I’m like the whisper on a wind- alwyas there, but not always talking. I figured you didn’t miss me- but I’m back with a few trailers… Trying to pick ones you’ve probably not seen, or didn’t think to see…

Priest – ” target=”_blank”>Paul Bettany as a bad assed, face tattooed Priest takes on a load of the vampires from I Am Legend. Eventually he’s joined by Maggie Q and a cowboy and together they take down everyone’s nemesis: Church

Rife with painfully obvious wire action, choired staccato, plastic looking “concept” guns and a whole hell of a lot of SteamPunk- this looks like it is going to be the very same fantasy action movie we’ve seen a thousand times… relying heavily on artistic design, and special effects and hoping that their stellar cast of actors can make the seemingly stoic script somewhat believable and something I’d care for.

There are two things about this trailer that make me feel that I could be very surprised by this film: ONE- The cast; Paul Bettany has been a favorite of mine since (yes, I’m about to admit this) A Knight’s Tale, not to mention that that Bones from Star Trek is in it and Christopher Plummer; TWO- The shot where Karl Urban (the cowboy) is ‘conducting’ a scene of chaos and fire- its the kind of shot that takes MY imagination down the dozens of roads the scene could play out like in the actual film itself… it paints the picture of Karl Urban’s character as the ultimate swagger, or that the film could be utilizing a gutsy story telling device for that one scene in particular (who knows, maybe like the scene in Magnolia where all the characters sing along with Aimee Mann, a concept that by all means shouldn’t work, but is beautiful). But, I digress… any time I see a shot like that one- my hopes are lifted in the hope that the next film I see with something like that in it- is gonna give me something (even if its a small something), its going to give me something new… hopefully.

So- until I see that something new, I’ll continuing hoping.

A Woman, A Gun and a Noodle Shop – The tables  have been turned as the Director of Hero remakes an American film– A.W.A.G.N.S. is the Chinese remake of Blood Simple.

This trailer opens strong with a scene showing a man hiring another to kill his wife and her lover- its then followed by several quotes of people praising the film and cuts of action within the movie set to strings- pretty standard fair by trailer terms… The film looks solid and definitely worth watching.

That being said, the trailer itself isn’t that impressive… the concept on the other hand has me overtly excited!  I am actually very surprised that Japan, China, France, Great Britain, Russian, Africa, Mexico, Spain, and EVERY OTHER COUNTRY ON THE PLANET didn’t jump on to this concept a whole lot sooner (we’ll just pretend that India hasn’t been doing it since the inception of Bollywood). But, America has been remaking the rest of the world’s films for years and making billions off of their original ideas… it is about time that one of them did the same! In fact, I’d be a little stoked to see if this opens a flood gate of foreign remakes… I’d LOVE to see a German New Wave redux of Gone With the Wind, or a Neorealist Italian version of Big.

Hobo With a Shotgun – This movie… is EXACTLY what the title suggests. (unrated trailer- be warned)

Winner of the contest to make a fake trailer for a Grindhouse film that Rodriguez and SXSW held- After it won the ‘fake trailer’ contest, Hobo was given a ‘shot’ to be shot…….

Is it sad that this is sort of the role Rutger Hauer was born to play? This trailer has it all- Swat team ninjas, gallons of blood, bad prosthetic limbs, manhole decapitations, and a hobo with a shotgun… that is LITERALLY everything.

127 Hours – this movie is based on the story of Aron Ralston… if you don’t know the story- DON’T look it up- because, knowing what happens makes this trailer harder to watch…

Let me start by saying that Danny Boyle is my favorite director and directed my 2nd favorite movie of all time… anyway- this trailer really doesn’t give much away on the incredible story that this man lived… and I’m not sure that it is enough to wet anybody’s appetite. I guess, if their audience is “those that know the story” then they’ve hit the nail on the head, but as far as average joe goes, I don’t think that what is shown in the trailer is enough to get someone amped to go watch a guy ride a bike through the desert…

Enter The Void – How does one describe this film from just seeing the trailer?

Remember earlier when I mentioned “seeing something new” from the shot where the world is deleted behind the girl as she talks about their parents anniversary- I knew this was gonna be definitely different.

This trailer sorta smashes convention in miniature story telling by telling us pieces of the story then showing us imagery that tells a different story- all in such a way that the overall story is still presented to us, but  we have to take a moment to really think about what it all means… I saw elements of an underground party scene mixed with the unbreakable bond between a brother and sister, splashed with a dash of the supernatural and maybe even science fiction. This film is NOT going to be your run of the mill ‘popcorn’ flick. Judging by the trailer alone, this film is geared for an audience of up and coming “film buffs” and “film snobs”. This is the kind of film that art students, hipsters and surrealist-french philosophers have been waiting for as a flagship for their causes…

This conclusion of course, was created solely by seeing no more than the trailer- so don’t take my word for it….

Monsters – Post Apocalyptic Alien Invasion Film…. need… I describe it ANY further?

In a very gritty- and District 9 feeling sequence- this trailer has won my heart in a way that only post apocalyptic alien invasion films could… I truly believe that even though a slew of other films have already done this- the gritty, hyper “realistic” approach to sci-fi and fantasy will always work, its how our minds are able to shut off and say- “oh ya, that’s actually possible”. By grounding such a ridiculous concept as Alien Invasion or Zombie Infestation into a reality based world, a world we are used to, or a world we could possibly see happening, then we as an audience are able to join the experience and are taken along for the ride… but the moment you have a priest with a tattoo of a cross on his forehead jumping 120 feet into the air because he has invisible wires attached to his hip- we as an audience watch the experience from an outside perspective, much like that of an adult listening to a child’s latest adventure… its far fetched but the adult (usually begrudgingly) listens with a smile on their face, pats the kid on the head and says “I’m proud of you for having such an imagination…” then rolls their eyes as they walk away.

I truly believe there is room in this world for both types of stories… there is nothing more amazing than the imagination of a child- but that’s because the child is the only one actually experiencing the story- they don’t have the capability to share the experience with others… wouldn’t it be great if there was a film maker with childlike imagination and the ability to share the experience with others…..? I mean… its not like anybody like that exists…

Sucker Punch – A crazy chick escapes crazy situations by being crazy good with a sword.

I’m not gonna lie- I have no idea about this film, other than it is going to be a big hit amongst comic book fans. Although, I don’t think I can in good conscience give it a different first look than that of Priest generic, steampunk, action… but this time the special effects are a million fold better than that of what priest seems to have.

I guess what it comes down to for me (and don’t get me wrong, Sucker Punch looks to be incredibly kick ass awesome) is that I am not seeing that “something new” I’m seeing a combination of several things that could potentially make this something new– but, knowing nothing of this piece, all I can say is that what I saw was: the mechazoids from the last Matrix movie, the dragon and castle from Harry Potter, the set design from Dark City, the art design from Moulin Rouge, Ninja Scroll, Kill Bill and basically every anime on the planet…

The potential for “newness” is there- but, this guy aint holding his breath just yet.

Okay! That’s all for now- hope to see you in the near future.