Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Eeeeeeeuuuuuuuch
DISCLAIMER: I don't know for sure if the trailer for the movie "Paul" actually shows the ending or it just seems that way. I haven't seen the movie will probably not see the movie.
Maybe I'm EXAGGERATING, but the trailers I've been seeing for (what I feel safe assuming is) the remake of the movie "Arthur" (see, because it has the same plot and title!) are the most pathetic things I've ever seen. (You can tell it's hyperbole, because I see a lot of pathetic things in our culture every day, starting in the morning when I brush my teeth in front of a mirror [see fig. 1] —and specifically today, this first chunk of text that I've already decided not to delete and rewrite less poorly.)
Figure 1
A n y w a y, let me type a look at these to sum up my sorrows:
Jokes I recall from the trailers:
-the use of the word "winky" in reference to somebody's winky.
Ho ho ho, this is something that's good for a giggle, but let's hope they don't overdo it!
(See now if you can guess what my complaint is going to be as I list the next few gags)
-Arthur and companion dress up as Batman and Robin and drive a Batmobile.
-A kid, hearing Arthur's British accent, says he sounds like Harry Potter.
-Arthur puts one of those voice-changing Darth Vader masks on a person who —and I'm assuming is his mother because of the following- repeats the line about winkies.
I can't help but get the impression that the movie was written by some people as they stood in lines for movie-themed roller coaster rides in Orlando. But let's be less bric-a-brac and more brass tack. The trick here is getting more and more familiar: Get the nerds' attention, and then wait for them see your movie just because you put something they like in it.
We nerds love our favorite nerd things (sometimes in disturbing ways [see fig 2]). Having a reference to something nerds like is a pretty good way to grab our attention, and it can even be pretty clever/funny if it comes as a little surprise. Did I mention that a little surprise is something THAT ISN'T IN THE TRAILER? (Sort of like how the Paul trailers seem to show the plot's resolution?)
Figure 2
So pretending that I'm right (MISTAKE), why put these little "homages" into the trailer if doing so takes away that cuteness that makes them worthwhile? And why are all these references applied so pallet-knife-liberally that they become the entire essence of the trailer? Because they know they can trick nerds into going to see their movie.
Movie studios are hoping that when a fan sees the Darth Vader/Harry Potter/Batman reference, they'll say "Astral!" or "What a corking good reference!" or...uh..."Schway!" I guess, "followed by "I've got to see that movie for that reason alone!" And it works. Family Guy and Robot Chicken have been profiting from this kind of thing just by doing Star Wars episodes of their shows filled with jokes I'd always assumed were meant to be made up on the fly by those improv groups that do shows at conventions. (I'm assuming these exist for Star Wars, because I avoided seeing an anime one once.)
So. Nerds. Don't fall for it. Don't puke your money out into every bucket on the street. Puke your money with discretion. If you want to see something you'll enjoy all of, rather than a few minutes of pandering qua$i-tribute, maybe take in the original you enjoyed so much.
Labels: Arthur, batman beyond slang, bed head, movie trailers, nerds, quotation marks that imply that an "homage" is not actually an homage at all, Wait, was "winky" a Harry Potter reference too?
# posted by Gug Lurge @ 10:55 PM 
