'The Words' Trailer #2 - Bradley Cooper Fakes It Til He Makes It

After breaking out with Wedding Crashes and The Hangover a few years back, Bradley Cooper's been trying to make the transition into more dramatic roles. Which, for some reason, starts with playing shabby, dishonest writer types.

In last year's Limitless, Cooper played a hapless copywriter who cheats his way to success with a performance-enhancing drug. In this fall's The Words, he stars as a middling author who fakes talent by plagiarizing from a manuscript he discovers in an old briefcase. The trouble starts when Jeremy Irons enters his life, claiming to be the true author of the story. Olivia Wilde, Dennis Quaid, Zoe Saldana, and Ben Barnes also star. Watch the second trailer after the jump.

[via Collider]

I really liked the first trailer, even despite the obnoxious pop tune that kicks in two-thirds of the way through. The second trailer is more confusing and less artful than the first one, and emphasizes The Words' thriller elements above all. It's to the film's detriment. While reviews out of Sundance were mixed, those who liked it noted the film's thoughtfulness and ambition. Unfortunately, we don't really get any sense of either quality here.

On the plus side, that's a pretty great cast that directors Brian Klugman and Lee Sternthal have assembled, and they all seem to be doing fine work as usual. The Words opens September 7; read Germain's Sundance writeup here.

Synopsis:

Starring Bradley Cooper, Oscar(R)-winner Jeremy Irons, Dennis Quaid, Olivia Wilde and Zoe Saldana, the layered romantic drama The Words follows young writer Rory Jansen who finally achieves long sought after literary success after publishing the next great American novel. There's only one catch – he didn't write it. As the past comes back to haunt him and his literary star continues to rise, Jansen is forced to confront the steep price that must be paid for stealing another man's work, and for placing ambition and success above life's most fundamental three words.