Sound the alarms and batten down the main hatch, it’s time for our weekly Trailer Showdown, in which we break down and rank the trailers that were released during the previous seven days. Not every trailer is created equal, so why waste your time with bad movies?
This is a big week, with the release of the trailer for the long-awaited drunken buddy comedy “The Hangover 3,” as well as trailers for the family drama “What Maisie Knew” and a few Sundance Film Festival films start their foray into the wider world.
While it’s a particularly good week overall, with no out and out terrible-looking films getting trailers, it’s a particularly good week for Steve Coogan fans, see if you can spot him in two of the trailers.
Did we get the rankings right? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
1.) ‘The Hangover 3'
Best of the Week: With Justin Bartha nowhere in sight, the three main “Hangover” castmembers are back and at it in Las Vegas. Full of action, wild misunderstandings and fairly hilarious zingers, let’s put this oft-copied franchise to bed with a glass of water and an aspirin. While these films are not for everyone, this does look like required viewing, if only to satisfy the curious.
Starring: Bradley Cooper, Zach Galifianakis, Ed Helms
Release Date: May 24, 2013
2.) ‘Much Ado About Nothing’
In the middle of making “The Avengers,” director Joss Whedon snuck off and made this modern Shakespearean adaptation, about the war of wits between two well matched couples. It’ll be fun to see Whedon’s take on things, and bask in a wholly new take on the classic work!
Starring: Alexis Denisof, Amy Acker, Fran Kranz
Release Date: June 21, 2013
3.) ‘What Maisie Knew’
A bitter divorce tears a family apart in this updated take on the classic Henry James novel. Powerful performances and the world of adulthood seen through the eyes of a child, this film looks both intriguing and wildly entertaining.
Starring: Alexander Skarsgård, Julianne Moore, Steve Coogan
Release Date: 2013
4.) ‘Rapturepalooza’
NSFW: The rapture has happened and two teens must survive it, together, in this wild, tumultuous comedy. Anna Kendrick and John Francis Daley are at their funniest battling the Anti-Christ as they struggle to keep body and soul together as, literally, all hell breaks loose. Could be absolutely funny, could be an absolute pile of dreck — there’s no way to know this early on, but my money is on hilarious!
Starring: Anna Kendrick, John Francis Daley, Ken Jeong
Release Date: 2013
5.) ‘Stories We Tell’
Oscar-nominated filmmaker Sarah Polley turns the lens on her own family in this fascinating documentary look at the way we remember our own lives and the stories about our own families. Caught this one at Sundance, and it’s a wonderful mysterious film in the vein of Orson Welles’ “F is for Fake.”
Starring: Sarah Polley, Pixie Bigelow, Deirdre Bowen, Geoffrey Bowes
Release Date: May 17, 2013
6.) ‘The Look of Love’
A biopic based in reality, this film takes a look at the life and wild, sexy times of Britain’s king of smut, Paul Raymond. Building his empire on the belief that classy sex sells, he sold quite a bit, though it seems to have left him alone and wanting more from his life. Caught this one at Sundance, and it’s a classy, wildly sexy romp through the mid-century and beyond.
Starring: Steve Coogan, Matt Lucas, Imogen Poots, Anna Friel
Release Date: 2013
7.) ‘Disconnect’
Oh noes technology is all around us and will ruin our liiiives! This thriller centers on the ways in which seeming separate events are deeply connected, and the search for human connection in a very wired world. Could be powerful stuff, or it could simply devolved into a diatribe about the evils of technology. Either way, we’ll be seeing this one for sure.
Starring: Jason Bateman, Alexander Skarsgård, Paula Patton
Release Date: April 12, 2013
8.) ‘Not Today’
A rich and entitled American young man becomes embroiled in rescuing a little girl sold into the sex trade in India. Powerful and moving, my eyes got a little misty during this one, not going to lie. Could be a little schmaltz but still, an incredibly powerful topic.
Starring: Cody Longo, Walid Amini, John Schneider
Release Date: April 12, 2013
9.) ‘Grow Up, Tony Phillips’
One young man loves Halloween so much, he’s continued his Halloween traditions into high school, far past the appropriate age for such shenanigans. With the help of his friends, can he grow up? This one looks low budget but absolutely charming, and who doesn’t love Halloween!?
Starring: AJ Bowen, Seth Lee, Devin Bonnée
Release Date: 2013
10.) ‘New World’
A Korean film that focuses in on the troubles faced by an undercover policeman who becomes a member of the gang he’s meant to dismantle, all leading up to a final, wild battle and a choice from which there’s no coming back. There’s hints of “The Departed” throughout, making this Korean film one to see, for sure.
Starring: Min-sik Choi, Jeong-min Hwang, Lee Jeong-jae
Release Date: March 22, 2013
11.) ‘Epic’
An animated family film we’ve posted about previously, but here’s a new and wilder trailer! Any movie that carries the luscious voice of Beyonce Knowles to the people is an OK movie by us.
Starring: Amanda Seyfried, Josh Hutcherson, Beyoncé Knowles
Release Date: May 24, 2013
12.) ‘A Resurrection’
A murdered young man’s brother begins to come into conflict with the very boys who killed his brother in this horror thriller. The scariest thing of all? How badly Mischa Barton must need the money that she would agree to be in this movie.
Starring: Mischa Barton, Devon Sawa, Michael Clarke Duncan
Release Date: 2013
Categories: Columns, Trailer RoundupTags: Disconnect, Grow up tony phillips, Hangover Part III, Much Ado About Nothing, Rapturepalooza, Stories We Tell, Trailer showdown, What maisie knew
