Trailer Hitch : HUGO

"This is a treacherous place. Do you understand?"

This week's Trailer Hitch is for Martin Scorsese's upcoming film, Hugo. The first trailer below is the first full-length trailer and it came out some time ago. Many people found that this trailer didn't get them excited for the film as much as they would have liked. I have a feeling that one of the reasons this might be is due to the fact that the trailer doesn't play up the emotional connections that the film's many relationships bring to the big picture of what kind of film this is and I also believe, after seeing the second trailer (also below), that this first trailer doesn't play up how much of a visual feast this film might prove to be. When I first saw this trailer I was beside myself in anticipation, but in retrospect I can see that perhaps what a lot of people might have felt was missing was a general communication of the film's plot.

Now here's the second trailer. After watching this one, it felt like the first one seems to rely on some imaginary existing belief that the movie is going to be really good. By that I mean, the emphasis of the first trailer doesn't seem to show a really all-encompassing look at the film; it's plot, the numerous characters, or even showcasing more than a couple settings. The second trailer does give us a bit more (in less time). After picking these apart, I realized that they use a lot of the same clips, which is fine, but then they add snippets of a few pretty cool looking scenes. The most obvious difference is the addition of the trailer narrator. It's funny how silly that voice sounds after watching a trailer that doesn't use one. It's purpose is clear though. We now know something about the film's plot and we really didn't get that from the other. The first trailer felt as though it was saying, "This film is coming," while the second says, "This is what this film is." I also think it's a smart move to add more emphasis on the film's adult costars (Jude Law, Ben Kingsley) and especially the film's director.

There are a couple of aspects of this film that I haven't had or taken the opportunity to talk about. Firstly, of course these trailers don't give us any indication as to the 3D quality of the film. I've heard the 3D is amazing, but we'll have to see. I do think it's cool Scorsese shot this in 3D and as much as I've loathed much of the 3D I've wasted my money on, I'm sure this won't be an addition to that group of films. Lastly, I'm so glad the writers of this movie have really upped the role of the station inspector and that the part was subsequently offered and accepted by the one and only Sacha Baron Cohen. Every time I see him in these trailers, I can't help but think of Peter Sellars. If these trailers are any indication, his performance will aid this film on its way to becoming as much of a classic as we would all like it to be.