This week Trailer Talk travels back in time with Men in Black 3, retaliates with G.I. Joe 2 and Expends some Bles in The Expendables 2.
MEN IN BLACK 3
Did anybody ask for a third Men In Black movie? The original still holds up as a worthy companion to the original Ghostbusters (another movie that categorically does not warrant a third entry) but the second movie was worse than a long stay in hospital.
This is entirely first act footage but it still struggles to really set up the time travel element of the story, it basically stumbles into that plot point with no real explanation. It is nice to see movie trailers that avoid spoiling any second/third act scenes but I think the main reason for this decision is that the production is still not entirely sure what is happening in those remaining acts. The trailer manages to cover up all of the behind the scenes drama, with incomplete scripts, movie star egos and ballooning budgets, but still failing to do a good job of selling the film.
Josh Brolin wins the entire trailer with his very brief but astonishing impersonation of Tommy Lee Jones, a casting move I am honestly surprised has not happened before, he’s that good. Is Brolin good enough to make this film worth watching? Maybe, he’s definitely the first thing about this film that has elicited any enthusiasm from me. Will Smith can go into hibernation, for all I care.
G.I. JOE: RETALIATION
I will admit, I quite enjoyed the original G.I. Joe movie. It was dumb and childish but it owned that. There is no denying that it could be improved upon and G.I. Joe 2 seems to have found the perfect way to do that.
Firstly, replace most of the cast. In no sane universe will there be an outrage that you replaced Marlon Wayans with Bruce Willis, although I will miss Rachel Nichols and her treadmill.
Secondly, cast The Rock as the new lead. He has been on the cusp of becoming an action star for years now, dragging his heels through tedious family fare, and seeing him finally put boots to asses is a real treat. The man’s got the physical presence and natural charisma that makes movie stars.
Thirdly, more ninjas. This needs no explanation.
This is a great trailer. The movie looks like a legitimate action movie spectacle with some truly bold goofiness, such as scene of Cobra claiming the White House and mountain-side ninja battles. Add to that an awesome remix of Seven Nation Army by The White Stripes, and you have a trailer that has instantly sold me on the entire thing. This is the kind of modern-day reinvention of a childhood favourite I want to see. Suck it, Transformers.
THE EXPENDABLES 2
The Expendables sucked. Can we all just admit that now? It was an anemic action movie, sold entirely on the “dream team” ensemble, but never doing anything with it. The Expendables 2 trailer shows very little, offering no real idea of what the plot will entail or how well the action will be executed, preferring to focus on the even bigger cast list.
We have more additions sure to excite people who didn’t learn their lesson from the last time. Thanks to unkillable internet memes there is the misconception that Chuck Norris is actually cool and I am fairly sure they only cast Liam Hemsworth because his more talented and charismatic brother was busy on another big ensemble action picture.
The trailer also promises that Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger will do more than stand in a church and exchange piss poor zingers, at the very least we can expect Arnie to fire a gun once. The trailer is so vague that there’s no real indication how much screen time any of these stars actually get, so we could be getting ripped off once again.
