This week, I’m doing my thoughts on a bunch of movie/series trailers that have dropped in the last while. So some of these are slightly old, but none of these are out yet. Just my general thoughts on them. So let’s get started.
Wonder Woman
I’m starting with this one, because sadly, Warner isn’t giving her the attention she deserves. They’ve rarely promoted her upcoming movie, and sadly, when it doesn’t do well in theaters they will say “See, female hero movies don’t sell.” Like, no shit it likely isn’t going to do well. You aren’t putting any effort into advertising her movie, you aren’t putting out a bunch of movie-related products with her on them. You aren’t marketing her. There are very few franchises that can self promote without much advertising (and these franchises still put a ton into advertising anyways, because it pays off). And the DCEU is not one those who are gifted with great self-promotion. And yet, from what I’ve seen, this could easily be the best DC live action movie put out (and I’m including all pre-DCEU movies for this, including the Nolan Batman trilogy). This trailer is her origins trailer. Where you get some background on who she is and the power she must wield. Much like the first Captain America movie, this one is set before the events of the rest of the DCEU as we know it. It also draws comparisons to Captain America’s character in The Avengers as she doesn’t know how the outside world works (as is seen by her walking around with a sword and shield in London). This looks like a solid action movie while fleshing out her character for the greater universe.
All in all, I feel this movie is going to be amazing. As I stated at the beginning, if this movie fails, it’s on Warner, for putting next to nothing towards promoting it. I feel that this is going to be the strongest entry into the DCEU, and it looks like it
Thor: Ragnarok
Alright, let’s start with the Thor: Ragnarok trailer. A few takeaways here. Thor has short hair. No more of those Thoreal jokes. It’s a new look, I know some don’t like it, but it does have basis in comics. It’s a similar look to the Unworthy Thor run. But we also get introduced to a few characters. Valkyrie, The Grandmaster, Hela, Skurge the Executioner. All these characters are traditional heavy hitters. Valkyrie is one of the good guys (in comics), Hela is the daughter of Loki, Queen of the realm of Hel (in comics, former Queen of Hel), Skurge the Executioner is a sidekick to the Enchantress. Traditionally in opposition to Thor, he has also been known to fight on the same side as Thor as well, and The Grandmaster, an Elder of the Universe and brother to The Collector (who appeared in Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 1). We also see Thor have his hammer Mjolnir destroyed. While this is a heavy hit, it lets the writers be a bit more creative and show people what he is truly capable of. As those who are fans of the Thor comics know, Mjolnir is not the source of his powers, but rather a focus. But he has always been more than his hammer, and is still a deadly force without it. We see Asgard at war, led by Loki, and an adapted (yet iconic) scene from the Planet Hulk storyline of Hulk vs Thor on the planet Sakaar. The trailer gives the impression is a bit more upbeat, and more comedy than previous Thor movies, almost reminiscent of the Guardians movie.
Now, here’s one of the movies I am so stoked for. This movie has the potential to be one of the top movies of the year. This is one of my top 2 not released movies to catch this year. I am a HUGE Thor fan, and also a HUGE Hulk fan. The fact that it appears to be a buddy film between them is bonus. I am so excited to see what happens here.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales
The fifth movie in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise (one of my favourite franchises of all time), the fifth returns to the crazy rum fueled adventures of the infamous Captain Jack Sparrow. We see some returning cast members (such as Geoffrey Rush’s Captain Barbossa) as they face a threat from hell itself (and also, Jack’s past, I guess). We see a young Jack Sparrow evading capture and sinking a ship with a Captain who hunts pirates. But he didn’t die. No, in his own words “He took everything from me, and filled it with… rage.” An undead Pirate hunting captain who can only be stopped by the pantsless Sparrow and his friends. We are introduced to a few new characters, a woman named Carina, and a young man who is rather reminiscent of Will Turner (who coincidentally is another young man that Jack once took under his wing). Jack has plenty of advice on how to live life fully. It is curious to see what Barbarossa’s role will be, as he appears to have gone legitimate.
This is also one of my top 2 movies to see. Mostly, because I am a pirate. Yes, you read that right. But also, because this series was Fantastic (On Stranger Tides was a bit weak, but still a great movie). Another chance of Jack and crew to fight mystical supernatural pirate-hunters is fantastic. I’m super excited for this.
Transformers: The Last Knight
The latest Transformers movie is also looking rather good. We see Mark Wahlberg return to help save the planet against those who would seek to redeem it. But we see the reveal of a hidden order of human knights who worked with autobots in the past. We see a ton of explosions (but that’s Michael Bay for you), and see a few epic fight scenes. Fan favourite Bumblebee gets a beatdown from long-time favourite Optimus Prime. And the final words we hear uttered by Optimus in this trailer are rather ominous. “For my world to live, yours must die.” But it seems like humanity isn’t giving up on Optimus, and they’re willing to fight for it all. Plus, swords. Lots of them. So that’ll be pretty interesting, to see how they implement those in a way that makes sense.
I have mixed feelings about this. Because I really really want to like this movie. And the series. But it’s been so hit and miss so far. There’s been a few that I’ve thoroughly enjoyed, but they’ve also had a few just, awful, points as well.
Alien: Covenant
The latest Alien movie looks like a winner from the trailers so far. And Covenant looks to be a huge addition to the Alien franchise. You see what starts off as an almost romantic human colonization attempt on another planet. Upon landing, everything starts taking a downward turn. They see vegetation exactly the same as on Earth, but no animals, at all. And then it goes real bad. Attacks from Alien creatures, corpses, eggs. They’ve sacrificed everything to start a new life on another planet, and now, it looks like they are going to be food for the Aliens they encounter. It is a struggle for survival, on a planet they know little to nothing about.
This looks good. Maybe not something I’d personally see in theaters good, but that’s because I’ve never been that big into the Alien series. But this definitely looks like something I’d watch with friends or on Netflix.
Marvel’s The Defenders
Onto a newly released trailer, we have Marvel’s The Defenders. The culmination of Marvel’s Netflix Phase 1. Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist. They all finally meet, and have to work together. You see supporting characters from other series, Misty Knight, Stick, Elektra, Claire Temple. You do see Colleen Wing briefly (single shot), but you also see the Dojo, so it’s reasonable to say she may appear as a regular character (as well as other supporting characters from the series). There’s some serious action, including the now expected Hallway Fight Scene, some humour, and a bit of a feeling out process as these 4 heroes, who are generally loners, learn to work with eachother.
This has been a big one for me. The build up for it has been highly anticipated since they announced it at the same time as announcing the 4 individual series. Now the trailer has got me stoked, because it shows what I have been hoping for. You got action, comedy, hell, maybe even a few epic cameos.
Marvel’s Cloak & Dagger
So here we go to a new Marvel series appearing on Freeform. Cloak and Dagger. Two young runaway heroes who eventually learn that the only ones they can rely on are eachother. While, there isn’t a lot shown of what could happen, we are likely seeing their origin stories. A big easter egg you do see is Cloak on the roof with a big sign saying “Roxxon Corp”. Anyone who knows the comics, knows that Roxxon were never up to any good.
This one, I’m not as excited for. Mostly because, while Cloak and Dagger are good characters, I’m unsure if they could carry a show on their own.
Justice League
Alright. So following Wonder Woman, there is this DCEU movie, Justice League. This one looks like another strong candidate for helping the DCEU get off the ground (Batman vs Superman, Man of Steel and Suicide Squad were all sort of lacking). But here we get to see most the Justice League (basically, sans Superman) facing off against a mysterious alien attack. Those familiar with the comics, will recognize the tech as from Darkseid and Apokolips, You see some solid action scenes, and a basic introduction to Flash, Cyborg, Wonder Woman, Batman and Aquaman.
Overall, I think this has potential. I would like to say it looks good, but DC has put out rather weak performances for live action (partly undeserved, in regards to being compared to Marvel, partly deserved in terms of almost requiring extended editions to help bring the movie together). But, this definitely looks like it could be very good. Especially since they aren’t going to focus solely on one or two people.
The Dark Tower
This one is a bit different. Based off the Steven King series, The Dark Tower, Idris Elba plays the Gunslinger. A gritty anti-hero in a world all but killed. An effort to protect the Tower that separates his world from ours. And a kid from our world who ended up in theirs, Fighting against the man in black.
Full disclosure, I’ve only partially read the series (bathroom reading at someone elses house). But I thoroughly enjoyed what I read. And Idris Elba is a terribly underrated actor. And Stephen King books have translated incredibly well into movies. So, I have very high hopes for this movie, and the trailer has definitely drawn me in.
Cyguy's Musings 