For some time now I’ve been annoyed by the way some of the marketing people responsible for approving movie trailers have gone about their business. They have been happy to release film promos that reveal more of the story than many film fans care to see prior to release.
In the past, most of the films that have fallen victim to this ‘reveal virtually everything in the trailer’ movement have been movies I haven’t really been that interested in seeing. Unfortunately, today is a new day and I’ve just watched the so-called ‘trailer’ for Brooklyn (2015).
Starring Saoirse Ronan, Domhnall Gleeson, Michael Zegan and Written by Nick Hornby, the John Crowley directed movie’s trailer reveals what looks like approximately 95% of the film’s plot in 2.5 minutes.
What should have been a well executed trailer that reveals just the right amount to make you want to see the actual movie, was instead turned into what is essentially a very condensed short film sans the actual ending.
The feeling I got at the end is akin to how you might feel if a technical glitch occurred at the most inopportune moment, just before the big revelatory last scene of a movie. In such a situation, you might feel forced to immediately seek out the true ending. Perhaps ask someone that may have already seen it. Me? I felt forced to google the ending and I have no regrets.
The trailer has left me with completely no reason to want to watch the movie. Why would the marketers do this? I just can’t believe it’s because the the film is based on a book that a lot of the audience would have already read. Money has to be behind it, along with laziness and a lack of imagination. What’s obvious is that there’s an opportunity for balance and compromise because trailers have been well-executed before, without being turned into short films.
Go ahead and watch the trailer but only if you like spoilers.
No so happy today, but forever Film Loving,
G
