We’ve got quite the roundup of trailers this fine Tuesday, including the new Venom teaser that finally shows that awful face, only a Symbiote mother could love.
VENOM (OCTOBER 5)
Who’s that Venom? The first Venom trailer, which premiered earlier this year, didn’t really impress me, mostly because it looked like a retread of about a hundred other comic-book movies of its ilk. This second trailer is marginally better. It shows more of Tom Hardy’s performance as investigative reporter Eddie Brock, who it tracking down a story about secret experiments with some sort of black gooey alien matter, found by scientist Riz Ahmed. Clearly, Ahmed is playing the bad guy, so that should be fun. Also featured is Michelle Williams as Brock’s love interest and Jenny Slate as someone Brock aligns with to try and find the truth.
Well, the truth is, the black goo they found is an alien Symbiote, who can infect a host and turn him into a truly frightening creature with big-ass sharp teeth. Brock is, of course, infected and now he and this thing residing in his body, who talks to him, have to come to terms on how to use the newfound power. The end of the trailer gives us the money shot – Venom’s true face – but is this still enough to excite us? Undecided. Watch the trailer below… what do you think?
CRAZY RICH ASIANS (AUGUST 17)
Another breakthrough in the burgeoning world of fresher, diverse films we have the rom-com Crazy Rich Asians, in what looks like a cross between Meet the Parents and Monster-In-Law. Supporting an entirely engaging cast of Asian actors, and directed by Now You See Me 2‘s Jon Chu, the story follows a NYC woman (Constance Wu), who finds out her boyfriend (Henry Golding) comes from an extremely wealthy Chinese family when they travel to Singapore for a wedding. There, she meets his mother (Michelle Yeoh) who does not approve of her son’s American-Chinese girlfriend. It also stars Awkwafina as the kooky best friend (and who will probably steal every scene she’s in). Check out the trailer… this should be fun!
THE EQUALIZER 2 (JULY 20)
Denzel Washington returns as the badass Robert McCall, who is still serving an unflinching justice for the exploited and oppressed. But when someone is killed that is close to his heart, a new and more determined McCall emerges, seeking vengeance in the only way he knows how – by eliminating the bad guys. This is the first sequel Washington has ever done if you can believe it, and it probably has everything to do with the fact his favorite director, Antoine Fuqua, is once again directing. This will be the fourth collaboration between the two, including Training Day which earned Washington his Best Actor Oscar. The Equalizer 2 also stars Melissa Leo, Pedro Pascal and Bill Pullman. Watch the trailer!
WOMAN WALKS AHEAD (JUNE 29)
After getting a pickup from its premiere at last year’s Toronto Film Festival, we are going to get to see Jessica Chastain’s latest drama Woman Walks Ahead. Based on a true story, Chastain plays Catherine Weldon, a portrait painter from Brooklyn, who travels to the Dakotas in the early 1890s to paint a portrait of Sitting Bull (Michael Greyeyes), the famous Native American chief who defeated Col. George Custer and his battalion during the Battle of Little Bighorn. Welson becomes embroiled in the Lakota peoples’ struggle over the rights to their land and moves onto their reservation with her young son. This also stars Sam Rockwell and Ciaran Hinds. Check out the trailer!
ANON (May 4)
This new Netflix movie looks kinda trippy. Basically, the story revolves around a world in the not-too-distant future, where everyone walks around with a computer in their head, accessing information about anyone they encounter, like an instant Google. Here’s the official synopsis: “Clive Owen stars as Sal Frieland, a detective in a world with no privacy or anonymity; where everyone’s lives are transparent, traceable, and recorded by the authorities; where crime almost ceases to exist. But in trying to solve a series of murders, Frieland stumbles on a young woman known only as the Girl (Amanda Seyfried). She has no identity, no history and is invisible to the cops. Sal realizes this may not be the end of crime but the beginning.” I’m intrigued… check it out.
