Trailer Day

It should be a snow day for me here in DC, it's not, unless you happen to be a student or a teacher. The upside is that it has snowed enough to give people 'liberal leave', and most do take it, which means the work environment is a ghost town.

So, seeing opportunity, I have decided to watch a few trailers and pass along my impressions; that is, how the trailer has or has not influenced me to seeing the film. That's the trailer's purpose, isn't it? Persuasion?

Sunshine. First impression: Very interested in seeing it. Cool visuals, interesting concept; tantalizing. May be swayed by overwhelming negative reviews, but will probably go anyway because of Cillian Murphy and Danny Boyle.

Factory Girl. First impression: Somewhat interested in seeing it. They have some cute clips of Guy Pierce in Andy Warhol mode, and Hayden Christensen is always good, but I'm not that into Sienna Miller as an actress. It's likely that unless someone else is really motivated to see it, I'll relegate to DVD.

Ghost Rider. First impression: No chance. Decent special effects, but the 'plot' doesn't convey any sense of being all that great. Of course, I can't be surprised, because the comic itself didn't have that great of a plot, and it petered out after Issue #81. (Which I have, naturally.) Add in ho-hum Nick Cage and ho-hum Eva Mendes (every time I see her, all I can think about is Will Smith's comment that her breath stunk because she loved to eat a lot of garlic), and we have a film that I may only see on TNT.

The Invisible. First impression: Possibly, if it gets some decent reviews. Having the co-writer of Batman Begins is a laudable point, but not sold on Justin Chatwin (annoying older brother from 'War of the Worlds') as the lead. The trailer makes it look to much like an skewed inverse of 'Sixth Sense', which feels like tired grounds, which probably doesn't help that the trailer begins by citing that it's produced by the same guy who produced 'Sixth Sense'. (Further, does anybody care who the producers are of a film? And what has this guy been doing since 'Sixth Sense'? That was eight years ago!)

Knocked Up. First impression: Very interested in seeing it. I'm shocked, but I actually laughed three times during the trailer. I can't recall the last time I did that. This looks like a capitalization vehicle for Katherine Heigl's film career, and the title is rather lacking, but looking closer it's the same supporting cast and director from 40-Year-Old Virgin, which has become only funnier to me on repeated viewings.

Starter For 10. First impression: Not so much. Looks to be a typical romantic comedy, only using relatively unknown British actors. Ho hum.

Gray Matter. First impression: Interesting. I have to admit, I had heard nothing about this film, so I was jaw-dropped when the trailer took a twist away from the romantic-comedy formula. We'll see.