If you frequent /Film regularly, you’ve probably already been exposed to the brilliance/insanity/grammatical terror of The Room, Tommy Wiseau‘s failed attempt at a provocative, seductive drama-thriller. The film, which is as hilarious as it is downright baffling, has been declared by many to be the worst film ever made, and has gone on to receive a massive cult following.
One would assume that writer/director/star Tommy Wiseau would be less than thrilled to be the butt of the colossal joke that is his $7 million production, but since its release, he’s asserted that the comedic value of the film was wholly intentional—a claim that’s easily disputed by watching the first 30 seconds of any interview with him.
He tries to maintain the illusion anyway though, and his latest attempt at doing so is through a horror parody short film called The House That Drips Blood On Alex. Watch the teaser trailer after the break. Read More »
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This year marks the 30th anniversary of the release of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back in theaters. But have you ever seen the original theatrical trailer for the Star Wars sequel featuring a 1930′s-style radio voice over by Han Solo himself — Harrison Ford? Check it out now, after the jump.
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There’s a real art to cutting a good trailer. While the basics have remained the same over the years, some aspects of that art have changed greatly in the past two decades. Watch the original trailer for Tron, for example, and you’ll see a good tease for the film and the story, but one that is very much locked into the pulse of technology and storytelling common at the time.
In response to that, a fan has cut a new trailer for the 1982 film. It’s Tron as it might be sold today. The work is quite good; check it out after the break. Read More »
It’s a crazy, mixed up world and we are thankful for movies, sans New Moon, that offer proof. Weekend Weirdness cocks its disoriented, nappy head to examine such flicks, whether in the form of a new trailer for a provocative indie, a review, or news of an excavated cult classic. The works discussed herein tend to make cinema a little more interesting, and in the best and worst cases do the same for life. In this installment: a doc on Norwegian black metal; a doc on the first Asian member of the Black Panthers; a forgotten Dennis Hopper outlaw flick from Down Under; and a dumb-catchy rap song from the Sudan about movies, birds and popcorn.
With the possible exception of Forever21-styled country music a la Taylor Swift, no other music genre is as stigmatized and sensationalized by acts of church burning and murda as Norwegian black metal. The documentary, Until the Light Takes Us, is a dedicated and almost clinical look at how Norway’s black metal scene was permanently transformed—and magnified—in the early ’90s by what are now infamous acts of violence and rebellion.
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NSFW, Sundays, or her muddah!
Dolemite né Rudy Ray Moore has returned at the tender age of 71 from “Motherland Africa” where he apparently learned how to conduct and fire laser beams like Raiden from Mortal Kombat. Dive right into the trailer for The Dolemite Explosion, a poppin’ Jacuzzi of nonsense that will wash away Sex and the City‘s 1,001 cougar licks (Gross).
Do you think Rudy Ray Moore even understands the concept of a red band trailer? In your face Retired Dirty Harry! Note the above poster’s use of two taglines, a deadly disco ball on a cane (no big deal), and yes, that’s the Bishop Don Magic Juan. Moore’s blaxploitation sequel is set for release sometime this year, but until then, this trailer is the gift that keeps on giving all summer long.
[flv:http://bitcast-a.bitgravity.com/slashfilm/trailers/dolemiteecplosion.flv 460 308]
Discuss: Thoughts? Who knew that a movie announcer guy rhyming “thugs” and “drugs” could sound so right? Who’s funnier, Rudy or Al Sharpton?
“I’m back. [belch!]“
Oh yes, to be bathed in ketchup-colored red by an R-rated movie trailer inside a cinema. It’s been nearly a decade since the largest theater chain in North America, Regal Entertainment Group, showed its last restricted movie trailer but times are a changing. Regal will reintroduce the kid hating trailers before R-rated and NC17-rated films, with other exhibitors expected to follow suit.
Be sure to thank Judd Apatow, whose open endorsement of filthy dialogue and red band trailers for Knocked Up and Superbad, which were posted exclusively on the Internet and turned into outright sensations, helped jump start the decision. And, while you’re at it, thank Peter at Slashfilm, who lead the ‘Net charge and got rid of those pesky age restriction gates to many squares’ chagrin.
Back in 2000, a report by the Federal Trade Commission spanked the entertainment industry for marketing violence to children, even though back in those “wild days” red band trailers still weren’t supposed to be shown in front of a PG or G films. The red promotional tide was soon gone from mainstream theaters, and looking back on it, crowd pleasing R-rated films also went the way of John McClane spouting profanity at evil doers. So, lovers of R-rated films, Sexman and those in between: dance.
Discuss: Now that R-rated films are easier to market to wide audiences, do you think Regal’s decision will have any impact on studios making R-rated flicks? If PG-13 was a person, would you hang out with him?
Source Links: HR / First Showing
With the release of the Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull movie trailer, I thought a look back at the original films is in order. So below you will find the trailers that made up the original Indiana Jones trilogy. Step into the Delorean, and take a trip back in time with me…
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There have been reports that audiences seeing Cloverfield this weekend are going wild for the attached Star Trek teaser trailer, but my screening was dead quiet. And I can’t tell whether the mere four comments /Film received on our post about the bootleg version being on YouTube (still there) are a sign of disinterest, mild disappointment or reservation for the official version. Up until yesterday, I had a bad feeling about J.J. Abrams‘s mega-budgeted December vision for Trek. The casting has been all over the place, and the filmmakers’ hardcore need to include Leonard Nimoy and as much canon as possible reminded me of the early warning signs for Superman Returns. But the trailer struck a cord with me.
The steady shot on the U.S.S. Enterprise under construction perfectly evoked how vast, dangerous and mysterious space actually is, and Nimoy’s “final frontier” line didn’t possess the stark confidence I’d expected. Instead, it sounded foreboding and safety belt-worthy. The theme music even had a refreshed alien sophistication. After seeing what J.J. and his team did minutes later with Manhattan and how tiny and disposable humans were in a monster’s wrath, their Star Trek now has my full attention.
Producer Roberto Orci spoke with Trekmovie.com to expand on the filmmakers’ intentions for the moderately esoteric and largely eerie teaser. To the Trekkies who remain adamant that the Enterprise must be built in space in accordance with canon, or “fanon” even, rather than on Earth, Orci breaks out the science and “creative license.” This is sort of impressive…
Firstly, there is the notion that there is precedent in the novels, etc that components of the ship can be built on Earth and assembled here or there. And the second thing is that the Enterprise is not some flimsy yacht that has to be delicately treated and assembled. The idea that things have to be assembled in space has normally been associated with things that don’t have to be in any kind of pressure situation and don’t ever have to ever enter a gravity well. That is not the case with the Enterprise. The Enterprise actually has to sustain warp, which we know is not actually moving but more a warping of space around it. And we know that its decks essentially simulate Earth gravity and so its not the kind of gravity created by centrifugal force, it is not artificially created by spinning it. It is created by an artificial field and so it is very natural, instead of having to create a fake field in which you are going to have to calibrate everything, to just do it in the exact gravity well in which you are going to be simulating.
Orci deadens the rumors that the Enterprise is shown being constructed at Area 51, but won’t confirm nor deny that the location is San Francisco. And he doesn’t seemed worried about the film’s title not being included on the teaser, which I found to be an extremely intriguing decision on first view. As for what the trailer is supposed to convey to today’s audiences…
This is who we are. This is real. This is maybe not so far off in the future as it used to be. In the 60s the cell phone was a fantasy. Now the communicator that Kirk had is not as advanced as my iPhone. It is a different millennium for God’s sake. We are literally a century closer than we were before.
What I found most interesting was the following quote, which implies that this Trek is both inspired by JFK’s pivotal role in the space race and hopes to refocus peoples’ attention back on exploration as well.
First of all, it has been written about that Kirk was in a way modeled after JFK. Like being the youngest captain ever, like Kennedy was the youngest President ever. Obviously the space race being kicked off by JFK is very much associated with Star Trek. It was also due to what we just discussed and linking it back to today. If we do indeed have a Federation, I think Kennedy’s words will be inscribed in their someplace. He kicked us off. And on a third level it is a slight nod to Star Trek Enterprise, in that we are not blind to the fact that going back to some of the more historical aspects of Star Trek that haven’t been covered in a while
It’s not everyday that I care to hear a producer wax on a teaser trailer, but Orci enhanced my take on it. Did you find the teaser to be too esoteric, too uneventful, or too, um, industrial? Do you feel that general audiences made the connection that it was for Star Trek, as there are quibbles from fans going about?
