By Anthony Pearson Jan 1, 2010, 22:22 GMT
As we have now reached the end of the first decade of the 21st century, we take time to reflect and look back on some of the memorable movie trailers that got movie going audiences optimistic, intrigued and excited over the past ten years.As the movie trailer man of M&C I have added trailers to this site for the past five years. Over that time I've viewed many thousands of trailers so selecting a twenty that have stood out from the last ten years was always going to be difficult. To assist with my selection I enlisted the help of the trailer enthusiasts on the Movie-List Trailers forum who gratefully forwarded me several shortlists of their own. Through that help and from my own opinion as a 'trailer enthusiast' I have selected 20 of what I believe to be the outstanding and most memorable trailers of the noughties (2000s).A movie trailer is a tool used by studio's to bring you the audience in to theatres to watch their movies. A great trailer doesn't always mean a great film of course, in fact more often than not the expectation level created by a trailer leads to a film not living up to the promise made by the preview. This makes the movie trailer a hugely powerful tool, giving them the capability to seperate you from your hard earnt cash.The importance of the movie trailer has grown more so in the past ten years. With high-speed internet available for most to use, audiences can watch their first previews of films online rather than in theatres. People want more and more from the trailers they watch, they want to know if the film is worth their money or not. A poor trailer for a good film could easily lead to audiences dismissing the film before they have seen it.Many factors go into the selection of the 20 trailers. I have not selected trailers just because I thought the film they are promoting was good, I tried to block that from my mind and merit the trailers themselves on their own quality and wow factor. What is it that makes a standout trailer? A good soundtrack, gripping dialogue (often one liners), showcasing key movie points without giving too much away, originality, significance and the edit all help in making a quality trailer.
The trailers ambition is to separate you from your money so here are a few that have successfully done just that. Some thankfully and some regrettably.20. Superman Returns, Warner Bros. Pictures 2006, Teaser Trailer
The teaser trailer for 'Superman Returns' was released in 2005 many months before the films summer 2006 release. The short and subtle teaser trailer marked the return of Superman after a twenty year gap and left audiences wanting to see more. The trailer is a throwback to the 1978 Christopher Reeve film, using the Marlon Brando voiceover throughout to great effect. However when the film was released it was received as a mix bag, with some people wishing maybe that Superman hadn't returned so soon.19. Red Eye, DreamWorks SKG, 2005, Trailer
Ian Mckellen as Gandalf in the decades highest grossing movie, 'The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King'.
"One ring to Rule Them All... One ring to find them... One ring to bring all... and in the darkness bind them"Those instantly recognisable words opened the teaser trailer for Peter Jackson's magnificent adaptation of J. R. R. Tolkiens 'The Lord of the Rings'. The epic teaser trailer for the trilogy sent fans of Tolkiens much loved books and moviegoers alike into jubilation near the beginning of the decade. Released a whole year before the first instalment "The Fellowship of the Ring" the trailer gave a short glimpse at the scale of the film and the characters. With the help of a voiceover and the epic 'Gothic Power' musical piece, the trailer showcased grand armies, mystical creatures, hobbits, and sword wielding on scale unseen before. The superb final extended shot from the trailer revealing the fellowship for the first time accompanied by the titles and releases for each of the 3 films marked the films impressive arrival. The movies went on to earn 17 Academy awards and become the highest grossing trilogy in movie history.
Feel free to comment on the list and post your own favourites.
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