Let’s be honest, sometimes the trailers can be the best part of the movie.
Of course, that’s not always the case. Fans lost their Sith every time JJ teased Star Wars: The Force Awaken only for them to go full-on Nerfherder bezerk when the full film finally dropped. However, sometimes marketing teams can do such a good job that the finished movie never quite manages to live up to that two and a half minutes of greatness.
In this regular series I’ll aim to highlight my favourite movie trailers, from both the past few years and moving forward, and try to figure out what makes them so great. It could be a certain musical crescendo, the right cut at the right time or just a little artistic flourish - it’s time to celebrate the art of the movie trailer.
Of course, that’s not always the case. Fans lost their Sith every time JJ teased Star Wars: The Force Awaken only for them to go full-on Nerfherder bezerk when the full film finally dropped. However, sometimes marketing teams can do such a good job that the finished movie never quite manages to live up to that two and a half minutes of greatness.
In this regular series I’ll aim to highlight my favourite movie trailers, from both the past few years and moving forward, and try to figure out what makes them so great. It could be a certain musical crescendo, the right cut at the right time or just a little artistic flourish - it’s time to celebrate the art of the movie trailer.
First up...
Paranorman. This Laika produced stop-motion animation centres on a young boy who can see the ghosts that populate his small rural town. The film’s debut trailer was released back in 2011 and set things up for must-see experience hot off the heels of the Studios’ previous effort, the awesome and atmospheric, Coraline. Check it out below...
why it's great...
On this occasion it’s undoubtedly the music. The lack of dialogue and emphasis on Donovan’s eerie Season of the Witch lends the trailer tonnes of cool. What’s more, a perfectly synchronised edit and bags of retro monster movie imagery give the piece an addictive and alluring pace. Above all else though, the trailer just looks stylish and does a brilliant job of selling a movie that’s dark, different and visually impressive.
did it pay off?
It would’ve been great if it did, however the finished film somehow lacked the same pace and potency of its debut trailer. Luckily for viewers, a more down-to-Earth second trailer set things up for a more traditional adventure and helped lower expectations a tad. That’s not to say Paranorman is a bad movie - its attention to detail and sinister cinematography definitely make it worth tracking down.
Is it as good as Laika’s adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s ‘Coraline’? Not quite but it’s a worthy follow up with more talent in a two second frame than most movies have in their own run time. Here’s hoping the studio’s upcoming feature ‘Kubo and The Two Strings’ manages to recaptures and maintain the magic of this trailer.
Is it as good as Laika’s adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s ‘Coraline’? Not quite but it’s a worthy follow up with more talent in a two second frame than most movies have in their own run time. Here’s hoping the studio’s upcoming feature ‘Kubo and The Two Strings’ manages to recaptures and maintain the magic of this trailer.
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