Trailer Tracker: Shanghai, Going the Distance and more

Thanks again for checking out Trailer Tracker where we at Player Affinity delicately pick apart the latest trailers to hit the web. After a beefy week clip-wise we return to the doldrums of promotional material with only three new trailers. We shall explore the period noir film Shanghai starring John Cusack, “Go the Distance” with Justin Long and Drew Barrymore in their new relationship film and finally venture to Restrepo, a Middle East war doc that garnered significant acclaim at Sundance.

 Shanghai

If you have ever been interested in seeing the invasion of Pearl Harbour, well, from not in Pearl Harbour (sorry Michael Bay) then Shanghai should pique your interest. Starring John Cusack, Ken Wantanabe, Chow Yun-Fat and Jeffrey Dean Morgan this period noir flick follows an American (Cusack) in 1940s Shanghai investigating the death of his friend and uncovers possible ties to the impending attack on Hawaii. Director Mikael Hafstrom has worked with Cusack before having directed the hit horror flick 1408 and if he can carry over some of that style this should be a film to look for later this year.

Going the Distance

One of the few remaining truths in Hollywood is that Justin Long is the best thing about every film he is in. In Going the Distance he joins Drew Barrymore and Christina Applegate in this romantic drama about the tribulations of a long-distance relationship. The trailer looks to have some amusing elements and hopefully those do not equal the total sum of the laughs, but if they can avoid unlikable characters, idiotic slapstick and actually try to say something new, this film could very well go the distance.

Restrepo

What if The Hurt Locker was real?  Then you may have something along the lines of indy darling Restrepo which debuted at Sundance. This war documentary follows a remote outpost in a war-riddled valley in Afghanistan and the soldiers who call that slice of hell home. Documentary filmmaking goes over the heads of the general movie going public (unless Michael Moore is behind the camera) especially those focusing on that particular conflict. The trailer looks riveting and hopefully this can be the film to open the minds of people at home.