Best Trailers of 2009

Originally, I intended to make a "Best Trailer" Twigman Award, but in the madness of trying to put the Twigmans together, it got left off. Oh well, maybe next year. In the mean time, I'd like to take this time to talk about something which doesn't always get it's deserved recognition: The Movie Trailer.

What makes a good movie trailer? Or to say it another way, what sort of trailer makes a movie look good? Consider this youtube gem and what it says about movie trailers.

Amusing yes, but also very true.

However, some trailers stand out for their ability to make good movies look as good as they are, and even more impressive, truly crap movies look excellent. Take for example, this early teaser for Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen. I mean, that teaser makes the movie look kind of badass, unlike the official trailer which clued us into the fact that it was basically National Treasure with giant robots and therefore kind of lame. This is the power of trailers and teasers. They set the tone for the film. They get the audience excited. Thus, I now present to you to best trailers of 2009. (Please note, as epic as the Watchmen trailers were, they didn't come out in 2009 and therefore I can't talk about how brilliantly they marketed a terrible movie).

X-Men Origins: Wolverine trailer

Before the movie was leaked online, we had this trailer. I remember watching this and thinking, "This looks sweeeeet!" The trailer is somewhat misleading about what the movie is actually about, but it doesn't matter, because it markets this movie very, very well.

Star Trek trailer

The marketing team had to market this film so that it would appeal to fans familiar with the series and at the same time make it appeal to potential new fans unfamiliar with the source material. This trailer nailed it. Not only did it portray the film in a good light to Trekkies, but it made new people who never cared sit back and think, "Hey, this looks kind of cool. Maybe these geeks are onto something."

Up trailer #3

This trailer only hinted at the joy and fun of this film, but nevertheless it serves as a perfect set up to the film. It doesn't give too much away, but it gives enough to make us yearn for more for the adventures of the grouchy old man and eager young boy. Also, the talking dog "Squirrel!" moment became the most quoted part of this trailer. Everyone was going around quoting Doug. With just a few seconds, this trailer had us falling in love with a talking dog.

Inglorious Basterds teaser

This trailer gives viewers the idea that the movie is about Brad Pitt and his soldiers. This is untrue, as these characters are only a small part of the film, but it doesn't really matter. This teaser is pretty epic. The music, the clips, the use of Brad Pitt's monologue - it all builds perfectly. Even the use of blood splatter works to make this trailer. It leaves an impression, but most of all it leaves you thinking, "I cannot wait to see this film."

Terminator: Salvation trailer

This one is hands down the winner for best trailer of the year. This trailer was epic, breathtaking, stunning, cinematically orgasmic. The use of music, the way it all builds, is shear perfection. If it has one drawback, it's that after seeing the film we learn that the best moments in the film were in this trailer (generally a good trailer should hold some of the best moments back), but honestly, after watching this, who cares? This movie was a disappointment after the epic trailer, but with a trailer like this, it doesn't really matter.