DEADBOLT: ‘NEW MOON’ TRAILER HYPE
Larson Hill over at the Deaadbolt.com has written another fantastic article on the hype surrounding the New Moon trailer. He makes some good points about how the trailer will be judged and reviewed, and it is only a snippet of what the studio is trying to promote, not necessarily what the final movie product will be.
Amid all of the online Twilight hype surrounding the release of the official New Moon trailer at the MTV Movie Awards and on MySpace, how many websites do you think will be writing reviews of the New Moon trailer come Sunday night? It doesn’t really matter. Obviously there will be thousands upon thousands, and thousands more after that. In fact, trailer reviews for New Moon have already hit the Internet, even reviews of exclusive 15-second footage. It’s amazing. There was a time not too long ago when most top tier entertainment editors and webmasters scoffed at trailer reviews. The general consensus among many credible publishers was that reviewing a movie trailer was pointless since there’s no way you can gauge the final product by analyzing a calculated promotional spot selling tool. Although it may not look like it at first glance, it’s still that way today. But what type of impact will the New Moon trailer have on fans in the midst of growing mountains of press coverage?Will the official New Moon trailer be an accurate barometer of how good New Moon will be in the end and how Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, and Taylor Lautner have grown? For some Twilighters, sure, any footage is good footage. From our perspective, the New Moon trailer will serve a dual purpose: 1. It will satisfy the near fever pitch Twilight anticipation. 2. Build fresh New Moon momentum from a brand new starting point. Hey, we’re just as excited to see the New Moon trailer as you are, but it’s been awkwardly entertaining to see so much hype around … well … a trailer. Not that we haven’t seen massive trailer hype in the past with other films, but this time the online bandwagon is a lot bigger and it’s going to be littered with thousands of reviews of the New Moon trailer between Sunday night and Monday morning. The trailer hype is all a bit too Pavlovian at this point, but coverage of The Twilight Saga and New Moon is quickly becoming just as entertaining as the novels and movies. It really is an interesting and revealing study in human behavior.
To read the entire article, click here.
(Thanks Boo!)
I never even thought of this subject. We saw people judging a 15 second clip this week, and either loving it or getting upset, and that was only 15 seconds. I can imagine there really will be thousands upon thousands of reviews of the New Moon trailer by tomorrow morning. I never thought to sit back and remember it’s only a trailer. Sometimes what is in the trailer even gets cut out of the final edit on the movie too. Still I know I’ll be squealing with excitement when I see that trailer tonight…
What did you think of the article? Do you think we should judge and review the trailer?
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I love twilight the 15 second preview made me even more anxious to see the film.I have already read the books and i know what happens But i want to see how they transformed the book into a film!
I think the so-called important critics have to start paying better attention to the way the average fan…us…critiques a movie. We are a generation of bloggers and savy computer geeks. It’s the future and if that means that we do everything via internet then that means they have to make the change right along with the rest of the world.
The Twilight trailer was a huge internet success. Catherine Hardwicke was an advertising genius! So, the New Moon trailer is bound to be expecting the same hype as Twilight…if not more! I think the fifeteen seconds looked amazing. And Kristen said I LOVE YOU!!!! Chris Weitze is listening to us and that earns a ton of respect on my part. The trailer is already a sucess in my opinion. I think they’ll show the birthday party!
Cant wait for 9pm! Cross your fingers everyone.
First, I don’t believe you can credit Catherine Hardwicke with anything related to the promotion of Twilight. That was all Summit. Just like it was Summit’s idea to not release the DVD on a Tuesday as does everyone else, but on a Saturday to enable the fan base to attend release parties that Friday night at midnight. Without question that was a stroke of genuis. You can bet it won’t be the only time that happens.
As for the value and veracity of a trailer, it is true we should take a step back. But, as the rabid, addicted, not to mention half-starved fans of these characters and these stories, that is easier said than done.
I do think the fans should be given a bit more credit as to the gauging factor of the trailer. We are not novices to the ways of Hollywood. We know the tiny portion of the film revealed in the trailer is calculated to bring our enthusiasm to a fever pitch. They will select some of the most desired parts of the storyline, the best (in their opinion) acting of those parts, and edit them into a tempting, groan-inducing trailer that will have many literally clawing the TV screen in frustration when it finishes before it should. We know the parts of this trailer may be better than the whole of the movie. But, that is for us to decide.
I, for one, feel very confident in my ability to judge the movie from having only a glimpse via a trailer. I know this story, I know these characters. Very, very well. If I am to be lied to with a short shrift production of said stories and characters, I will know.
If I was the director, I’d be very interested in feedback from the fans! I’d want to know how the fans liked:
1. the cgi wolf (JMO, too cartoony and cute)
2. the breakup scene’s tone (JMO, Kristen is too wooden and Robert is too constipated looking. This is supposed to be a heartwrenching scene. In the book, Edward misleads Bella into thinking he doesn’t love her anymore, not because of the papercut fiasco. This is a major plot point because it makes the reunion so emotionally wonderful for Bella when she finds out he has always loved her.)
3. the birthday party tone (JMO Bella wouldn’t/ didn’t draw attention to her papercut - throwing down the gift, squeezing her cut and making it drip on the carpet.)
Showing the trailer now gives Chris Weitz time to change things a bit if he can, to please the fans. I know he wants us to love the movie, and Summit certainly does so we’ll see it more than once and then buy the dvd.