Movie Trailers are they good or bad?

[satori]

So on the Radish Episode Movie Trailers were brought up by Jeff. He felt that trailers can ruin movies and that he doesn't want to see them. I'm a big believer in avoiding trailers. I make sure that I come into the theater 15 minutes late so I don't have to have movies ruined for me. Trailers like the Transformers trailer that didn't show you anything are fine with me, but these are so few and far between. What do you think about these?
p.s. I couldn't find a thread on this so if it exists I'm sorry.

[baddox]

I voted for either way, because I'm somewhat torn. On one hand, if I'm going to subject myself to the unnatural act of sitting perfectly still in the dark for 2 hours (I have long legs and theaters are uncomfortable) I want to know what I'm getting in to. That said, I do think expectations affect a movie a lot, which is why you hear a lot of movie reviewers saying "I liked it because I expected it to be awful and it wasn't." Although there are exceptions, like say the Batman movie Jeff mentioned, usually I want to know as much about the movie as I can before deciding to see it or not. This only goes for the theater, I'm much more open to cracking open a dvd and watching at home, since you're not as tied down (and it doesn't cost as much).

[wideawakewesley]

The only two things that annoy me about trailers are:

1. Misrepresenting the type of movie, so that you go in expecting one thing and get something completely different.

2. Showing all the good bits in the trailer.

[deegraww]

Trailers to me are like spoilers, until I see the full movie trailers don't bother me. bring them on.

[baddox]

In my opinion a movie good enough to see in theaters will have too many good bits to fit into a trailer.

I have a personal vendetta against theaters, mostly because I find them uncomfortable and I always get convinced to go to the worst films with groups of friends. Here's a list of movies I've seen in theaters as best I can remember, starting with the most recent:

Bourne Ultimatum (only after pirating it--grasp that concept MPAA)
Transformers (could be worse)
Pirates 2 (couldn't)
Hero (I hate kung-fu. My friends said it was an action movie about oriental warfare. A quick trailer lookup would have turned me off of this one)
Hulk
Matrix Reloaded (not great, but had to be seen i reckon)
The Tuxedo (lol)
...Early high school and junior high, can't remember much...
Lion King (baller!)

[thelostwoods]

I really do agree that if I already know I'm going to see a movie, watching the trailers do spoil bits of it, sometimes all of it, but at the same time I can't bring myself to stop watching them. I just get so excited about upcoming movies for months and months that I have to find something to get me through. If only I were a stronger person.

[kevincollateral]

I usually love trailers..then after Jeff made that comment I wathced another trailer for I Am Legend which showed something I could have gone without knowing until i saw the movie. I won't mention it to spoil anything.

I blame Jeff for this misfortune, otherwise they are good

[baddox]

Ha. I Am Legend is a decades old book anyway, most people know most of the story anyway. The movie's even been made twice. This newest version is just for Will Smith buffs.

[deegraww]

I heard "This is Doctor Robert Neville" and I was done.

[baddox]

Why did that line finish you off? That is the main character's name.

[fieryfrog]

The only two things that annoy me about trailers are:

1. Misrepresenting the type of movie, so that you go in expecting one thing and get something completely different.

2. Showing all the good bits in the trailer.


This is my exact thought.

[kevincollateral]

Ha. I Am Legend is a decades old book anyway, most people know most of the story anyway. The movie's even been made twice. This newest version is just for Will Smith buffs.

Well I never read the book, and haven't seen the old version. So sue me.

[serenity]

I watch the trailer if I have never heard of / don't care to see the movie. If it's a movie I am looking forward to I will only watch teaser trailers and shut my eyes and plug my ears during the full trailer.

[jc-magnus]

To me it depends on the movie and what type of trailer it is (teaser, full, extended, etc.)

Nowadays I only watch trailers while at the theatre or a teaser online. They tend to show too much footage when its anything but either of those.

[satori]

wow, this is pretty even.

[jimbob-uk]

(firstly, hi everyone. Ive been watching the show since Genesis 1 but havent got round to joining the gang here)

Im a big fan of trailers! When a Movie trailer is done right, it raises my anticipation to go see it far more than just reading about it or seeing pictures in magazines & posters (even though these are also great).

However lately my friend and I have been discussing how absolutely ridiculous some of the trailers have been lately. For instance:

The Mist (http://www.apple.com/trailers/weinstein/themist/trailer2/)
Now I havent seen this movie. I love thrillers/Horrors and would have been straight to the cinema to check this out, IF, I had't have watched the trailer first. The complete plot is laid before your eyes. You can see how the story progresses....It's like paint-by-number for movies!!! They could have kept whatever is was in the mist completely out of the trailer and made it a real mystery! A case of bad, bad marketing...

I wish everybody would follow Cloverfield's example; I have absolutely no idea what it is that's attacking the city but that's the beauty of it... Therefore, Im sold!

[baddox]

I don't get that argument about the Mist trailer. It's a horror film, I don't think the plot is much of a twister. You pretty much know what's going to happen, especially considering it's an adaptation, not to mention a horror film. Not all movies depend on you not knowing what's going to happen. There's a lot to be said about presentation, including acting, directing, writing, etc. that is worth seeing even if you know exactly what's going to happen in the movie. Some of you are acting like it's the trailer for Sixth Sense and in the trailer it says "Bruce is dead the whole time." Cloverfield, on the other hand, clearly is playing on the fact that you have no idea of what's going on. The trailer is what produces that effect.