2007: Top 10 Trailers

10. STARDUST

I was so knocked out when I first saw this trailer I wondered if it could be Summer’s surprise blockbuster. It seemed to have all the right ingredients, an engaging mix of fantasy, action, romance and comedy. It starts slow, but ends real strong.
BEST MOMENT: The great Peter O’Toole saying, “Now we shall begin.”

9. DAY WATCH

I had seen some of the International trailers – stunning effects need no translation – but Fox did a terrific job making simple sense of the dense plot while dazzling with the imaginative eye candy.
BEST MOMENT: The showpiece at the end where a car drives and slides vertically across a skyscraper.

8. I’M NOT THERE (Final Trailer)

An expanded version of the Teaser, this one boils down the numerous Dylan’s to their essence, creating a satisfying portrait of the enigmatic legend in under 3 minutes.
BEST MOMENT: This sounds obvious but the superb editing of the images to Dylan’s biggest hit really make this.

7. ACROSS THE UNIVERSE

It would have been difficult to make a bad trailer combining the film’s surreal visuals and music from The Beatles. (Apparently however, it was easy to make a lousy movie with the same mix.)
BEST MOMENT: Take your pick between Rainbow Bright’s bowling alley, Yoko hitting the water right on cue or (probably my favorite) Uncle Sam coming to get you.

6. DAY NIGHT DAY NIGHT
Click Here To View Trailer.

I caught this just last week after reading Trailer Park’s Top 10 list. Much like last year’s awesome trailer for LITTLE CHILDREN, this one is minimal with excellent sound and a feeling that whatever’s going to happen, I need to watch. I immediately added the film to my Netflix cue.
BEST MOMENT: The mix and edit of loud and quiet sounds


5. DEATH PROOF (International Trailer)

I first saw this on the DVD. While I really liked all the previews for GRINDHOUSE, this one for DEATH PROOF is by far the best. It starts out menacing, turns real creepy, then grabs you and pulls you to the edge of your seat.
BEST MOMENT: “If he likes the way you move, then he decides…the way you die.”

4. TRANSFORMERS (Final Trailer)

Hated the movie, but man the trailer showed flashes of a ‘mech warrior’ battle some of us waited years for. The budget and effects were finally there to deliver film geek heaven.
BEST MOMENT: I love when the jet transforms as he pulls himself onto the bridge, but even now I get chills when Tyrese shouts “Bring it!” (Of course it’s wedged between the always effective trailer choir and a robotic primal scream.)


3. NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN (Redband trailer)

Many people didn’t see this because it shows a couple of murders (Nothing too spoilery, but we didn’t know that then.) The 2 regular trailers are also good, but this one captures the dark tone best.
BEST MOMENT: The blood red splashing across the titles.

2. CLOVERFIELD (Teaser)

Unfortunately, the follow-up trailer really took the wind out of CLOVERFIELD’s sails, but remember when you sat down to TRANSFORMERS and this came on. At first, it looked like the projectionist made a mistake, and by the end, we were rocked to our core. The most talked-about trailer of the year, it will go down as one of the all time greatest teasers.
BEST MOMENT: Everything from the first roar on.

1. THANKSGIVING

The fake trailers in GRINDHOUSE were possibly the highlight of the whole experience. I really liked the one Robert Rodriguez did for MACHETE and thought about including that one as well, but these trailers had the advantage of not having to be made from an actual movie so you only had to film the money shots.
Eli Roth’s trailer for the slasher film THANKSGIVING is the most creative, most entertaining thing he’s ever done. He perfectly creates the way trailers looked and sounded “back in the day” (and yes they did contain all the gore and nudity), he perfectly sets up the story (I love setting it in Plymouth, MS) and his violent punchlines evoke the perfect balance of wincing and laughter.
BEST MOMENT: The whole damn thing.