So we’re off and running, galumphing through our end-of-year coverage like a giant hippo-pig destroying an underground mall. But with all of you doubtless still working your way through our immense 100 Most Anticipated Films of 2018 (which is basically our massive trailer for the year to come) we thought we’d take it pretty easy on you today, and take a look at the teasers, advance clips and promos that have whetted our appetites this past 12 months.
The fine art of the trailer is something we’ve all become more familiar with in recent years, as for many big-ticket movies, the dropping of the first footage can be almost as much of a chatter-worthy event as the film’s premiere. And while, like with posters (the best of which we ran down on Monday), there is still largely a template involved, there are times when trailer cutters outdo themselves, or when simply the material is so strong, that they create little kerfuffles all their own. 2017 has perhaps not seen anything wholly game-changing emerge in trailer artistry (there’s been no “Inception” BRAAAM! equivalent this year) but it’s been peppered with memorable promos nonetheless.
Some of the following spots have oversold a disappointing film (ahem, “It“). Some have slightly red-herring-ed us into thinking the film would be a different beast (“It Comes At Night“). And still others are new enough that we can’t yet judge them against the movie they’re promoting. But in these days of maximum noise and distraction, out of the hundreds of promo spots we watch each year, to break through our attention barrier is no mean feat. These are the 20 trailers from 2017 that did it best.
Click here for our full coverage of the best of 2017.
20. “Lady Bird”
While, admittedly, it was hard not to immediately be on board with any project that had Saoirse Ronan, Laurie Metcalf and Tracy Letts starring plus Greta Gerwig as director for her first stand-alone feature film, with a title such as “Lady Bird” it isn’t too hard to fathom someone being mildly put off. However, the trailer alleviates any possible concerns skewing close to the heartfelt, but also self-aware tone of the whole movie. Coming-of-age films are such stable structures in cinema that it’s difficult to ever really give them a shake up, and the trailer for “Lady Bird” never tried to sell the idea that Gerwig was reinventing the wheel. Instead, it delivers a charming, upbeat premise about a teenage girl we might’ve admired, grown weary of, or been, whose main relationship in the film is one with her mother. That’s not something we see enough of in film, and that, plus the humor perfectly sold what Gerwig’s runaway arthouse hit has indeed proved to be: winsome and warm — something that we’re able to look at with nostalgic fondness. – Ally Johnson
19. “Annihilation” – Teaser
The first trailer for Alex Garland’s “Annihilation” is heart-stoppingly good. It’s urgent, tense and full to the brim with intrigue, promising a film that will only build on the promise of his already excellent “Ex Machina”. It wouldn’t be too off-base to assume that Jeff VanderMeer’s novel which the film is based on is in that “unfilmable” category. It’s too cerebral for easy adaptation and the narrative fluctuates between linear storytelling and fragmented memories. Garland — for now — is able to put those concerns to rest with a trailer that eerily is able to capture the uneasy atmosphere of the book itself. It manages to showcase just enough of all of the major players, primarily Natalie Portman, while hinting at an anonymous threat and showing off the grandiose but bleak landscape that the scientists have all found themselves in. It’s about as perfect as a teaser can get and manages to both make us want more immediately, while also hinting that it might be best that it remain the only trailer of the film we watch until the movie comes out. – AJ
18. “Ingrid Goes West” – Red-Band Teaser
Dark comedy trailers rarely get it right. Most of the time, they either oversaturate the jokes or undersell the meanness. But not the red-band teaser for “Ingrid Goes West.” From this 1 minute and 15 seconds, you know EXACTLY what you’ll get from this pitch-black comedy — an uncomfortably relevant character study and revealing social commentary with a fierce, throbbing bite. But at the same time, this Neon release holds back its hand. This teaser is quick to tease — as they do — but does not fully reveal what twisty, dirty, nasty surprises are in store. It leaves you, the intrigued viewer, sinfully eager to see what wild and lewd avenues this uncompromising satire ventures into, but also able to go in unspoiled. It’s an excellent capsule of the film’s wicked success: For once, a dark comedy is sold justly. #blessed – Will Ashton
17. “It Comes At Night” – Teaser
A24’s heart-pounding teaser for “It Comes at Night,” quickly became one of this summer’s most hotly-debated. Hushed, tense dialogue plays over a POV tracking shot that’s quickly intercut with unsettling scenes. These cuts get faster and faster, until viewers are left with nothing but the title and a nice adrenaline rush. The film by Trey Edward Shults is a psychological thriller about familial duty rather than the cabin-in-the-woods slasher some believed it would be, and most blamed this trailer for that misconception. It’s my professional opinion, though, that those people need to lighten up. This trailer may have shifted around some dialogue for maximum dramatic effect and focused disproportionately on protagonist Marcus’s nightmare sequence, but it still expertly encapsulates the mood of the film. “It Comes at Night” isn’t so much about shown, gory horror than it is about the fear of the unknown. Since this trailer left countless viewers with unanswered questions — many of which would stay enigmatic in the film itself — it actually did its job. – Lena Wilson
16. “Good Time” – Trailer 2
We’re a little bit divided here over which to include, as the first trailer for the Safdies’ Cannes hit has that beautiful use of counterpoint in the form of the lyrical, heartbroken Oneohtrix Point Never feat. Iggy Pop track, “The Pure and the Damned” that also closes the film. But the second trailer for “Good Time” is a jolt of pure adrenaline, condensing the kineticism and style of the movie into two minutes of neon bliss. The sound design is standout, eschewing the usual pop track and instead using evocative auditory elements from the action to dramatically punctuate shots. The unmistakable whoop of a police cruiser, the clamor of a jailhouse brawl, the security buzzer and cash counting machine at the last chance bail bondsman – these noises immediately immerse us in the Connie’s (Robert Pattinson) quest to free his brother. With the story established, the music opens up and the visuals expand to show the dark expanse of nocturnal New York that awaits Connie on his search for fast money. The editing speeds up into a stylish collage of crime, the quick cuts highlighting Connie’s desperation while the visuals continually fade to black (using the film’s signature window-blind effect), emphasizing the sense of nighttime mystery and menace that underpins the frenetic pace. There were other good trailers this year, but none was cooler. – Joe Blessing
