Wolverine’s an old man, the Guardians are back, and Werner Herzog’s still got it.
Logan, March 3, 2017
I know, you weren’t expecting a trailer for an X-Men installment of all things to be the one that made you cry this week; but this preview for Hugh Jackman’s last hurrah as Wolverine is unique for a bunch of different reasons. For starters, Logan is based on an acclaimed comic called Old Man Logan, which is reflective and sad, far from your typical superhero comic. Director James Mangold is known for doing “reflective and sad” very well in his films, in dramas like Girl, Interrupted and Walk the Line. (And of course the trailer uses Johnny Cash’s cover of “Hurt.” JUST STAB US IN THE GUT AND LET US BLEED OUT ALREADY.)
Finally, if the trailer is any indication of the movie that awaits us, we’re in for a gorgeous time at the movies. Look at all those perfectly framed scene compositions, the desolate Western imagery, the subtle but quality camerawork! Okay, sure, there are also adamantine claws and Patrick Stewart being Patrick Stewart-y, in case you forgot this was an X-Men film about superheroes. But I’m happy to forget, because Logan actually looks like a film anyone can enjoy, superhero fan or not.
Making it to the top of this week’s trailer heap was quite an accomplishment, because this was a week of Big Trailers. Let’s take a look.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (May 5, 2017)
The fun thing about the trailer for the next Guardians of the Galaxy movie is how little it tells us about where Star-Lord and company are, what they’re doing, who those goth raver Warboys are, or what the plot of this movie is. But hey! “Hooked on a Feeling!” Wide shots of Gamora being badass in a vague way, except for that moment when we kind of get half of her face! Locker room talk! Sorry, that was too soon. Let’s just keep looking at that half-second of tiny Groot until our brains melt.
A Cure for Wellness (February 17, 2017)
Director Gore Verbinski is best known for Pirates of the Caribbean and a host of Disney action movies, so to see him take on a film that looks far more like Ex Machina meets Shutter Island is a bit of a surprise. The plot of A Cure for Wellness involves an idyllic escape in a Swiss spa that’s giving out miraculous cures for whatever ails you. Of course, this is all too good to be true, but look how gorgeous those mountains and that palatial chalet is! It’s worth a trip — to the movies, at least, if not to the Alps.
Into the Inferno (October 28)
Once one gets over the novelty of hearing legendary filmmaker Werner Herzog reciting Norse mythology in his well-known voice, one starts to realize that, hey, this visual tour of the world’s most intense volcanoes is pretty cool. And by cool we mean terrifying. And by terrifying we mean wow, they’re really close to the edge. No wonder volcanologists have lost their lives in pursuit of this kind of footage. Herzog doesn’t just show us volcanoes, though; he takes us to the far parts of the world where people actually have to live right next to these monsters. That’s the true terror behind Into the Inferno: knowing that the inferno could come to you at any moment.
Netflix smartly released this trailer just days before its debut on the streaming network, so you won’t have to wait long for more of this hot magma goodness.
The Crown (November 4)
Netflix has been pulling out all the stops for its sumptuous biopic short series The Crown, which looks at the challenges of Queen Elizabeth II’s midcentury reign. The 10-episode series is written and directed by Peter Morgan, who includes among his many writing credits the 2006 film The Queen, a similar look at Elizabeth in a much different period of her life as she dealt with the death of Princess Diana. This week’s teaser trailer follows a litany of previews — an announcement, a feature-length trailer, and two featurettes — but they’re all so good we’re eager for more. And besides, we’d expect nothing less for her majesty.