Trailer Round-Up – January 21, 2017

The Lost City of Z Based on author David Grann’s non-fiction bestseller, The Lost City of Z tells the incredible true story of British explorer Percy Fawcett (Charlie Hunnam), who journeys into the Amazon at the dawn of the 20th century and discovers evidence of a previously unknown, advanced civilization that may have once inhabited the region. This is a good trailer that effectively communicates the main premise, shows off the cast and the strong visuals, and builds a sense of mystery and intrigue surrounding the titular lost city/civilization. It also helps that The Lost City of Z has a handful of pretty positive reviews so far. The Lost City of Z is set for a March 24, 2017 release in the UK. Colossal Directed by Nacho Vigalondo and starring Anne Hathaway, Jason Sudeikis, Dan Stevens, Austin Stowell, and Tim Blake Nelson, Colossal is a movie about a woman who has a mysterious and inexplicable connection to a giant monster rampaging in Seoul, South Korea. This trailer is pretty short, giving us a rough idea of the basic premise, which is that Hathaway is somehow in control of the giant monster. It feels like it's going for comedy, which might not be the best idea - hard to laugh when you're constantly aware of wide-scale death and destruction caused by the monster. Then again, the trailer is far too short to get much a good impression. Colossal is scheduled for an April 7, 2017 release in the USA. Logan From director James Mangold, Logan marks Hugh Jackman's final appearance as the iconic X-Men character Wolverine. In the near future, a weary Logan cares for an ailing Professor Xavier (Sir Patrick Stewart) in a hide out on the Mexican border. But Logan’s attempts to hide from the world and his legacy are upended when a young mutant arrives, being pursued by dark forces. Logan's previous trailer made a damn good first impression for Jackman's final outing as the titular character and the second builds on that promise even more. We get to see X-23 in action, as well as just more action in general - if you were still skeptical about the R-rating, this trailer should dispel any doubts about how graphic the movie will be. The choice of music is great, hearing Sir Patrick swear is great and it's cool to see that the X-Men comics now exist in-universe as well. It's another great trailer for what's shaping up to be a pretty great movie by the looks of it. Logan is set for a March 3, 2017 release. Power Rangers Saban’s Power Rangers, directed by Dean Israelite, follows five ordinary high school kids who must become something extraordinary when they learn that their small town of Angel Grove – and the world – is on the verge of being obliterated by an alien threat. Chosen by destiny, our heroes quickly discover that they are the only ones who can save the planet. But to do so they will have to overcome their real-life issues and band together as the Power Rangers before it is too late. While still pretty bad, the second trailer for Power Rangers at least feels more in line with the franchise, unlike the first, which was channeling a lackluster, neutered Chronicle-vibe. The dialogue is cheesy and stupid, but it seems like the kind of cheesy and stupid that you might expect out of a Power Rangers story - not being a fan of the property myself, I can't tell if the actual fans will appreciate this. There's more color to be found here, but it still looks a bit too muted and dull. Power Rangers is scheduled for a March 24, 2017 release. The Nut Job 2 Directed by Cal Brunker and featuring the voices of Will Arnett, Katherine Heigl, Maya Rudolph and Jackie Chan, The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature follows the adventures of Surly Squirrel when the evil mayor of Oakton decides to bulldoze Liberty Park and build a dangerous amusement park in its place. Surly and his ragtag group of animal friends need to band together to save their home, defeat the mayor, and take back the park. The Nut Job is not one of those movies that deserves or needs a sequel, but it is one of those movies that made just enough money for a sequel to be made anyway - enter Nutty by Nature. The animation quality is barely good enough for a theatrical release - there is a stiffness and cheapness to everything that hardly makes it look endearing. The plot is incredibly stock and by-the-numbers - a few lines were kind of funny, but that hardly seems good enough to warrant actually watching it or taking any kids to see it. The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature is set for an August 18 (US) and August 29 (UK), 2017 release. Girlfriend's Day In the Netflix original film, Girlfriend’s Day, director Michael Paul Stephenson invites you to experience a clever and quirky story about love, loss and the worst place to get a paper cut. Meet Ray Wentworth (Bob Odenkirk), once a king of the wordsmith world, and now a down-on-his-luck romance card writer. In an effort to recapture the feelings that once made him the greatest, he gets entangled in a web of murder and deceit as writers vie to create the perfect card for a newly crowned holiday: Girlfriend’s Day. This is a weird trailer for a weird looking film. The dark comedy doesn't get a lot of laughs, but the plot is bizarre and surreal enough to warrant a closer look. Also, props for that paper cut line, it's an image that's hard to shake off. Girlfriend's Day will be available on Netflix globally on - when else - Valentine's Day, 2017.