CineChat

TrailerChat – 2 November 2020

Welcome to our latest roundup of some of the recently released trailers, with thoughts and feedback from the CineChat team. As always, please let us know your thoughts regarding any of these upcoming movies/shows in the comments or on any of our social media platforms.

Promising Young Woman

From IMDb: A young woman, traumatized by a tragic event in her past, seeks out vengeance against those who cross her path. Released December 2020

Clare: It’s torture at this point. I can’t believe they’ve given US release date and just nothing to UK/Europe. I was convinced this would turn up at LFF but no. I would pay insane amounts of money right now for this. Hell, maybe I’ll buy the UK distribution rights. I NEED TO SEE THIS FILM.

Sarah: I can’t believe this still hasn’t been released. It feels like it’s been years since I saw the first trailer for it.

Matt: I don’t think I’d heard about this one before, but it looks fantastic! I can totally believe why there would be hype and high expectations from this, and I’m pretty sure it will deliver on both!

Lee: I’m sorry to say that, despite occasionally seeing complaints from Clare on Twitter that this still hasn’t been released, I knew very little about this. Having now watched the trailer, I get where she’s coming from!


The 355

From IMDb: When a top-secret weapon falls into mercenary hands, a wild card CIA agent joins forces with three international agents on a lethal mission to retrieve it, while staying a step ahead of a mysterious woman who’s tracking their every move. Released January 2021

Matt: Rubbish title, but do you know what? This doesn’t look bad at all! Looks kick-ass and action packed – they really knew how to pack a trailer full. Cracking cast, Lupita as always never fails to surprise, and Jessica Chastain and Penelope Cruz look a treat too! Not sure how the overall plot will fall together, might be a little bit generic but I hope this generates some hype.

Clare: A pretty impressive trailer as it almost won me over into being interested. I adore Jessica Chastain but we have very different ideas of what would be a good film for her. That being said, she gets top billing in most of her films so good for her. Song choice had me vibing, good variety and pacing and not too much given away. But, the cynic in me feels like this was a mediocre film written for a male cast that couldn’t get greenlit so they just switched out the men for women and now they have a gimmick. And so if/when it flops they can blame it on an all-female cast, rather than a tired concept.

Sarah: This looks like it could be a fairly entertaining action film. It’s great to see such a star-studded female cast too. I do wonder about the plot though. The trailer doesn’t reveal much and I’m concerned this will turn into your average, predictable spy type film that we’ve seen too many times before.

Lee: This looks amazing and with such a great cast too! I just hope they don’t blow the opportunity to get so much strong female talent together, like they did with Ocean’s 8


Hillbilly Elegy

From IMDb: A Yale law student drawn back to his hometown grapples with family history, Appalachian values and the American dream. Released on Netflix later this month

Matt: I think at this point everybody is rooting for Glenn Close, and she looks utterly fantastic in this! I’m not sure if Amy Adams 100% suits this film, but it’s one of the more ‘transformative’ roles I’ve seen her do which is a step in the right direction (I find she often plays very similar looking/sounding parts – unpopular opinion!). Another one to watch come Awards Season.

Clare: Hmm. Honestly, this looks like a crappy made for tv film that would have been on the Hallmark Channel back in 2006 (and as someone who was addicted to the Hallmark Channel in 2006, I know how to spot them.) I feel like this is what happens when excellent actresses like Close and Adams don’t get recognition for doing interesting and different roles. They sign up for these dull cookie-cutter ‘please hand me an award good sir’ melodramas. I’d love to hope given the calibre of all involved it will surprise me. But that trailer did nothing but remind me of the 100 other identical films that already exist.

Sarah: I have to agree with Clare. I don’t doubt that there will be some fantastic acting in this, the story doesn’t look any different to many other films that we’ve seen before. Nothing in the trailer particularly made me interested in watching this, despite the phenomenal cast although I’m willing to be proved wrong!

Lee: If it wasn’t for Amy Adams or the mention of Ron Howard, I wouldn’t be interested in this at all. The trailer is full of rousing music, keen to tell us how dramatic and intense it all is, but it just looks so dull!


Free Guy

From IMDb: A bank teller discovers that he’s actually an NPC inside a brutal, open world video game. Released December 2020

Matt: A little reluctant to say this, but I think this looks good! Good in the ‘bad’ way. Like in the ‘OK’ way ‘but it’s funny so it doesn’t really matter’ way. I wasn’t a big Deadpool fan so I think I’d much prefer to see Ryan Reynolds in this. Love the open-world gaming concept, and the moments where it simulates first- and third-person shooters, that’s very clever!

Clare: Silly and fun, I don’t know what I expected but it wasn’t this. It sort of feels like a live action Lego Movie? Which I mean in the best way. Who doesn’t want some silly fun at the movies once in a while? This is one I hope we get to see on the big screen..

Sarah: I can’t lie, I’m really looking forward to this one. It’ll never win any Oscars but it just looks so fun and silly and entertaining. Ryan Reynolds can always be relied on to make films like this watchable, and it will be interesting to see Jodie Comer in a big role that’s not Killing Eve. And I was sold on this the moment I saw Taika Waititi in the trailer.

Lee: This is another movie that should have already been and gone by now and I hope it manages to stick to its new release date. I think it has the potential to be a lot of fun and with a great cast who look like they’re having an absolute blast with the completely bonkers scenario of this movie. Very excited.


Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

From IMDb: Chicago, 1927. A recording session. Tensions rise between Ma Rainey, her ambitious horn player and the white management determined to control the uncontrollable “Mother of the Blues”. Based on Pulitzer Prize winner August Wilson’s play. Released December 2020

Matt: I don’t think this will be an instant favourite, but as with so many films that break into the Awards conversation each year it’s always great to learn about different times, places, experiences and true stories. We know how powerful August Wilson’s plays can be following ‘Fences’ (2016), and this looks to be in good hands with the powerhouses Viola Davis and Chadwick Boseman front and centre. I imagine they will be one of the primary reasons for this being a frontrunner in 2021.

Clare: It isn’t something I’d naturally be drawn to, but Viola Davis very rarely puts a foot wrong, and this looks like it’s got the very best people in every position. I loved the music and the whole vibe of the trailer, so I hope it will keep up that pace and musicality for the whole film. We shall see!

Sarah: I’m intrigued to see how this film plays out, as the trailer doesn’t give much away in terms of a plot other than the tensions between characters. However the music sounds great and Viola Davis and Chadwick Boseman look to be putting in stellar performances, so this is bound to pick up a few awards come next year.

Lee: It’s great to see Chadwick Boseman again, but I’m not sure this one is for me. It certainly looked interesting, but I was immediately put off by the link to ‘Fences’, which I couldn’t even watch all the way through, it was so bad.


Raya and the Last Dragon

From IMDb: In a realm known as Lumandra, a re-imagined Earth inhabited by an ancient civilization, a warrior named Raya is determined to find the last dragon. Released May 2021

Matt: I actually really like the look of this, it’s like a ninja Tomb Raider with a hint of Star Wars (Rey = Raya? And I almost thought I saw some pod racing in there!). The visuals are obviously stunning and follow in the footsteps of Moana and Frozen II in particular, plus the music is really interesting and different. Looking forward to this one.

Clare: Hmm. Did someone just take some Star Wars sequel storyboards and decide to animate them? This is basically Rey the cartoon series. It doesn’t look bad, but nothing about it says Disney to me, it looks like a rip-off of their own property, and the animation looks like a Dreamworks project. Maybe I’ve watched too much classic Disney recently, but this did nothing for me.

Sarah: Whilst a Disney film is never bad, this one doesn’t particularly interest me. Visually it looks great, but storywise it just looks like a mash-up of many other films and stories that we’ve seen before. However, I’ll probably watch it purely for the armadillo. If nothing else, Disney knows how to perfect an adorable and funny sidekick!

Lee: I wasn’t sure at first, but I think this looks great. If it turns out to be anything like Moana then I’ll be more than happy.


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