What a good few weeks for movies — I feel like there are a ton of interesting and exciting things out right now. Last Saturday night, I went to go see Moonlight, which is as amazing as everyone’s been saying. It’s so so well done, with such care put into its characters and a brilliantly effective story structure. You should check out what my colleague Tasha Robinson wrote about it for a more detailed look.
I happened to go see the movie at, what I did not realize at the time, was the Brooklyn location of the Alamo Drafthouse’s second day of operation. It’s a great theater — I can see why people love the chain so much; the screen is enormous, the projection crisp and clear, and the seats unusually spacious.
The chain’s hook is that it has servers who deliver food and drinks to your chair while the film plays. Last weekend, just before Moonlight was supposed to start, a message popped up on screening saying food was 30 percent off since the theater was new and still working out some kinks. “What could go wrong?” I wondered. A few minutes later, The Handmaiden started to play.
Check out 11 trailers from this week below.
(PS This trailers post is now in our narrower page layout — but YouTube’s fullscreen button should be working!)
Wonder Woman
Possibly the best thing to come out of this trailer for Wonder Woman: the knowledge that a DC movie will finally have some color in it. The best moments in this trailer are the ones where Wonder Woman seems like its own movie, with bright colors, humor, and a very weird mixture of combat styles. Will there be enough of that in the full film? It comes out next year on June 2nd.
The Lego Batman Movie
I will watch all of these trailers, and I will watch this movie. I don’t really know how the Lego series does it, but it continues to nail the combination of lighthearted fun and self-aware humor that makes it all work. I’m into it. It comes out February 10th.
T2 Trainspotting
I don’t remember much of what happened in Trainspotting, but I do remember its energy and attitude — and from this first trailer for its sequel, it feels like all of that is back. T2 looks every bit as miserable, joyful, and wild as its predecessor, and that’s a very good sign. It comes out February 3rd in the US.
Life
Life feels a lot like a new twist on the Alien formula — and from how tense this first trailer is, I have no complaints about that. The film is about a crew of astronauts interacting with a new life form that turns out to be more than they can handle. There are a million ways that can go, but yeah, dark and tense is what I think we’re all looking for. It’s scheduled for release next year on May 29th.
The Eyes of My Mother
Want to see a freaky trailer? Like a seriously eerie, odd, uncomfortable, disconcerting trailer? Watch this. It’s out December 2nd.
Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath
King of Queens star Leah Remini left the Church of Scientology in 2013, and now she’s making a documentary series that explores the realities of the church and just how damaging it can be. Remini interviews others about the sexual abuse, assault, and extortion they underwent just to stay part of the group they’d grown up with. The eight-part series begins November 29th on A&E.
100 Streets
Idris Elba’s latest is a drama that seems to be kind of emotional and quiet and then suddenly very, very crazy. I’m not too sure how everything in this trailer fits together or that it doesn’t go way over the top, but at least it gives Elba a lot of room to act. 100 Streets is out in the UK on November 11th and in the US on January 13th.
Gifted
So the conceit of this movie is weird for a lot of reasons — it’s about a chid math prodigy and people debating, poorly it seems, how to raise her — but I’m interested in the fact that it comes from Marc Webb, who’s feature film career stared with the charming 500 Days of Summer before he went on to make two not-exactly-loved Spider-Man movies. He’s now back to making a smaller indie flick, and there’s a great cast on board too. It’ll be out April 12th.
20th Century Women
It’s maybe weird that this trailer for a movie called 20th Century Women seems to focus so much on men, but I just can’t get over this cast and how brilliant / funny they look in it. Annette Bening, Elle Fanning, and Greta Gerwig star. It’ll be out December 25th.
The Crown
This second trailer for Netflix’s The Crown turns away from the romance and family drama of the first trailer and focuses on the newly crowned queen’s political struggles to a far more dramatic effect. It’s easy to imagine that once you mix all of that together, you have a pretty compelling series. The entire series premiered yesterday, so here’s your option if you’re looking for something new this weekend.
xXx: Return of Xander Cage
I don’t know.