Box Office Prophets: Trailer Hitch for May 1, 2003

Trailer Hitch for May 1, 2003

By Zach Kolkin

Does that earring mean you're a pirate? Kinda...

6. Respiro

Apparently, this film is a "compelling family drama," although the only way I have any idea that this is the case is because of a quote from a critic featured in the preview. Beyond that, there is absolutely nothing revealed about the movie here. What is present is a lot of footage of a woman swimming in the ocean (alternately completely clothed and completely naked) for no apparent reason. I can't say I was too impressed by this ad, simply because I really didn't see to much to be impressed by. Obviously there is more to this movie than a woman swimming around in the ocean, and I wish that I could have seen a little more of it here.

5. People I Know

This intriguing thriller, starring Al Pacino, Kim Basinger, and Téa Leoni, is the story of a publicist (played by Pacino) enlisted to help cover up a celebrity scandal, only to find out that it involves some of the most powerful people in the country. I was not very impressed by this trailer, simply because the premise really wasn't described very well in the spot. It was fairly difficult to figure out what was going on, besides the fact that it was supposed to be extremely suspenseful (and of course the presence of good old Toby Ziegler). To attract attention, any good suspense film needs to have ads that tell you enough about the plot so you wonder what is going to happen. Here, I really didn't feel any of that, since it was so difficult to tell what the story was in the first place.

4. It's All About Love

Although the title might suggest a romantic comedy, this film actually appears to be a mysterious sci-fi romance starring Joaquin Phoenix and Claire Danes. While the first trailer for this film was extremely cryptic, this new one sets up the film's premise much better, while still maintaining some of the mystery. The dark and enigmatic mood of the trailer was quite intriguing, and I found myself quite interested in discovering what the "secret" was to the film, or what it was that made the mysteries tie together. Although this is probably not the type of film that will appeal to a mass audience, I found it quite interesting, and certainly worth keeping an eye on.

3. Spellbound

One of the most compelling events on ESPN every year is not the Stanley Cup Finals or the NBA Playoffs, but the National Spelling Bee. Watching those phenomenally precocious kids spelling words that a good 90% of our country most likely hasn't even heard makes for some incredible entertainment. This is a documentary of the Bee and its participants, and it looks to have just the right combination of comedy and poignancy. The trailer itself is quite well done, and certainly doesn't take itself too seriously. I particularly liked the cute idea of having the critics' reviews spelled out in "pronunciation form." Spellbound received some exposure when it was nominated for an Oscar earlier this year, but if this preview gets any sort of wide exposure, I would imagine that this could become a very popular documentary.

2. Veronica Guerin

Cate Blanchett stars in this Erin Brockovich-esque film based on the true story of a female journalist who covers the drug war in Dublin, Ireland. The film also stars Colin Farrell, and I was actually quite surprised that, considering the buzz surrounding him lately, he was not featured at all in the preview. Nevertheless, the film looks quite interesting, and although it will surely elicit comparisons with Erin Brockovich, Veronica Guerin looks to be somewhat darker than that film. As difficult as it is to imagine Blanchett playing anything other than a queen from another century (or world for that matter), she looks excellent in this real-life role. The power of this trailer seems like a fairly sure bet to click with moviegoers everywhere.

1. Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas

I was actually very pleasantly surprised by this trailer for DreamWorks' animated offering for the summer. Starring Brad Pitt as the mythical hero Sinbad, the film appears to have everything that Disney's traditionally- animated summer features usually offer. Considering the lack of a Disney film this summer (beyond Finding Nemo), this seems like a smart move on DreamWorks' part. The animation and artistic style of the film looks gorgeous, from the oceanic backdrops to the mythical monsters to Sinbad himself. I found it particularly interesting that the trailer actually shows real-life images of the actors whose voices are featured - usually, trailers for animated films simply announce the stars' names. I'm not quite sure why such a change was made here, though, seeing as the children who are the target audience probably couldn't care less about star power, as long as the movie itself looks good. Luckily, this movie does look very good, and it should be quite a popular choice among youngsters this summer.