the greatest trailer of all time

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This is in response to the inclusion of Batman Returns on the Greatest Sequel of All Time thread. It is my opinion that the 1st trailer for Batman Returns is superior to the film. The 1st batman sequel had some of the strongest images (an army of penguins, danny devito as a universal horror mutant) of Tim Burton's directing career but due to the shittiness of the screenplay these images are much stronger in the trailer than in the context of the film's over- plotted narrative.
As much as I love Christopher Walken, his character (and the plot points that revolve around his actions) detracts the mythic elements of the characters and setting with serious over-plotting.
The trailer opens immediately with Batman and Catwoman karate fighting on a roof-top, whereas the film gives us this whole lame feminism for beginners origin story.
Wouldn't Tim Burton's lesser pictures (Batman, and the Planet of the Apees remake) be potential classics had he taken a more Lynchian dream-logic approach, since he's obviously more interested in images than storytelling, than relying on scripts authored by a studio committee team of doctors?
I guess that's enough about Batman Returns and Tim Burton from the resurrected 12-year-old in me.
Can anyone think of any movie trailers that surpass the quality of the feature films they were intended to advertise?

― theodore fogelsanger, Friday, 21 May 2004 01:23 (twenty-two years ago)

Austin Powers 2... "What, you were expecting someone else?"

― Anthony (Anthony F), Friday, 21 May 2004 03:08 (twenty-two years ago)

The Cell (2000)
What Dreams May Come (1998)

― The Narwhal (the narwhal), Friday, 21 May 2004 03:49 (twenty-two years ago)

I think those might be along the lines of what you're talking about Theodore. Great-looking imagery and weak scripts.

― The Narwhal (the narwhal), Friday, 21 May 2004 03:52 (twenty-two years ago)

Can anyone think of any movie trailers that surpass the quality of the feature films they were intended to advertise?

The only really good part of Suture is included in entirety in the trailer. (The gun pointing/shower curtain part.)

Comedian (The Seinfeld documentary), maybe. Though I liked listening to "The Waters of March" during the credits.

― Ernest P. (ernestp), Friday, 21 May 2004 04:34 (twenty-two years ago)

Maybe not surpass....but so good that it could be considered a short film in itself:

The trailer for Buffalo '66.

It's on the DVD. It's amazing.

― BabyBuddha (BabyBuddha), Friday, 21 May 2004 14:43 (twenty-two years ago)

I liked the one for "Catch-22" (which is on the DVD). It's just the scene wherein Yossarian finds out about Catch-22 from Doc Daneeka, followed by a black screen with the names of the stars and major creative personel soundtracked by a beating heart. It's awesome.

― Doobie Keebler (Charles McCain), Friday, 21 May 2004 14:56 (twenty-two years ago)

the trailer for the battle of algiers is almost as intense as the movie itself.

i like the umbrellas of cherbourg one, too. it's little more than the scene where nino castelnuovo leaves on the train, but it's such a wonderful scene that i could just watch the trailer over and over.

― joseph (joseph), Friday, 21 May 2004 17:52 (twenty-two years ago)

I second Comedian. I've never seen a trailer that many times before, nor have I shown it to everyone who passed by my computer for several days straight. Too bad the movie is complete balls.

― Girolamo Savonarola, Friday, 21 May 2004 21:11 (twenty-two years ago)

THE 5TH ELEMENT trailer was mind blowing.

BabyBuddha are you talking about the European Buffalo'66 DVD cause the one on the North American release only has the crappy distributor cut version.

― PVC (peeveecee), Saturday, 22 May 2004 00:44 (twenty-two years ago)

Most everything about it is cliched, but the Twister teaser was gripping.

― Eric H. (Eric H.), Sunday, 23 May 2004 00:11 (twenty-two years ago)

i'll second "buffalo '66".

it seems like both movie trailers and opening credit sequences have become entities unto their own in the last 10 or so years. My favorite part about many narrative features is the opening credits, and the rest of the movie is often a letdown ("Hannibal" being a good example, to a lesser degree, "Seven")

Considering that it is often an outside individual or group that does the trailers & credits (seldom the film's director), it seems only fair that they be analyzed outside of the context of the film itself.

― jay blanchard (jay blanchard), Sunday, 23 May 2004 17:41 (twenty-two years ago)

i usually like trailers a lot but they are getting increasingly stupid--they are all following the same plot.

― ryan (ryan), Sunday, 23 May 2004 17:44 (twenty-two years ago)

BabyBuddha are you talking about the European Buffalo'66 DVD cause the one on the North American release only has the crappy distributor cut version.

Cut version? Of the trailer or the film itself? My US DVD has the full, long trailer using the Yes song. Is there even a longer version?

― BabyBuddha (BabyBuddha), Sunday, 23 May 2004 19:36 (twenty-two years ago)

No I mean the trailer. There are a couple of dvds. The Lions Gate release does not have the cool trailer. The UNIVERSAL one does.

― PVC (peeveecee), Sunday, 23 May 2004 23:38 (twenty-two years ago)

Wow -- that's pretty lame. Glad I picked up the Universal release when it first came out. Why would Lion's Gate leave it out?

― BabyBuddha (BabyBuddha), Monday, 24 May 2004 01:14 (twenty-two years ago)

day of the dead!

― David-Graham Steans, Monday, 24 May 2004 12:03 (twenty-two years ago)

'Dr Strangelove'

― Enrique (Enrique), Monday, 24 May 2004 13:13 (twenty-two years ago)

George Washington

― The Narwhal (the narwhal), Monday, 24 May 2004 13:33 (twenty-two years ago)

i couldnt say that the adaptation trailer is actually better than the movie itself, but it is probably my favorite trailer ever.

― todd swiss (eliti), Monday, 24 May 2004 18:53 (twenty-two years ago)

A lot of modern trailers use pop songs incredibly well : "Adaptation" used Under Pressure by David Bowie & Queen to good effect. "Eternal Sunshine" made similarly good use of "Mr Blue Sky" by ELO.
I remember loving the trailer for "Audition" which used the shot of the phone ringing in the darkened room then the body rolling over in the bag....

― David Nolan (David N.), Monday, 24 May 2004 21:01 (twenty-two years ago)

The Shining: the elevator getting filled with blood as credits announcing the film scroll upwards.

― Joe (Joe), Monday, 24 May 2004 21:33 (twenty-two years ago)

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