Trailers - a matter of opinion

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Advertising is all around us. Adverts can be anywhere, at anytime, and for anything. No matter what though they try to sell products. For me the most interesting type of ‘advert’ is the film trailer.

I have always wondered at what it would be like to edit a movie in order to make the best advertisement for that given product. There is a fine line between giving it all away and making it seem uninteresting. A good trailer shouldn’t just be a bunch of clips thrown together.

The trailer for Inception is one such example of a superb trailer. The reason it worked so well is that it acts like a mini movie, with tension and suspense building to a suitable climax. The musical score helped too. It was so intriguing and enticing that on its release, it set the Internet on fire, creating a massive hype-train has translated into huge earnings. Sure, those loud BRRRMs were perhaps overdone, but they made the movie seem so much more epic. And that’s what you must to do when making a trailer — make the audience think that they have to see this film.

Other trailers that have captured great attention include the Cloverfield campaign. JJ Abrams took a slightly different approach, releasing tidbits of information over time through a massive online viral campaign. Finally, when the full-length trailer was released, people went crazy. Every frame was torn down and analysed; every crazy theory was held up to harsh light of anonymous speculation. Ticket sales were guaranteed.

The trailer for District 9 is another advert that personally grabbed me. The start of it seemed like it was some documentary about South Africa but then, all of a sudden, aliens. I was suddenly interested, and the glimpses of CGI the trailer revealed just increased my need to see the film. Yes, I do mean need.

That’s what a great trailer does; turns mere ambivalence into a desire. The images and music are edited in such a way as to invoke this feeling. Producers want someone who watches the trailer to send it to all their friends. And if the movie doesn’t match the feeling they got from the trailer? Well, they’ve already paid for the ticket.

But what about the downsides of movie advertising? You know, the cheesy voice-over guys; the booming titles; the mish-mashes of bland clips that show you nothing. A bad trailer doesn’t necessarily translate to a bad movie — but it is often the case. Comedy and horror are the worst culprits. Well-made trailers probably don’t factor into the budget of B-grade films. And don’t you just hate it when all the funny bits of a film are in the trailer.

There is one thing worse: the teaser. It does exactly what its name implies. Sure, it’s a bit of initial hype, often made to officially announce a film, but its often no more than one clip. One measly clip, usually with whatever is being revealed appearing at the end. It’s the epitome of anti-climax.

Lastly, there’s something that always niggles me when I go to see a movie I’ve watched the trailer of ten times. When you are used to seeing dialogue said in a certain scene, it’s off-putting when the real movie messes with that pace. Naturally the editing for the trailer attends to a different goal, but it’s disconcerting nonetheless.

There is definitely a skill when it comes to making a good trailer. You have to show enough, but not too much. You have to edit it differently. At the end of the day, you have to sell your product. Now excuse me, I’m off to watch the Inception trailer one more time…

Thomas Wilson