While the less is more tactic would perceivably backfire (it ended up being a sleeper hit after a disappointing debut), it made me more fond of the trailer. I wanted to see it more because it wasn’t readily available.

On the flip side, I will admit that they have done wonders promoting Prometheus. I doubt even kids who saw the Lorax don’t know what it is. It feels like it is everywhere. There are viral videos, TV spots, and general praise surrounding it. I am fine with this being the big budget R-rated alien pic that redeems Ridley Scott after Robin Hood. Paying to see the Raid: Redemption and seeing your trailer is too aggressive (I wanted unknown kung-fu flick trailers to fit the bill).

I know that this isn’t Scott’s fault. I blame marketing for being so one note about the entire thing. It is true that the original ominous tone presented in the teaser is fantastic, but you need to expand on that as your trailers get bigger. Sticking in new scenes here and there without any clear distinction just makes the effort seem wasted. I don’t want you to do one of those cool 80’s voice-over trailers, but I want to feel like I’m being rewarded by investing in your film. All that months of listening to that 18 seconds of a high pitched whine has made me long for the movie to be out so that I don’t have to see the trailer. In fact, I have contemplated just boycotting the movie so I don’t have to hear that sound.

This is such a momentary problem. In fact, I doubt any casual movie goer will be bothered by this. However, this trailer was before the Grey, Cabin in the Woods, American Reunion, and the Five-Year Engagement to name a few. I have been driven to madness by this sound, and the sheer fact that I want to see this movie only makes it more heartbreaking. It isn’t like the Three Stooges, which I can just shrug off. It looks cool, but I am being teased into hating it because they cannot seem to find a different piece of music. I am almost sure my love of the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’s promotional efforts would have been ruined if I heard that Led Zeppelin cover every week. To that extent, I am grateful.

Of course, Ridley Scott movies have had mediocre trailer edits anyways. I recently watched Gladiator for the first time, and besides making me like Scott more (for further opinions on the film, tune in to next Tuesday’s show), it made me want to find an apt comparison for this piece. I checked out the trailer, and it felt like the formula in motion: music, action scenes, basic plot, and key dialogue. The difference is that this trailer was set to a Hans Zimmer composition and at best could get annoying based on emphasized dialogue. Somehow corny dialogue is easier to ignore than sound, which builds on a note and emphasizes what at times can feel rote. Also, if done right, corny dialogue also just comes and goes in mere seconds.

It is yet to be seen how good Prometheus will be, but for now, I am fighting for a greater cause. If you want people to see your movie, don’t make them tired of your effort through monotonous trailers. Maybe sprinkle original offshoots that show the diversity of your movie. Even then, don’t place your trailer in front of every movie. Comedy fans don’t want to see attractions for sci-fi. Just stick on another gag-filled snoozer that otherwise will be left for no one. Know your audience. Name recognition can only go so far. Only get aggressive in the month leading up to the release to make it feel more Important.

I suppose that I have become jaded and don’t recognize the beauty of the Prometheus trailer anymore, but that is the result of marketing. I don’t even know if I will be able to see it next week and have that enthusiasm that the teaser originally gave me. Also, it makes me wonder why there’s something screaming in space when no one is supposed to hear it. I know I took that too literally, but I wasted too much time going mad. I am sure that like Alien (which has a very similar trailer), it will be a better experience for generations who don’t have to sit through that soundscape multiple times a month.

Does the trailer make you want to see Prometheus more? Are you a Ridley Scott/Alien fan who will see it anyways? Do you have a better method to avoid loud noise than closing your ears? Is the aggressive promotional tactics more of a blessing or a curse? Feel free to share and we’ll get a dialogue going about it. As it stands, I am looking to June 8 only because I will be rid of this curse once and for all… and the premiere of the Django Unchained trailer.

You can read Thom’s blog every Wednesday and hear him on Nerd’s Eye View every Tuesday and Thursday at nevpodcast.com. Send your thoughts to nevpodcast@gmail.com. You can also read Thom’s movie reviews for Cinema Beach at cinemabeach.com.