After a weekend hiatus, Trailer Catch-Up is back with a ton of new trailers to give my quick thoughts on from this week and a few that were released online last week that I didn’t talk about.
‘Tenet’ (7/17/20)
First up, the biggest trailer that Warner Bros. released was the first full trailer for Christopher Nolan’s summer blockbuster, Tenet. His latest original science-fiction thriller stars John David Washington and Robert Pattinson, and all that I got from this is that it’s going to involve spy espionage with a time travel twist thrown into it. I have no idea what it’s about, but sign me the frick up.
There was a quick teaser that was only shown in theaters and not online. Any Nolan trailer is going to be flat-out amazing, even though there might not be a lot of getting from them. If you’re lucky enough to see a prologue in front of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker in IMAX, then I envy you. All I can tell that it’s going to be mind-blowing in the same fashion as Inception. By far, Tenet is the one movie I’m looking forward to seeing next summer.
Score: 9/10
‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife’ (7/10/20)
Next up that was online on December 9th, Sony Pictures unveiled the first trailer to their upcoming sequel Ghostbusters: Afterlife. Director and co-writer Jason Reitman continuing where his father left off in the franchise where a family (Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace) moves to a small town after inheriting property from their late grandfather.
I’ll be straight-up honest, I didn’t want this official third installment to happen. Even though I’m curious Reitman tackles this franchise and working with a huge blockbuster unlike his smaller movies, I am one of the few people that doesn’t hate the 2016 reboot. But since everybody else turns into a douche when bringing it up, it underperformed at the box office.
But seeing that this family is related to Harold Ramis’ Egon might be an interesting take. The trailer carried a mysterious vibe throughout. While this boosts a cool cast (Paul Rudd is also in here) and has some cool moments that introduce us back into this world, I’m not anticipating Ghostbusters: Afterlife just yet.
Score: 6.5/10
‘Top Gun: Maverick’ (6/26/20)
Next up, Paramount Pictures released the second trailer for Top Gun: Maverick. The sequel to the 1986 hit follows Tom Cruise returning as the iconic Captain Pete “Maverick” Mitchell as he’s now training new recruits of pilots, which includes Goose’s son Bradley, played by Miles Teller.
That first trailer that came out during Comic-Con earlier this year and it was great. This new trailer is making me pretty confident that this sequel is going to be awesome. I just saw this again recently when I saw Star Wars in IMAX. 2020 is delivering a ton of sequels, so this has to be amazing, or I will be unhappy. Pretty much all I want from Top Gun: Maverick is Cruise killing it as a pilot again, immersive action, and just one beach volleyball scene.
Score: 8.5/10
‘In the Heights’ (6/26/20)
Next up, Warner Bros. Pictures released the first trailer to In the Heights, based on Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Broadway musical of the same name. The story takes place in Washington Heights and follows bodega owner Usnavi (Anthony Ramos) who provides a window into this close-knit community and dreams about pursuing a better life.
After director Jon M. Chu hit it big with Crazy Rich Asians last year, this is the perfect follow-up. I don’t know much about the musical itself, but I can already sense there’s going to be a ton of energy within its musical numbers and the beautiful direction. Trust me, we’re going to need a good musical adaptation when we all know Cats isn’t going to be it. I’m very impressed with this trailer, plus I’m excited to see Ramos in anything after A Star is Born.
Score: 7.5/10
‘Onward’ (3/6/20)
The next trailer to talk about is the latest trailer for Disney-Pixar’s upcoming film Onward. Set in a world where mythical creatures live normal lives, two elf brothers (Chris Pratt and Tom Holland) embark on a journey to discover that’s there’s a bit of magic out there when they tried to bring their dad back for one day.
This is getting more interesting with each passing trailer that has been released, feeling like a Pixar movie rather than feeling like another Disney animation. I can already tell that Onward will be full of humor and a genuine heart that’s emotional core will be engaging thoroughly.
Score: 8/10
‘The Woman in the Window’ (5/15/20)
Next up, Fox finally released the trailer for Joe Wright’s The Woman in the Window, based on the novel of the same name. Amy Adams stars as a woman who’s agoraphobic and is afraid to leave her home and witnesses a murder. The only thing is that everyone around her doesn’t believe her due to her problems.
This was supposed to come out back in October and get pushed back after hearing test audiences didn’t enjoy it. From watching the trailer, this has a Rear Window/ The Girl on the Train feel to its story that Tracy Letts wrote, which means it might lead to mixed feelings. It has a great cast that includes (Adams, Gary Oldman, Julianne Moore, etc. ) and Joe Wright’s not too bad of a director, but I’m not sure this will be good. One of the things that I love is that the song used in the trailer was Muse’s “The Dark Side (Alternate Reality Verison).”
Score: 7/10
‘Respect’ (10/9/20)
Did you know that’s a movie about Aretha Franklin is coming out next year? I didn’t until this quick teaser was online. Respect stars Jennifer Hudson as the late iconic singer from when she was a child to one of the biggest stars in the world.
Only just an announcement teaser that’s under a minute and just shows Hudson singing the titular song, she sounds exactly like her. Nothing much, but I’m curious to see how this biopic turns out.
Score: 7/10
‘Downhill’ (2/14/20)
Next up, Fox Searchlight released the first trailer to the Will Ferrell/ Julia Louis-Dreyfus comedy Downhill, which is a remake of the well-received Swedish film Force Majeure. They play a married couple on a ski vacation in the Alps with their children, but after barely escaping an avalanche happened, maybe their feelings about each other aren’t the same.
This is directed by Nat Faxon and Jim Rash following 2013’s The Way, Way Back, and Downfall doesn’t look bad. Never seen the original, so I can’t tell if this is necessary, but who knows. Also, how cool is that this is the second trailer this week that included a Muse song (“Survival“). Set to premiere at Sundance and coming out on Valentine’s Day, I’m interested in checking it out.
Score: 7/10
‘A Quiet Place Part II’ (3/20/20)
If you were like me and saw Black Christmas, you would know that Paramount Pictures played a quick teaser for A Quiet Place Part II before it. This really showed nothing besides the Abbot family (Emily Blunt, Noah Jupe, and Millicent Simmonds) about to track into more into the outside world.
John Krasinski’s 2018 original was one of the best horror movies I’ve seen in a long time, and I’m on board with this sequel to see what else they can introduce into a world where nobody should make a sound. The full trailer is said to out on New Years Day.
Score: 7/10
‘Never Rarely Sometimes Always’ (3/13/20)
Next up, Focus Features released the first trailer for a drama called Never Rarely Sometimes Always, which is scheduled to premiere at Sundance next month. The story follows a teenager Autumn (Sidney Flanigan) and her cousin Skylar (Talia Ryder) traveling from Pennsylvania to New York City so Autumn can get an abortion after getting pregnant.
A bit unclear how writer/director Eliza Hittman will handle the subject of abortion because it’s such a difficult topic to discuss, but there’s a possibility that Never Rarely Sometimes Always might be moving. The song choice of Sharon Van Etten’s “Seventeen,” who is also in the film, was absolutely fitting. If this does get good early word of mouth, maybe I’ll see it.
Score: 7/10
‘The Grudge’ (1/3/20)
And finally, Sony/ Screen Gems released the red band trailer for their reboot of The Grudge. What this just showed as a scene that’s meant to be creepy, and it did its job. Though, it’s not enough to care one bit about this. The Grudge is also the first movie to come out in January, which is already a sign that’s going to dreadful.
Score: 5/10
DC's Take 