Title: Vanishing on 7th Street

Release Date: Feb. 18th

When a movie is an obvious rip-off of previously released films, its trailer needs to fool you into thinking you haven’t seen the story before. Vanishing on 7^th Street’s trailer asks you to imagine a guy waking up and the whole world has disappeared. It promises horror and action all presented through the adventures of one apocalypse surviving last man standing. That sounds really cool except for the fact I have seen this film before.

In 2 and a half minutes all this trailer does is remind viewers of I am Legend. I’m sure there will be some differences (most notably no Will Smith) but Vanishing on 7^th Street’s preview does nothing to bring them to mind. So thanks Magnet Releasing (even the production company’s name sounds bad) for reminding me to add I am Legend to the Netflix queue.

Rating 2/5

Drive Angry 3D Trailer Review

Title: Drive Angry

Release Date: Feb 25, 2011

Guy escapes hell? To seek revenge? And gets into a bunch of gunfights and car crashes? Oh and did we mention; 3-D, muscle cars, explosions and Nicholas Mother-F’ing Cage. Drive Angry’s trailer takes viewers to a world where everyone is a badass, owns an old-school Dodge Charger and carries a loaded shotgun. And as if that isn’t enough testosterone for the 18-34 male demographic, they added a hot female lead to accompany Cage on his manvenduture against the Devil.

The one-liners in the trailer are brilliant and are juxtaposed well with music intended to remind viewers that Cage is going to f’ing rock. But good luck remembering anything from this trailer other than crashes, explosions and gunfights. Perhaps that is a good thing because from what I gather the storyline is at best lacking. Does the trailer work? Yea if its viewer is the type of person who loves wearing 3-D goggles and watching stuff explode. For the rest of us the cheesy ridiculousness provides for 2 and a half minutes of comedic gold.

Rating 3.8/5

Limitless Trailer Review

Title: Limitless

Release Date: March 18, 2011

Coked-out Californication meets Inception? I'm all in, baby. The movie seems like it will be a smash hit, but the story line is slightly questionable. Seriously, why/how is he the only one to be testing out this mystical drug? Why didn't they just call it coke + ecstasy? Its plot can be summarized as: An uninspired writer develops a drug dependency, where the drug makes him feel great but also makes him paranoid and lose track of time, and his supply is eventually cut off. Sounds like a great weekend, if you ask me.

Nonetheless, Rogue Media has done it again; yet another movie perfectly sold in a 2-minute trailer. Allowing its viewers to wishfully relate, it follows the transformation of a pathetic "regular dude" into a suave GQ, "the perfect version of himself," man--and combines it with a hint of suspense and an appropriate song choice (Kanye West's Power). I'm intrigued and excited to see it in March!

Rating: 4.5/5

African Cats Trailer Review

Title : African Cats

Release Date : Earth Day 2011 (April 22)

As a film, I am convinced this will be fun to watch. However I have mixed feelings about the trailer. Disneynature clearly believes that the stunning footage from East Africa is enough to sell tickets and they most likely are right. However for those of us who love a great trailer this definitely leaves something to be desired.

My beef is with the narrator use in the trailer and the song choice. The narrator takes a back seat, which is not necessarily a bad thing, but when he does talk it is a disaster. I cringed the first time i realized he referred to it as a "true story" 1min 10 secs in. Of course its a true story, it is documentary footage your viewers aren't stupid. Furthermore the background song, Life is Beautiful by the British group Vega4 reminds me of a corny love scene on an ABC drama (no offense to anyone who is into that sort of thing). Don't get me wrong I get where they are going with the music and narration, and the movie will gain a buzz due to the stunning footage in the trailer. However, something about this seems too Disney; perhaps its is because I compare all nature films to Planet Earth. Maybe my standards are too high.

Rating 3.8/5

(4.5/5 based on footage)

Take Me Home Tonight Trailer Review

Title: Take Me Home Tonight

Release Date: March 2011

A movie trailer has only one purpose; get the viewer excited for the film release. It needs to whet the appetite, tease the senses and leave you wanting more. The worse the movie’s premise the better the trailer needs to be. With that said the trailer for the Spring 2011 film Take Me Home Tonight gets the job done.

An ‘80s themed movie, named after the Eddie Money classic, the trailer does everything possible to let you know that you want to see this film. Corny yet intriguing main character? Check. Sex, Blow and ‘80s rock and roll for those nostalgic for the frattiest decade? Check. Fooling you into thinking that it is a “bro -movie “when it is clearly going to be a “rom com” about some dude trying to win the chick of his dreams? Kudos Rogue Media, I know this movie is going to be bad, but it is sold perfectly. I want to know how it ends…Does he get the chick? Is he actually arrested? Were the ‘80s really that awesome? The answers do not matter, for a trailer simply needs to make you ask the questions and I believe the trailer for Take Me Home Tonight is a perfect example of a great teaser to a most likely terrible movie.

Trailer Rating 4.75/5