Trailer Tracker: Immortals, The Ledge and more

Even though we technically have to wait until Friday to witness the official start to the summer season, the smell of mayhem is already in the air, so what better way to christen the next four months then with some trailers that have nothing to do whatsoever with blockbuster time.

Immortals
The Ledge
One Day
Age of Heroes
Intruders

Immortals

The lore goes that a great titanomachy, or war of the Titans, occurred between those deities and the Olympians, the latter of which would eventually reign in Mount Olympus and imprison the great Titans. In Immortals, years after that great clash, an un-captured titan in disguise as King Hyperion (played by Mickey Rourke) declares war. The gods then turn to demi-god Theseus (Henry Cavill) to stop the uprising. Much of this subject matter has been touched on in offerings such as Clash of the Titans, though this boasts the style of Tarsem Singh, an aesthetic visionary who crafted the lavishly mounted The Cell and The Fall. Slumdog Millionaire’s Frieda Pinto and Stephen Dorff also star in this stylized epic which is again being compared to Zach Snyder’s still hugely popular 300.

Immortals promises a blend of mythology and action and as it would seem, a great deal of slow-mo. In Singh’s previous two efforts, (The Fall in particular) he was notorious for using little to no special effects, but crafted massive sets, travelled the world to capture the proper landscape and used extras and authentically choreographed fights to shape his films, as was the way in the Hollywood of old. Watch one a few clips from either of his films to see how impressive that feat truly is. He certainly has the vision, though he has yet to venture into the world of CGI, so I fear some of his tactile essence will be lost. But as far as big-budget offerings go, his involvement makes cause for a great deal of excitement.

The Ledge

Though the trailer may lay on the religious elements a bit too thick to garner mainstream interest, a cast that includes Liv Tyler, Patrick Wilson and Terrance Howard certainly speaks positively as does the direction of long-time screenwriter and author Matthew Chapman (his biggest work to date is scripting Runway Jury for the screen). Early reviews from Sundance have distressingly been slanted negative, about a nothing man (Charlie Hunnam) who begins an affair with the wife of a fundamentalist Christian. After their liaisons are discovered, Hunnam’s Gavin is forced to the ledge of a tall building and given one hour to jump and save the life of the woman he loves or see her perish. Hopefully The Ledge can avoid the preachiness that plagues many religious-themed movies and focus instead on thrills and characters.

One Day

In addition to a lesson of how not to use voiceovers during a trailer, One Day is also a sweeping love story that takes place over the course of 20 years between Emma Morley (Anne Hathaway) and Dexter Mayhew (Jim Sturgess) who after one night together, pledge to meet every year and see where they are in life. The film was adapted from the 2009 novel of the same name written by David Nicholls who also serves as screenwriter here. We’re seen many instances where novelists are unable to distance themselves from their material and turn out bloated messes so hopefully this will be the exception rather than the rule. Hathaway is a charming lead though she seems to be sporting an English accent that is a touch off but I will not hold the scattered clips from the trailer as the be all to end all. One Day will make girls cry in the U.S. on August 19.

Age of Heroes

Sean Bean, though never having achieved mainstream success, still remains one of the most prolific character actors working today: always giving an interesting performance even when the material around him falters. He should have no problem with Age of Heroes, the true story of the formation of Ian Fleming’s (of James Bond fame) 30 Commando unit during World War II who enter occupied Norway to capture a dangerous Nazi official. I love these little slices of history from the Second World War that focus on a small conflict that was ultimately a part of the larger global conflict. With explosions, espionage, thriller elements and a strong cast let’s hope this gets the release it seems to deserve.

Intruders

From director Juan Carlos Fresnadillo (28 Weeks Later, Intacto) comes Intruders, a haunted-house style flick starring Clive Owen as the father of an 11-year-old who is plagued by a monster in her room. Fresnadillo is next slated to helm the remake of The Crow and based on that choice by the studio and his past work, there is no reason to expect anything less than a well-shot, relentless horror offering. The teaser trailer shows very little, but like all things that go bump in the night, the less you see the better

.