Hooray. It's time for our weekly dose of hypocrisy. Less than 24 hours ago I suggested you abstain from trailers, and here's a post with not one... not two... not three... but four trailers for you to binge on. It's all for our communal 'Yes No Maybe So' consideration.
Three-pronged thoughts and the trailers to The Skeleton Twins, St. Vincent, The Tribe and Before I Go To Sleep are after the jump...
THE SKELETON TWINS
YES -"I have a very serious question for you. Will you go to prom with me?" LOL. The humor in this trailer is just so chill but still hilarious. No reaching strenuously for the laughs which is probably a great sign. It's easy to picture the movie being instantly quotable and a cable favorite for years to come. Also this trailer only reminds that Kristen Wiig proved to be a really really solid film actor. See also: Whip It and Bridesmaids
NO- This isn't really about the movie but I can't say I'm looking forward to the inevitable complaints about oppressive gay stereotypes!' since Bill Hader has a limp wrist and does drag and lipsynching to hits in his living room. Also, Bill Hader is funny but are we *really* still not going to give lead gay roles to gay actors ever in feature films?
MAYBE SO- brother/sister dramedies are pretty rare so, as such, they're always going to be compared to You Can Count On Me. Talk about a formidable task, measuring up to that one. I don't remember the reviews at Sundance being particular raveish though they were good.
Total "yes"
ST. VINCENT
YES - Melissa McCarthy pulls a curveball as the straight man in a comedy. The entire cast looks to be on point. Especially that bank teller with her hand gestures. Steal that scene from Bill Murray, biyatch
NO - This might veer very cutesy / sentimental. And ornery awful cantankerous old white man neighbors who are supposed to be hilarious and charming are sometimes just annoying and easy for movie stars to overplay (see: As Good As It Gets)
MAYBE SO - Surprisingly, I'm very excited to see Naomi Watts as a Russian hooker... excuse me "lady of the night". And though child actors are often hit and miss, Jaeden Leiberher (that's quite a stage name) looks like a natural and not a mugger.
The "Yes" takes it.
THE TRIBE
THE TRIBE TRAILER 2014 from Oleksiy Yevtukh on Vimeo.
YES - Love an audacious concept and this was a sensation at Cannes. I'm all for seeing a film in a foreign language without subtitles for the helluva it. Why not?
NO - Films that quickly get a 'shocking' rep from festivals are sometimes just exploitation with artistic pretensions. And it looks like it'll probably be somewhat nihilistic which I am into less and less at the movies. It's a shortcut to critical praise. It's way tougher to pull off a non-gaggy happy ending.
MAYBE SO - I understand that sign language is different from country to country which really sucks for deaf people. Imagine how worthwhile it would be for everyone to learn if it was the same everywhere? It'd be a workable Esperanto.
Yes from curiousity unless the reviews suggest total miserabilism
BEFORE I GO TO SLEEP
Psyche! I'm not actually going to watch this trailer all the way through. Thrillers in particular give way too much away in the 2 minute format. So after 45 seconds of Nicole's selfie whispering and Nicole's bloodshot eyeballs I decided it was best to stop before it's revealed who is friend and who is foe... though from just 50 seconds I already have an idea, damnit!
YES -Nicole Kidman. Plus I figure Colin Firth owes her the spotlight after Railway Man which was all about him
NO -Kidman & Firth & Mark Strong are all very very talented but they're like a new generation's Michael Caine and will say "yes" to virtually any movie offer. Prolific workaholics usually make way more than their share of bad movies in their lifetime.
MAYBE SO -Rowan Joffe is a screenwriter turned director and the son of The Killing Field's Oscar nominated director Roland Joffe. But I didn't see his debut directorial feature Brighton Rock so skill level? Anyone?
I'd be a no without Kidman but...
Previously on Yes No Maybe So:
Fury | The Judge | Birdman | Magic in the Moonlight