Movie trailers used to be half the fun of seeing a movie. At least for me. Now they all seem like cookie-cutter messes that go on too long, give away too much of the movie's story, and sometimes just plain out mislead (like that one trailer for Precious that tried to make it look like a romantic comedy).

The toughest part of cutting movie trailers seems to be choosing whether to play "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" or "Bad to the Bone" for any comedy. (Or if it's a comedy-drama, especially one where a kid changes an adult's life, "Solsbury Hill" seems to be the go-to choice.)

What do you love to hate about movie trailers?

Thread Title of 2011!! I was just noticing AC/DC in a lot of movies lately. You Shook Me is another.

I am extra annoyed by the DVD's that make it hard to skip the trailers, and even worse, have trailers for video games?!?!?!?

I think you nailed it on the part about giving away too much. Nowadays, they give you that "nugget" or the twist in the trailer that you used to sit through the whole movie to get. Now they've taken that away.

[Edited 2/2/11 10:37am]

when they show the best jokes (sometimes the only) in the movie

when they have bits NOT in the final movie.

when as you said tottaly distort the tone of the movie

NDRU said:

Thread Title of 2011!! I was just noticing AC/DC in a lot of movies lately. You Shook Me is another.

I am extra annoyed by the DVD's that make it hard to skip the trailers, and even worse, have trailers for video games?!?!?!?

Oh, yeah, DVDs where you can't skip the trailers annoy the hell out of me.

Poiple said:

I think you nailed it on the part about giving away too much. Nowadays, they give you that "nugget" or the twist in the trailer that you used to sit through the whole movie to get. Now they've taken that away.

[Edited 2/2/11 10:37am]

I guess there was some poll or study that showed that many people actually liked having the whole plot given away in the trailer. I don't know who those people are. As it is, I often want to come into a movie about 15 or 20 minutes late, just so I can skip the setup that the trailer already presented.

Can't think of any examples right now but it's when the trailer implies a snappy comeback by the character of a movie. It's edited to make it look like a character has given a snappy answer or reply to a question or statement (to make it funnier I guess) but then when you see the movie the scenes are used in different context. So when I see the movie I'm a expecting the snappy comeback by character B after character A says something but it never happens.

I'm sorry. I know some will not get this....

The over use of dramatic opera really annoys me the most!

I recently saw the trailer for the movie The Roommate. It tells you everything that happens in the film except for perhaps the last ten minutes. Not that I would have gone to see it anyway.

I agree about automatic trailers at the beginning of DVDs being not cool.

Efan said:

NDRU said:

Thread Title of 2011!! I was just noticing AC/DC in a lot of movies lately. You Shook Me is another.

I am extra annoyed by the DVD's that make it hard to skip the trailers, and even worse, have trailers for video games?!?!?!?

Oh, yeah, DVDs where you can't skip the trailers annoy the hell out of me.

They're adding them to OnDemand movies now, too.

Efan said:

NDRU said:

Thread Title of 2011!! I was just noticing AC/DC in a lot of movies lately. You Shook Me is another.

I am extra annoyed by the DVD's that make it hard to skip the trailers, and even worse, have trailers for video games?!?!?!?

Oh, yeah, DVDs where you can't skip the trailers annoy the hell out of me.

I've never seen that. The discs I have, I can fast forward throught them or jump to the next one until they are finished, but discs where you can't skip them at all? That's wrong.

Pre-1975 trailers were generally awful as well

for me, 75-99 was the golden age of trailers...

JoeTyler said:

Pre-1975 trailers were generally awful as well

for me, 75-99 was the golden age of trailers...

I dunno...I kind of like the old trailers, although I can't say I've seen that many of them. But there's something kind of breathless about them (I'm thinking of the ones for movies like Citizen Kane and All About Eve, for example).

And back when they really were trailers (actually trailing the films instead of preceding them), the film industry was so different. I was so shocked when my mom told me about how movie theaters were when she was young: that you didn't have set times for the movies to start. You just paid and walked in and watched the movie from whatever point it was at on the screen. Then you could sit there and watch it when it started from the beginning and catch up to the point where you had walked in. Seems crazy now.

Efan said:

JoeTyler said:

Pre-1975 trailers were generally awful as well

for me, 75-99 was the golden age of trailers...

I dunno...I kind of like the old trailers, although I can't say I've seen that many of them. But there's something kind of breathless about them (I'm thinking of the ones for movies like Citizen Kane and All About Eve, for example).

And back when they really were trailers (actually trailing the films instead of preceding them), the film industry was so different. I was so shocked when my mom told me about how movie theaters were when she was young: that you didn't have set times for the movies to start. You just paid and walked in and watched the movie from whatever point it was at on the screen. Then you could sit there and watch it when it started from the beginning and catch up to the point where you had walked in. Seems crazy now.

My mom and I did that when we she took me to see Purple Rain. We missed the entire "Let's Go Crazy" opening and stayed in the theater to watch it when it reran during the next showing and then walked out.

^^ Of course that's not totally the same as what you said Efan since we knew in advance what time the movie started.

sextonseven said:

Efan said:

Oh, yeah, DVDs where you can't skip the trailers annoy the hell out of me.

I've never seen that. The discs I have, I can fast forward throught them or jump to the next one until they are finished, but discs where you can't skip them at all? That's wrong.

Sometimes the menu button will do it, sometimes skipping forward will do it, but sometimes I have to fast forward, and that process often makes my discs skip or freeze and the whole system crashes, then it's start all over again

It reminds me a bit of Lovesexy, using a new medium to introduce new types of inconveniences--contrary to the supposed benefits of these new mediums.

i take the kids to the movies... but we get there right on time so i don't stand around and watch them

most of the time we get there just b4 the movie starts... i am busy!!!!!!

the kids choose what they want to see...

personally... i dont go to the movies for myself anymore... i don't even watch tv...

i feel like i have withdrawn from society when ppl talk about movies and stuff like that ......

but in the olden days when i had a life... u used to luv watching them and checking out what i was going to see next......

I still have to get to a movie early enough to see all the trailers or else I'm pissed.

But yeah, I agree on there being a lot of shitty ones.
And half the time you're sitting there like Well, I know I just saw all the best parts of that movie.

I think the most effective trailers give you next to nothing about the project -- little to no narration, no truly important dialogue, even a bare minimum of the film's actual footage if possible -- yet do so well on enticing you with sheer tone that you're drooling at the opportuity to shell out your money. While this movie was so-so, I thought the trailer did its job perfectly...

And both of these were smart...

^ The alternate Shining trailer worked in part, though, because the Kubrick and King brands sold the project even with a minimal peek at the actual flick.

There's a great teaser trailer for "American Werewolf in London" of footage shot only for the trailer.

"Poltergeist" had a documentary style teaser trailer of interviews with paranormal investigators.

Unfortunately "Catfish" had the worst misrepresentative trailer. A movie that should have been a PBS type arthouse film for older audiences about growing old, burdened, and lost in life was mis-marketed as a cinematic thriller like "Paranormal Activity" with a some kind of hidden twist. That's not what it is at all.

ufoclub said:

There's a great teaser trailer for "American Werewolf in London" of footage shot only for the trailer.

"Poltergeist" had a documentary style teaser trailer of interviews with paranormal investigators.

Unfortunately "Catfish" had the worst misrepresentative trailer. A movie that should have been a PBS type arthouse film for older audiences about growing old, burdened, and lost in life was mis-marketed as a cinematic thriller like "Paranormal Activity" with a some kind of hidden twist. That's not what it is at all.

I'm glad I didn't waste my time with Catfish. Based on the trailer, I was pretty jazzed to see it, but I know now that it wouldn't live up.

Mr. Hitchcock did great teasers (different than trailers? ). Bizarrely long, but great.

And with that voice.

[Edited 2/2/11 15:56pm]

Never watch em

Efan said:

Movie trailers used to be half the fun of seeing a movie. At least for me. Now they all seem like cookie-cutter messes that go on too long, give away too much of the movie's story, and sometimes just plain out mislead (like that one trailer for Precious that tried to make it look like a romantic comedy).

The toughest part of cutting movie trailers seems to be choosing whether to play "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" or "Bad to the Bone" for any comedy. (Or if it's a comedy-drama, especially one where a kid changes an adult's life, "Solsbury Hill" seems to be the go-to choice.)

What do you love to hate about movie trailers?

I HATE that!!!! I avoid looking at them and/or reading blurbs on the back of DVDs

It's enough someone I trust says it's good, and knowing nothing else about it!

sextonseven said:

My mom and I did that when we she took me to see Purple Rain.

you watched PR with your mom?? I mean, that's a nasty picture...

I sat next to a guy on a plane once that made those trailers. I wish I'd talked to him more. About all I said was, "That sounds like fun" and he said "Sometimes".

JoeTyler said:

sextonseven said:

My mom and I did that when we she took me to see Purple Rain.

you watched PR with your mom?? I mean, that's a nasty picture...

I was only 15 at the time so I had to go with someone. I don't remember it being awkward. Not like when we saw Angel Heart together.

sextonseven said:

JoeTyler said:

you watched PR with your mom?? I mean, that's a nasty picture...

I was only 15 at the time so I had to go with someone. I don't remember it being awkward. Not like when we saw Angel Heart together.

I was 14, and my sister took me along with some friends of hers. It was way better than seeing it with my mom, but I still laugh at how uptight my prim and proper sister was at the movie. She made verbal sounds of disgust several times, especially during Computer Blue and Darling Nikki.

Efan said:

sextonseven said:

I was only 15 at the time so I had to go with someone. I don't remember it being awkward. Not like when we saw Angel Heart together.

I was 14, and my sister took me along with some friends of hers. It was way better than seeing it with my mom, but I still laugh at how uptight my prim and proper sister was at the movie. She made verbal sounds of disgust several times, especially during Computer Blue and Darling Nikki.

I was 12 and I went with my mom also.

PuttyKat petting scene:

My Mom: Holy shit, what the hell is he looking for in there???

That woman had no couth.