Trailer Reactions

Wow, we have seen a ton of trailers drop over these last few days.  Star Wars, Mad Max, and Batman vs Superman all released new trailers over the last three days.  Before I freak out and fan boy over them, make sure to watch them!

Star Wars: The Force Awakens http://bit.ly/1JNb9d7

Mad Max: Fury Road http://bit.ly/1NKvWne

Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice http://bit.ly/1Q1I2Ho

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Star Wars

 

This trailer got so many people pumped up for The Force Awakens.  From crashed Star Destroyers to Darth Vader’s burned helmet, we are given small little bits that wet our appetite.  I cannot wait for the movie to come out and see what J.J. Abrams (Star Trek, LOST, Fringe) can add to the legacy.  While I won’t be camping out to see it opening night, you will definitely see me in the theater the first chance I get.

And who can forget the real highlight of the trailer:  Han and Chewie

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Mad Max

This is the big reboot of 2015 that everybody is waiting for.  While I have not seen the original, I have read up on the story line and am looking forward to the new movie.  Tom Hardy (Inception, Dark Knight Rises, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy) is about to take another step towards becoming a hot commodity in Hollywood when this movie goes over extremely well and sucks in a ton of fans. Mad Max will come out on May 15th to a ton of packed theaters.

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Batman v Superman

 

This trailer was officially released last night and spread throughout the internet like a wildfire. Focusing primarily on Ben Affleck’s (Argo, Gone Girl, Good Will Hunting) Batman, this trailer is our first look at the Dawn of Justice movie scheduled to come out in 2016.  We see Batman all decked out in costume squaring off face-to-face with Superman (Henry Cavill).  The world seems to be torn on whether Superman is a hero or villain and I am sure we will see more with future trailers to come.

 

These are just some of my initial reactions to the big trailers that have been released recently. Which movie are you most looking forward to?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Top 5 Movie Trailers of All-Time

Movie trailers are the main reason people hear about upcoming movies.  I don’t know about you guys, but I love watching the previews before movies almost as much as I love watching the movie.  Here are the five most interesting captivating trailers of all-time:

#5:  Man of Steel Nokia Trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejXjZ-k6Myc

Before the release of the Nokia trailer, Man of Steel‘s trailers had been pretty subpar.  This one, however, gave us our first real look at the action in the movie.  Russell Crowe’s voice over draws us in before the action hits.  It is also the first time we get to see an extended look at Henry Cavill as the new Superman.  While the movie may have not been the greatest superhero movie ever, this is definitely one of the greatest superhero movie trailers ever.

#4:  World War Z Trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HcwTxRuq-uk

I have not read the book, so when I first saw the trailer for World War Z, I was completely sucked in.  Most zombie movies fall under the horror genre, but this one is definitely an action movie.  Plus, how cool was the scene where the zombies threw themselves against the wall and began scaling it?  After seeing that, I was immediately hooked.

#3: The Dark Knight Trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQ5U8suTUw0

When Batman Begins ended and we saw the Joker card, fans of the caped crusader could not wait for Christopher Nolan’s next movie.  Fans were rewarded when this trailer for The Dark Knight dropped in theaters.  It was the first time we got to see Heath Ledger as the Joker and hear his maniacal laugh.  We also got to see a reference to the central plot point of Bruce Wayne’s struggle to maintain his identity as Batman and a rich celebrity.  The Dark Knight is one of the best superhero movies ever created, and its trailer is the best superhero trailer out there.

#2:  Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7h-pnKtjDqg

While the art of making a movie trailer has completely changed over the last 10 years, The Two Towers‘ trailer came out in 2002 and was extremely successful.  Peter Jackson created one of the greatest trilogies of all-time (potential future post) when he turned The Lord of the Rings into a movie franchise.  While each of the Lord of the Rings  were amazing, The Two Towers trailer got all Tolkien fans pumped for the second installment of the franchise.

#1:  Inception Trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66TuSJo4dZM

This trailer completely changed the way they are created.  Nolan’s second entry on this list added the “bwah”‘s that are heard in every single action trailer now.  The spinning hotel room, intense action scenes, slow-mo van scenes, and beautiful snowy mountain landscape took a movie that nobody was really interested and turned it into one of the most talked about movies of 2010.  The movie definitely lived up to the hype and was nominated for the Best Picture Oscar.

Top 5 Movie Soundtrack Composers of All-Time

Movie soundtracks can be one of the most underrated parts of a movie.  Few people realize the difference a good soundtrack can make a movie versus a bad one (imagine watching the fellowship march through the mountains in Lord of the Rings without that epic music).  I decided to show my appreciation of these unsung heroes with a list of the top 5 composers in movie history.

#5: Howard Shore

Best Known For:  Lord of the Rings Trilogy

Speaking of that epic Lord of the Rings Music, Shore was slingshot into the mainstream after his work with Peter Jackson to create one of the most memorable soundtracks of all-time.  Along with the Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit franchises, Shore has composed the music for The Aviator and Ed Wood, two other movies known for their great soundtracks.  Although he has been working on movies since the 1970s, he is finally getting the recognition he deserves here in the 2000s.

#4: Bernard Herrmann

Best Known For:  Psycho

The man behind the Twilight Zone theme and Taxi Driver, Herrmann has helped create some of the most haunting recognizable scores.  Not to mention, who doesn’t imagine the shower scene in Psycho every time they hear that high pitch horror track.  Alfred Hitchcock originally wanted the famous shower scene without music before he heard Herrmann’s track.  He launched himself to popularity with his first soundtrack–Citizen Kane.  Considered one of the greatest movies every created, Citizen Kane‘s soundtrack is one of the many great aspects of the movie.

#3: Alan Silvestri

Best Known For:  Back to the Future

Silvestri’s accomplishments stretch far beyond the Back to the Future trilogy.  Forrest Gump, The A-Team, The Polar Express, and multiple movies from the Avengers Marvel Cinematic Universe are only some of the musical masterpieces penned by Silvestri.  He has shown his broad diversity covering all genres of movies.  Silvestri is definitely one of the best musical composers of all-time.  Starting his career in the 1970s, Silvestri continues to compose great soundtracks to this day.

#2:  Hans Zimmer

Best Known For:  The Dark Knight

Considered the best modern musical composer, Zimmer has created a plethora of great scores.  Pairing up with Christopher Nolan, Zimmer has created the scores for The Dark Knight trilogy, Insterstellar, Inception, and The Prestige.  He has experienced great success outside of Nolan as well.  He won an Oscar for his work on The Lion King and has been behind the scenes for many great movies:  Gladiator, Castaway, Man of Steel, Black Hawk Down, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Bee Movie, and Sherlock Holmes.  He started his musical career assisting the The Buggles with the first MTV music video “Video Killed the Radio Star” and his career has shot off from there.  He is by far currently the best in the business.

#1: John Williams

Best Known For: Star Wars

Williams has been at the helm of some of the greatest movie franchises to ever be produced.  Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park , Harry Potter, Jaws, Superman, and Schindler’s List are just the tip of the iceberg.  Williams has been creating music for movies since the mid-1950s.  While he has slowed down his pace, Williams is far and away the greatest composer ever.  His work is unrivaled.  Almost anybody could hear some of his work and immediately recognize the movie.  It will be a long time before somebody tops Williams as the greatest of all-time.