New Trailers

I was just searching the Internet and stumbled onto quite a few new trailers for movies I'm pretty excited about. Check out the trailers below:

The Road
The first is for the next film based off of a Cormac McCarthy book. Two years ago, the Coen Brothers adapted No Country for Old Men to great reviews and many Academy Awards. So, it goes without saying that Hollywood now has a renewed interest in McCarthy's catalog. The next film on tap is an adaptation of the bleak, frightening The Road, which follows a father and son as they travel their way across the desolate wasteland of a post-apocalyptic world. Cannibals hunt them, yet through it all, the story focuses on fatherhood (though in the most extreme of circumstances). Nevertheless, from the trailer, it looks like they've taken some liberties with the story. For one, it seems like the mother character, played by Charlize Theron, will have a much larger role. I understand that you can't cast Theron in a film and not get her full worth. She's an incredible actress, so it's almost a waste to not take advantage of her skills. But I do get annoyed with films that adapt books and make unnecessary changes like that. The trailer also seems to have way more explosions and less cannibals, which is lame. McCarthy's books are overtly gruesome and frightening, so gruesome that many of the elements of his stories can't be portrayed on film. Imagine an adaption of Blood Meridian. Well, you don't have to because Hollywood has decided that will be the next Cormac McCarthy adaptation. I just wonder how Hollywood will make a film about scalp-hunters. The Road is directed by relative newcomer John Hillcoat, whose filmography includes music videos and the 2005 Australian western The Proposition. Oh, and Omar Little is in this film for all the fans of The Wire.


New York, I Love You
After watching Paris, Je T'aime on Netflix a couple years ago, I thought it'd be a cool idea to make the same films about other cities, like London or San Francisco. And now, they've made another one: New York, I Love You. Like the original, this film is a series of short vignettes that come together as a series of love letters to the city. Each short film features a different director, including the likes of Jian Wen, Mira Nair, Brett Ratner, Allen Hughes, Shekhar Khapur, Natalie Portman, Fatih Akin, Joshua Marston, and Randy Balsmyer. And with so many short films, there are also many famous actors in these films such as Bradley Cooper, Andy Garcia, Hayden Christensen, Rachel Bilson, Natalie Portman, Orlando Bloom, Christina Ricci, Maggie Q, Ethan Hawke, James Caan, Blake Lively, Drea de Matteo, John Hurt, Shia LaBeouf, Burt Young, Chris Cooper, Eli Wallach, and Cloris Leachman. As a sucker for travel films and romance type nonsense, I love films like these that incorporate the charm of the city into the love lives of the characters. Apparently, the next in the series will be Shanghai, I Love You and Jerusalem, I Love You.
Check out the trailer below:


Precious
Here's a film that got astounding reviews at Sundance and is currently competing at Cannes. It won the 2008 Audience Award Prize, which in past years has gone to great indie films such as Grace is Gone, Hustle & Flow, and The Wackness. This film focuses on a 16 year girl, who lives in an abusive house in Harlem. She's pregnant with her second child and still stuck in middle school. The film features some of the most powerful black backing and musicians. For instance, Tyler Perry and Oprah Winfrey are "presenting" this film, while Mariah Carey, Lenny Kravitz, and Mo'Nique all act in the film. Mo'Nique actually won a Special Jury Prize at Sundance for her role in this film. Furthermore, Lee Daniels, who directed Monster's Ball, directed this film.
Check out the trailer below:


Nine
This film comes from Rob Marshall, the guy who directed the Academy Award winning musical Chicago. Like that film, Nine is also a musical and also features an absolutely incredible cast. This film is something of a remake of Fellini's landmark film 8 1/2, but takes a musical approach to the film. Normally I wouldn't care about something like this, but when I found out that Daniel Day-Lewis was the star of this film, I started to care. The guy hasn't made a bad film, ever, so I doubt he starts here with Rob Marshall directing. The supporting cast includes: Marion Cottilard, Judi Dench, Nicole Kidman, Fergie, Penelope Cruz, Kate Hudson, and Sophia Loren.
Check it out below:

On a final note, it's rumored that a trailer for Toy Story 3 will play before Pixar's Up!, so look for that in the coming weeks.