Trailers! Trailers! Trailers! #4

Well, it's that time again! Let's see this week's new trailers

THE BAD BATCH

Oh yeah, I've been looking forward to this one for a while now simply because it's a movie about cannibals that has Jim Carrey as a hermit and Keanu Reeves as a cult leader. Call me crazy but I think this one looks like a real winner. The cinematography looks appealing and I'm more than intrigued to see what twisted directions this goes.

DETROIT

Hey! Kathryn Bigelow made another movie. In my book, that's usually a thing to keep one's eyes peeled for. And, boy, does this movie look intense. I'm not sure if the whole shaky cam aesthetic clicks together with the rather accurate looking recreation of late-1960s America; but, its certainly interesting and I'm curious to see how it all plays out.

TRANSFORMERS: THE LAST KNIGHT

Is this going to be any good? Probably not, seeing that the Michael Bay Transformers movies have garnered a well-deserved reputation as the worst modern blockbuster cinema has to offer. That said, this trailer does look pretty cool and it looks like The Last Knight might bring something new to the table from a plot perspective. Of course, there's also other cool stuff like more robot dinosaurs and what looks like Optimus Prime gone bad. Overall, color me cautiously optimistic for this one. While I won't be surprised if this ends up being a stinker, I'll be happy if this ends up being the first good movie in this series since 2007.

That's all for this round. Tune in again when I ramble on about... something else.

STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI Gets A Really Great First Trailer

There's even a pretty nifty looking poster to boot.

Like many of you, I've been itching to get a look at Star Wars: The Last Jedi for quite some time. And, this first trailer didn't disappoint in the slightest.

Of course, there are too many awesome bits to dissect in one, intentionally easy-to-digest post; that said, that won't stop me from quickly discussing the stuff I like in particular. Like how ominous and cryptic Luke's dialogue is (that line at the end of the trailer alone gave me chills). That, above everything else, stood out to me... well, that and this shot at the end.

Fantastic!

Which isn't to say that I was unimpressed by the glimpses of the space battles and the character stuff that wasn't the dynamic between Luke & Rey. In fact, that couldn't be farther from the truth. The action looks undoubtedly thrilling and I'm especially curious to see what directions this movie's going to take Kylo Ren as a character (largely, considering this shot of his mask left in ruins).

Overall, this is a very concise, well-edited trailer that reveals just enough to garner specualtion/hype; yet, not too much to where anything is potentially spoiled. So, basically, it's a modern Star Wars trailer. Hopefully, The Last Jedi will raise the already high bar that Force Awakens and Rogue One set not too long ago. Given what we've already seen here, it looks like that'll be the case. Star Wars: The Last Jedi hits theaters December 15th.

Trailer Source: YouTube
Poster Source: Birth.Movies.Death

Trailers! Trailers! Trailers! #3

Okay, I just did a big piece on the first trailer for Thor: Ragnarok. But, there have been a couple other new trailers that have hit the web recently. So, you know what that means.

ATOMIC BLONDE

The latest trailer for Atomic Blonde is a lot like the previous one; however, given that this one's a green band, so it's not as violent, lurid or profane as the last trailer. Frankly, even with the more R-rated bits being toned down a notch, this still looks like a lot of fun. The action looks solid (I mean one of the guys who did John Wick is in the director's chair for this, so how could it be anything less than stellar). Plus, the cast looks like they're bringing their A-game (especially Theron and McAvoy). Plus, I love the whole neon drenched, synthwave aesthetic that seems to pervade the film. Overall, just keep your eyes out for this one once July comes knocking.

BABY DRIVER

Well, it looks like great second trailers that aren't too dissimilar to the ones that preceded them is a recurring theme in this piece. Moving on, anyone who knows me knows that I've been itching for a new Edgar Wright picture for about three or four years now. Baby Driver definitely looks like my cup of tea. This latest preview is basically a shorter, sweeter version of the last one (i.e. fun looking action scenes, interesting angle on the movie's use of music, and interesting looking characters).  All of that's just fine... but, the reason I'm even happier now more so than I was when even the first trailer dropped is because of a release date shift. Instead of coming out in August, Sony's shifted the release date to the tail end of June. Getting potentially great movies sooner than initially anticipated is always a cause for celebration (or, at the very least, a smile).

You may have noticed that this installment of Trailers! Trailers! Trailers is a bit shorter than normal. Honestly, there weren't too many trailers that came out in the past few days; that said, I really wanted to talk about these two movies. I didn't get to sound off about them when their initial trailers were dropped; so, I figured now would as good a time as ever to give these two films a spotlight on my platform. Anywho, see you around when I find something else to sound off about.

THOR: RAGNAROK looks like a modern-day Flash Gordon

Honestly, the Thor movies have been on the few things in the Marvel Cinematic Universe that haven't really clicked with me. The first one's a fun fantasy flick and that's about it, really. And, the less said about Thor: The Dark World, the better. Thus far, that's been the main reason why I've been curious (but not necessarily excited) about the upcoming, Thor: Ragnarok. In comes this teaser trailer...

...and I'm now completely stoked for this. You've noticed that I mentioned the sci-fi cult classic Flash Gordon in regards to this trailer and I don't make that comparison lightly. Everything from the tone to the costumes and even the title design* looks like some VHS genre movie** fare from the tail end of the Reagan era. You better bet your bottom dollar that I'm digging this. Between this and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. It looks like that Marvel might actually start doing something interesting with its films from a visual standpoint. I'm hoping that I'm right and that these sudden splashes of color in a sea of entertaining but visually stagnant Marvel movies (yeah, I said it, come at me). Okay, all that gushing about how much this reminds me of retro stuff that I like is all well and good; but, let's discuss the actual trailer.

First things first, there are two big moments that I think are going to be the reason the geek community is going to be discussing this for a while. One of them is this shot of Thor's hammer being obliterated...

...and the other is the reintroduction of the Hulk.

Most people who knew about this flick already knew that A) Hulk and Thor were going to team up and B) Thor was going to lose his hammer. That first part didn't bring many surprises; however, Mjolnir (that's the name of his hammer for the uninitiated) being completely destroyed completely caught me offguard. But, if Iron Man 3 proved anything besides the fact that Shane Black should be doing more movies, it proved Marvel can do the "strip protagonist of powers and see how things go from there" rather well. Overall, this is a pretty great trailer and I'm beyond hyped to see it all plays out once Thor: Ragnarok hits theatres on November 3rd.
...
Also, this poster's okay, I suppose...


*Seriously, LOOK at this.

**For anyone who doesn't know what a genre film is...

Trailers! Trailers! Trailers! #2

WAR FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES

So far, the Planet of the Apes reboot series has been the high watermark for how to do a reboot properly. Rise of the Planet of the Apes was solid and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes was, quite frankly, marvelous. In terms of the little details, Woody Harrelson looks like he's going to make for a great villain and the characters seem rich/nuanced. And, how can I not be excited for a movie where monkeys wield machine guns? Overall, I'm getting a strong feeling that this flick's going to be a pretty excellent trip to the multiplex.

ANNABELLE: CREATION

Let me get the obvious joke out of the way now: Releasing this on April Fools Day was a rather bad joke. Hardy har har har! Now, then, let's get down to brass tacks. This movie doesn't look very good. It looks almost identical to the first one (which was also not very good). It's riddled with obnoxious cliches and horribly done jump scares. If nothing else, I'll give Warner Brothers credit for getting a better director, if nothing else. But, yeah, don't get your hopes up for this.

THE MUMMY

The Universal Monsters cinematic universe is a pretty strange creature in the current trend of modern blockbusters. For starters, it's both weird and kind of exciting that we're finally getting a movie universe (that was supposed to be kicked off with Dracula Untold way back in 2014 but that ended up being kind of meh) comprised of the iconic classic movie monsters. I wasn't sold on the first trailer because it just looked like a generic action blockbuster. As for this second trailer, I'm a bit more enticed to check out the actual flick. Don't get me wrong, it still looks kind of dumb; but, it looks like my kind of dumb. This trailer reminded me a lot of that one for Guy Ritchie's King Arthur movie that's coming out in a couple months. Both look like enjoyably silly pulp with quixotic but awesome needledrops (only here it's Rolling Stones not Led Zeppelin). Color me cautiously optimistic for this one.

BRIEF ADDENDUM: For those wondering, yes, I am aware that there was another trailer for King Arthur: Legend of the Sword that was released yesterday. What are my thoughts on it? Basically what I just said about the previous one in my bit about the Mummy (heck, they even used "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You" again, no complaints there). So, yeah, it still looks like dumb fun. 

Trailers! Trailers! Trailers! #1

Here's the thing. I finish my write-up on the new Justice League trailer, post it and then get on with my life. Now, there's a whole bunch of trailers that've been released. So,

SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING

Honestly. my thoughts on this trailer are almost the exact same as my thoughts on the last trailer: this movie contains the best Spider-Man costume made for a movie. Michael Keaton's probably going to kill as the bad guy, and the high school setting feels like a nice change of pace. With that said, there is some new stuff here worthy of discussion. First, Peter losing the suit and having to use what's essentially a DIY version of it is an interesting plot development and I'm curious to see where it goes in the actual movie. Second, that plane fight looks pretty intense. Color me excited!

A GHOST STORY

From the get-go, two things stick out to me. One, the aspect ratio. In case anyone's wondering, yes, I've heard the whole film is shot like this and that it serves a purpose to the film's broader themes. Two, yes, that is Casey Affleck dressed as a stereotypical "white sheet with holes for eyes" look of a ghost in a non-comedic context. The idea of building a serious drama around a ghost that looks like this is a tough sell; that having been said, keep in mind the people behind this. For starters, A24 has proven that letting people fulfill their creative vision has more often that not worked out for the better with films like Swiss Army Man, Under the Skin and countless others. Besides, David Lowery is a serious player in the indie scene; aside from that, he's proven to be the only filmmaker to do a live-action Disney remake that was a genuinely great movie (seriously, if you haven't seen Pete's Dragon yet, go watch it). This one's already been screened at Sundance a few months ago and the buzz has nothing but positive. So, definitely keep this one on your radar.

IT

I'll be frank for a moment. This trailer was kind of a disappointment. Granted, some would say that holding out any hope for a film that's already given the world this gem of a meme would be extremely foolish.

From the looks of it (no pun intended), this looks like a subpar version of a James Wan movie. Despite this version of Pennywise actually having a pretty creepy design, none of what's shown of him here actually looks scary. In some respects, it (again, no pun intended) looks about as silly as Tim Curry's work in the first time they tried to adapt this book. The stuff with the kids looks pretty interesting, though. Overall, I'm hoping for the best on this one, folks; but, if it sucks, I won't be surprised that Warner Bros. decided to dump this one in September.

So, those are my thoughts on some recent trailers. Agree? Disagree? Talk amongst yourselves in the comments below. Anywho, I'm off to do something that doesn't have to do with movie trailers.

So, That Justice League Trailer Rocks!

Yeah, this movie's gonna rock! I'll admit that I'm an easy lay for anything tangentially connected to either Marvel or DC; but, even though I have been an adamant apologist for the DCEU, I'll admit it has gotten off to a pretty rocky start. But, with all that having been said, I think 2017 might be the year where Warner Brothers finally gets it act together. After all, consider the following factors for a moment or two: A) they've already had two decent-sized hits with Kong: Skull Island and The Lego Batman Movie  & B) they held a set visit about a year ago for Justice League and otherwise there's been no talk of behind-the-scenes meddling for it or Wonder Woman.

Okay, all that pontificating is all fine and dandy, but what are my thoughts on the actual trailer? I like it. A lot, actually. The action looks like a lot of fun and.. you know what, let me stop right there for a moment and address a criticism that's been quite irksome to me as of late. To all those people complaining about the Batmobile having machine guns in this, I have two things to say: 1) this isn't the first time that Batman's had this sort of arsenal equipped to the Batmobile (go back and watch the 1989 Tim Burton one if you need a refresher) and 2) He's fighting monsters solely intent on destruction and death... what else would you use to fight these things? Toothpicks?!? Yeah, I didn't think so.

Anyway, let's get to the nitty-gritty. The costumes? With the exception of Cyborg (who looks a little too much like a Transformer, but oh well, guess you can't win them all), I dig it. Batman and Wonder Woman look flawless, Aquaman's Atlantean armor looks impressive and I like how rough-around-the-edges Flash's costume is. The two scenes that stood out to me were the bit where Barry Allen and Bruce are talking and when the League is meeting with Commissioner Gordon... also, this bit where Aquaman jumps off the Batmobile straight towards those Parademons...

...love it! Ultimately, I hope this movie is awesome. It certainly looks awesome, I'll say that.

My Thoughts On That Fancy New Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 Poster... and also that new trailer, I guess

The first thing that stood out to me about this poster was just how colorful it is, especially compared to the majority of MCU posters. It gives off a very Flash Gordon/Buckaroo Banzai vibe and I dig it. A lot. And, from the looks of it, the actual movie is bound to be just as visually striking. Speaking of which, let's talk about that trailer...

While I do think this an awesome trailer for what will more likely more than not be a pretty awesome flick, it feels a lot like the last trailer only with a different (admittedly just as great) needle drop and... actually there is a bit more to talk about here. First off, get a look at the size of that gun!

Seriously, that thing is MASSIVE! I cannot wait to see how that beast comes into play. We also got some more of Baby Groot and Ayesha, the film's new antagonist. And, let's get to the thing everyone's talking about: Kurt Russell as Ego the Living Planet.

I'll just be honest and say that he looks exactly how I expected him to look (i.e. not like the giant purple planet with a beard from the comics). That said, I think he does look pretty cool. I mean its essentially Space Kurt Russell, how can that not be cool? And, who knows, maybe there will be a giant Kurt Russell planet in the final product. If James Gunn was mad enough to include Howard the Duck in the first one, anything can happen. So, yeah, this looks great.

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 2 hits theaters May 5th.

Let's Talk About The Latest Influx of ALIEN: COVENANT Promo Material

THE NEW POSTER

My thoughts on this latest poster are pretty much the same as my thoughts on that first teaser poster (i.e. I admired how it conveyed such a foreboding prescience with just one word and an iconic object shrouded in darkness). Thus far, both of the posters for this have been suitably cryptic. 

THAT PROLOGUE THING

Okay, let's address the elephant in the room: James Franco is probably going to be the first one to die, given how sickly he looks here and how that guy in the first trailer...you know, this guy...

...looks suspiciously like Franco). But, who knows? Maybe, I'm wrong. Anyway, back to the actual clip. From the looks of it, this is either just a good bit of viral marketing, like that faux TED-talk that was made for Prometheus back in 2012, or an actual scene from the movie. Either way, I dig it. I'm hoping it's part of the movie because it does a pretty good job of humanizing the Covenant's crew in less than five minutes, very much in the spirit of the earliest days of the franchise.  

THE LATEST TRAILER

And now, lets get into the nitty-gritty. Outside of some questionable CGI and a bizarre music choice (that drumbeat feels just a tad conspicuous), I absolutely love this trailer. Of course being a Ridley Scott flick, the visuals are fantastic. We already knew that there were going to be different types of Xenomorphs*; that said, I'm more than pleased to see that we will be getting an appearance from the classic version probably at the end. Also, hey, it looks like Danny McBride might survive to the end. That's nifty. Overall, this seems to give me what I want from an Alien flick and I'm positively hyped for it. ALIEN: COVENANT drops into theaters on May 19.

*For the record, the new Neomorph and what I've dubbed the "spineburster" look pretty badass.