I love movie trailers. Often, I will sit on Apple watching them, a pass-time Grant and I realized we shared. I look at them as practically an art form; a two minute advertisement for a movie that needs to blend the scenes with the perfect song that will make you curious and eager to see the actual film. The best movie trailers, for me, ellicit an emotional response, tug on my heartstrings or make me giddy with laughter. The worst movie trailers, obviously, take the two minutes and outline the entire plot for you. Groan.
That’s why IFC’s 50 Greatest Movie Trailers was really intriguing to me.
Ultimately, we decided that the best trailers are those that most effectively combine art and commerce, and that sell and entertain with equal skill. Some of the previews on our list are for classic films, but many are for mediocrities. Some are for absolutely bombs. That speaks to the magic of the trailers. You could argue that these clips play to our basest instincts in order to convince us to see movies that aren’t always good. But considered from another perspective, trailers provide a version of cinema that’s essentially utopian, in which every film is perfect, if only for two and a half minutes.
Cloverfield, which I included above, is number three on the list. After seeing this trailer before the first Transformers movie, I was hooked. It tells you practically nothing, but is edited in such a way that you cannot wait to see the movie. To me, it’s the perfect trailer. A lot of people were disappointed with the actual film, a (not so rare) case of the trailer offering greater things than the movie could deliver. (I, however, still loved the movie.)
The writers at IFC give detailed explanations as to why they picked each trailer. If anything else, it’s kind of fun to re-live the movies through their trailers.
Amy Breen
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