Yes 7 trailers!
7 gloriously big and small, blockbuster-y, and not, trailers for you to delight in, get excited by and wish the movie was opening tomorrow by.
Trailers are the windows to a movie’s soul – well they are if the marketing department behind them is any good and doesn’t either give the game away or make them so oblique you have no idea what you’re watching – and these days more eagerly awaited than a new Star Wars movie.
OK, well maybe not …
Soooo … grab some popcorn, turn off your mobile and get your housemates, friends and family to talk through the important bits and turn their phones on and off in the dark – we’re off to the movies!
FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM
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“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them opens in 1926 as Newt Scamander has just completed a global excursion to find and document an extraordinary array of magical creatures. Arriving in New York for a brief stopover, he might have come and gone without incident…were it not for a No-Maj (American for Muggle) named Jacob, a misplaced magical case, and the escape of some of Newt’s fantastic beasts, which could spell trouble for both the wizarding and No-Maj worlds.” (official synopsis via Hypable)
Officially the adventures of Harry Potter are over but that doesn’t mean no more visits to the J K Rowling-crafted world of wizardry at all.
Fantastic Beasts looks expansive, rich, magical in every way possible, and a fine way to take trip (or hopefully many more) into a most wonderful world indeed.
For a step-by-step walk through the trailer, check out EW.
Fantastic Beasts opens November 2016.
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Captain James Tiberius Kirk (Pine), Spock (Quinto), and the rest of the U.S.S. Enterprise crew return in the third installment of the rebooted franchise, which will celebrate the 50th anniversary of Star Trek. (synopsis via Screenrant)
Kirk and the gang in their younger, more youthful incarnations are back for a third romp through the galaxy, and while it’s all big, loud and full-on, its smacks of brain dead, generic sci-fi action.
If it comes across as The Fast and the Furious meets Star Trek, you’re right on the money given the film is directed by the former franchise’s Justin Lin; thankfully it comes with a script by Simon Pegg (who stars in the film as Scotty) and Doug Jung so there’s still some hope it won’t be too vacuous an outing.
I am not usually the glass half-empty guy but this trailer, while impressively dramatic and CGI-y, doesn’t inspire any confidence that we’ll get an intelligent movie nor one that is true to the spirit of Star Trek.
I sincerely hope I am proved wrong.
To walk through what it all means, check out Trek Core and The Guardian.
Star Trek: Beyond opens July 2016.
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Scrat’s epic pursuit of his elusive acorn catapults him into the universe where he accidentally sets off a series of cosmic events that transform and threaten the Ice Age World. To save themselves, Sid, Manny, Diego, and the rest of the herd must leave their home and embark on a quest full of comedy and adventure, traveling to exotic new lands and encountering a host of colorful new characters. (synopsis via Ice Age: Collision Course wiki)
This is the most inventive explanation I have ever seen for not only the state ofm our galaxy but life on earth.
And I’m sure it has a ton of scientific backing … or not.
Whatever, it will be a hoot and then some!
Ice Age: Collision Course opens July 2016.
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From an original screenplay by Marc Haimes and Chris Butler (ParaNorman), the new movie is a sweeping, swashbuckling adventure set in a mythical ancient Japan.In the epic fantasy, scruffy, kindhearted Kubo ekes out a humble living while devotedly caring for his mother in their sleepy shore-side village. It is a quiet existence – until a spirit from the past catches up with him to enforce an age-old vendetta. Suddenly on the run from gods and monsters, Kubo’s chance for survival rests on finding the magical suit of armor once worn by his fallen father, the greatest samurai the world has ever known. Summoning courage, Kubo embarks on a thrilling odyssey as he faces his family’s history, navigates the elements and bravely fights for the earth and the stars. (synopsis via Laika)
Laika produces extraordinarily unique films.
Much like the justifiably-revered Studio Ghibli, Laika’s films are possessed of a unique and feel with a great deal of time and effort crafted to making the story and characters memorable, beautiful and meaningful.
This is peak animation which includes movies like Coraline, ParaNorman and The Boxtrolls and always worth turning out for.
Kubo and the Two Strings opens 19 August 2016 in USA and 24 November 2016 Australia.
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In a fantasy world far, far away, monsters ruled the land. Then came human’s all-out war in an attempt to seize the land. In its final days, they outwitted the monsters and succeeded in driving them into the dark mountains. Ever since, monsters were forbidden to step into the land again. If they were found, they would be captured and exterminated. For all these years, the two races have lived in their separate worlds, until the birth of a new monster king who would reshape the balance of power and bring in the new world order. Somewhere in the human world lies a small peaceful place called Serenity Village.Average young guy Tianyin (Jing Boran) is a security chief who dreams of making it big but is hold back by his diffidence and his elder grandma. Meanwhile, the monster world writhes in chaos as the dark lord is plotting to overthrow the current reign. In order to end the royal bloodline, he orders the assassination of the pregnant monster queen. This is exciting news to monster hunters! Getting wind of the monster queen’s whereabouts, monster hunters from all over the land, including the high-ranked Luo Gan (Jiang Wu) and female rookie Xiaonan (Bai Baihe), are all desperate to get a piece of the action to capture the newborn monster king. Just when Tianyin seems to be stuck in Serenity Village forever, he is accidentally caught up in the middle of a massive pursuit of the pregnant monster queen. Knowing the death is near, the severely wounded monster queen spills her egg into Tianyin’s mouth in a hopeless attempt to save her baby. Who would have thought an average guy like Tianyin could be the bearer of the most wanted monster!
With both worlds wanting to capture him alive, the fates of both Tianyin and the newborn monster seem to be doomed from the start since he can’t protect himself. As luck would have it, Xiaonan appears and saves the day. She offers to protect the “pregnant” Tianyin under the condition that they sell the newborn monster for a good profit. Being hunted by both sides, Tianyin finally gives birth to the future king in the worst possible situation. They name him Wuba since he keeps hollering this word. Although they both love Wuba like their own son, Xiaonan tries to hold back her love in order to focus on her mission.
Unable to defy Xiaonan, Tianyin eventually lets her sell Wuba. However, after a change of heart, they determine to save him, only to discover that Wuba is sold to a 5-star restaurant owned by the cunning Ge Qianhu (Wallace Chung). The restaurant is renowned for making monsters into luxurious dishes. Being protected by a band of sinister monster hunters, breaking into Ge Qianhu’s place sounds like an impossible mission, let alone saving Wuba. Xiaonan is outnumbered and badly hurt during a battle showdown. Just when all hope seems lost, Tianyin discovers a shocking secret that he descends from a family of monster hunters. All of a sudden his hidden power is unlocked, making him fight side-by-side with Xiaonan. Both the fate of Wuba and the future of the monster empire now lie in their hands. But little do they know, it’s only the beginning of their epic adventure!
Yep that’s a whole lot of synopsis for a movie that looks like to be giddily and gloriously over the top in all the best ways.
And one’s that’s connected with a lot of people, particularly in its home country of China where it is currently the highest grossing film of all time, raking in some serious money, according to Screencrush:
“Monster Hunt has already grossed $381 million worldwide and broke the single-day and opening day records in China, immediately becoming the highest-grossing film ever released in the country. So it’s sort of like China’s Avatar, but it looks far more entertaining.”
This will be epic.
Monster Hunt opens in USA on 22 January 2016.
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A polar bear of many words, Norm’s greatest gripe is simple: there is no room for tourists in the Arctic. But when a maniacal developer threatens to build luxury condos in his own backyard, Norm does what all normal polar bears would do…he heads to New York City to stop it. With a cast of ragtag lemmings at his side, Norm takes on the big apple, big business and a big identity crisis to save the day. (synopsis via Coming Soon)
Norm to the rescue!
Granted we’ve seen this kind of kids’ movie before and it’s no Pixar production but it looks like good silly fun with a message.
And something my niece and nephew who are into good silly fun – the jury’s still out on the message but we’re getting there – will lap up.
Norm of the North opens in USA on 15 January 2016.
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The talents of three of the world’s greatest storytellers – Roald Dahl, Walt Disney and Steven Spielberg – finally unite to bring Dahl’s beloved classic The BFG to life. Directed by Spielberg, Disney’s “The BFG” tells the imaginative story of a young girl and the Giant who introduces her to the wonders and perils of Giant Country. “I think it was kind of genius of Roald Dahl to be able to empower the children. It was very, very brave of him to introduce that combination of darkness and light which was so much Disney’s original signature in a lot of their earlier works like in Dumbo, Fantasia, Snow White and Cinderella, and being able to do scary, but also be redemptive at the same time and teach a lesson, an enduring lesson, to everyone, it was a wonderful thing for Dahl to have done, and it was one of the things that attracted me to want to direct this Dahl book,” says Spielberg.The BFG (Mark Rylance), while a giant himself, is a Big Friendly Giant and nothing like the other inhabitants of Giant Country. Standing 24-feet tall with enormous ears and a keen sense of smell, he is endearingly dim-witted and keeps to himself for the most part. Giants like Bloodbottler (Bill Hader) and Fleshlumpeater (Jemaine Clement) on the other hand, are twice as big and at least twice as scary and have been known to eat humans, while the BFG prefers Snozzcumber and Frobscottle. Upon her arrival in Giant Country, Sophie, a precocious 10-year-old girl from London, is initially frightened of the mysterious giant who has brought her to his cave, but soon comes to realize that the BFG is actually quite gentle and charming, and, having never met a giant before, has many questions. The BFG brings Sophie to Dream Country where he collects dreams and sends them to children, teaching her all about the magic and mystery of dreams.
Having both been on their own in the world up until now, their affection for one another quickly grows. But Sophie’s presence in Giant Country has attracted the unwanted attention of the other giants, who have become increasingly more bothersome. Says Spielberg, “It’s a story about friendship, it’s a story about loyalty and protecting your friends and it’s a story that shows that even a little girl can help a big giant solve his biggest problems.” Sophie and the BFG soon depart for London to see Queen Victoria (Penelope Wilton) and warn her of the precarious giant situation, but they must first convince the Queen and her maid, Mary (Rebecca Hall), that giants do indeed exist. Together, they come up with a plan to get rid of the giants once and for all (synopsis via Coming Soon)
Coming to grips with this thing called life can be a challenge for anyone.
But how much more so for an orphan with no one to really guide her through all the confusing twists and turns?
Fortunately said orphan has a giant best friend and in Roald Dahl’s world, that’s really all you need.
Oh and Steven Spielberg to bring it to the big screen.
BFG opens in Australia on 30 June 2016 and USA 1 July 2016.