Trailing Off: The Week of the Endless Trailers (Part 1)

Scene from The LEGO Movie 2

Welcome to the sporadic column Trailing Off in which I take a look at a trailer from the past week and analyze its potential. This will be done using an obnoxious amount of analyzing and personal thoughts on the cast and crew as well as expectations. I will attempt to highlight films ranging from new blockbusters to lesser known indies and give them their due. Partially to spread awareness, I do believe that there is an art to the sell and will do my best to highlight why these trailers matter or don't with approval (trove) or disapproval (trash). So please stop by, recommend some trailers, and I will see you next time.

Starting on June 3, the week that followed produced an unfathomable amount of trailers for new movies. As much as I would love to dedicate an entire Trailing Off to each of them, it feels more productive to instead compile them into a singular entry. While there's no order to these, I will be critiquing them in the same fashion that I would the Super Bowl commercials, which seem weak by comparison. So without further ado, here's the week of endless trailers.

The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part

There are officially four movies in the LEGO Movie franchise, and it seems weird how predominantly they have been adored. Still, none of them compare to the original, which set the pace with a manic personality and a goofy sense of humor. With the first official sequel (since The LEGO Batman Movie is technically a spin-off), they return to the familiar ballpark of jokes by taking on dystopian tropes and a trip into outer space. For those who genuinely loved the original, expect more of the same here.


Trove or Trash: Trove

Suspiria (2018)

For those who don't know the Dario Argento original, it's a perfect blend of camp and horror in a way that's created one of the greatest cult films of all time. To create a more serious take would b a tough gamble, especially from the director of Call Me By Your Name, Luca Guadagnino. This may just be a teaser, but it perfectly captures the right way to create suspense and terror, showing just enough to create an uncertainty while playing music that gets under the viewer's skin. As an introduction to what this film will be, it's got everything in the right place. The only matter now is determining just how eerie and different it really wants to be.


Trove or Trash: Trove

Mortal Engines

There's a lot to admire about the worlds that director Peter Jackson creates, especially in the case of The Lord of the Rings. However, there's likely doubt of whatever he does following the problematic history of The Hobbit trilogy. With all of that said, there's enough here that looks different and bizarre in a way that could make for an interesting universe. However, there's also a strong sense that this is Jackson hopping on the young adult dystopian bandwagon and making a film that could be just as vanilla and familiar as everything else that the genre has produced. It has traces of something compelling, but it's not enough.

Trove or Trash: Trash

Bumblebee

I know, I know. It's tough to actually get excited about a Transformers spin-off, especially giving how diminishing returns is still too high a compliment for the laborious franchise. With that said, it's got a lot of interesting principles behind it, including Oscar-nominated director Travis Knight (Kubo and the Two Strings) and and actress Hailee Steinfeld. There's not a lot that necessarily makes the trailer exceptionally different from other Michael Bay-based marketing, but there's a decent chance that with fresh blood it will actually produce a compelling and different story. Still, Transformers has a lot of work to do to prove itself as being worth two cents. Only time will tell.

Trove or Trash: Trash

Wreck-It Ralph 2: Ralph Breaks the Internet

This is technically territory that I've already covered with the solid teaser. However, this is the first official trailer, so it's merely added for posterity. With all of that said, the journey into the internet looks to have produced an interesting journey that sees Disney critiquing its own fandom with a fun scene involving his entire princess line-up. There may be jokes that date the film, but they're all so fun and play on the idea of internet culture in a way that could make it one of the trendiest, most exciting Disney films of the modern era. If nothing else, we can all just make fun of Cinderella's big ears.

Trove or Trash: Trove

The Old Man and the Gun

A lot of credit is owed to Pete's Dragon director David Lowery in regards to late-career Robert Redford. The duo produced one of his most charming films of the past decade. It makes sense then why they would team up for the legendary actor's swan song, where he plays a role that seems reminiscent of his most iconic work in The Sting. He plays an elderly bank robber who gets away with the crime because he's nice. Considering that Lowery is also one of the more interesting indie directors of the modern age with Ain't Them Bodies Saints and A Ghost Story, odds are that this will be more than just a gimmick film. It will be sad to see Redford go, if just because of the incredible legacy he's left behind.

Trove or Trash: Trove

White Boy Rick

Not only was this week ridiculously packed with trailers for upcoming franchises, but it also produced TWO movies starring Matthew McConaughey. The first featured him playing the father to a gangster. From the looks of the trailer, it hits all of the familiar territory of how evil corrupts good. It's got plenty of promise with McConaughey looking to give another earnest performance, but it's also a bummer that his post-Oscar win selections have been disappointments. This could be good, but there's not enough there to distinguish it from other major movies of its kind.

Trove or Trash: Trash

Widows

Closing out Part 1 of this entry is a highly anticipated trailer from Oscar-winning director Steve McQueen. I think what comes across the strongest is how different it is from 12 Years a Slave or anything that he's done. There's more action and intensity in every frame that would make it interesting as a comparison study. Even then, it's got a good angle with a story of women seeking revenge for their dead husbands. But how will McQueen make it more than another pulpy action thriller? It's tough to say, but he has a cast so incredibly assembled that it can't help but at least be interesting.

Trove or Trash: Trove