The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013)

Last week, I wrote a post about the trailer for the upcoming Captain America sequel. I decided that I really enjoy dissecting trailers and everything they hold, so this week, I'm doing it again with The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. This time, though, I won't be focusing on the dialogue. That's because, well, there really isn't any.

The Dialogue
There's a million different ways a person can edit together a trailer. One of the biggest decisions the editor has to make is which dialogue they are going to feature in the preview to their film. Many editors choose to use very many of the most climactic, the funniest, or the most inspirational quotes to draw in movie-goers. The editor(s) for this trailer, however, decided to take the completely opposite route.

He/she/they chose to use absolutely zero lines of dialogue throughout the entire trailer; that is, until the last five seconds when Ben Stiller asks a man if there are any car available to rent and the man replies "Yeah. We have a blue one and a red one." These five seconds could either serve to emphasize the fact that the film is indeed comical at times, or could serve to represent some sort of change in Stiller's character (the majority of the film appears to be bluish, so choosing the red car could mean that Stiller eventually goes for change or wishes to stand out--it's a long shot, I know).

Either way, the lack of dialogue in the trailer leaves a lot to viewers' interpretation. Yes, this is a remake of a 1947 film, but who knows how closely the writers will stick to the original? Any character or voiceover telling me what's happening, I'm sitting there wondering why the pictures on the walls are moving. I'm wondering who the girl is who Stiller keeps looking at. I can make whatever assumptions I want, but the fact that I'm so intrigued to find the answers to my questions that I'll go see the movie in theaters means the editors did their job.

The Coloring
Wow. How about that coloring?! Everything's blue! I honestly don't know what to say about it besides the fact that it is simply stunning.

I mean, seriously! Hot damn!

Since IMDb is telling me that the film is an Adventure/Comedy/Drama, I'm not quite sure what kind of response the coloring is supposed to draw from viewers. With a drama, it would make a whole lot of sense. The blue adds a bit of bleakness and sadness to the overall emotion of any film. How the blue is intended to interact with the adventure and comedy of the film is beyond me. Maybe I'm looking too far into it? It's possible, but I'd like an answer, nonetheless.

The Storyline
Here's another thing about this trailer I know very little about, but intrigues me, nonetheless: the storyline. It doesn't give anything away! I have personally never seen the original Walter Mitty, so I have absolutely no foundation of understanding when watching this trailer. I've tried my absolute best to avoid asking others about it, too. Since this trailer has intrigued me so much, I want to go into the theater with nothing but my own expectations. Here's what I've deduced from the trailer: man is bored with life, man is bored with job, man likes girl at job, man imagines going on adventures, man eventually goes on adventures. I could be wrong, and I hope that I am. I'd really like to be surprised with some kind of surreal, unexpected plot that just shocks everyone.

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty has an incredibly enticing trailer. Its cinematic beauty manages to give away very little with the extreme lack of dialogue, and I can't wait to see what I've been waiting for when it comes out this Christmas.

Night at the Museum 3?

If there's one thing I hate about the film industry, it's the perpetuation of a film series in order to make  more money. Lucrative films are always getting sequels, prequels and and other type of "quel" that can be squeezed out. Sometimes, these subsequent films build upon the foundation set by their predecessor and are quite good. However, I've found that nine times out of ten, the series reaches a threshold where the films simply stop being good. Take the Shrek series, for example. The original "Shrek" movie was great. Funny, charming, built with a great cast, it was one of my favorite films growing up. Shrek 2 was a pleasant surprise, and in some cases proved to be better than the original. Then "Shrek the Third" rolled around. I remember thinking to myself, my goodness this film is terrible. I didn't even bother going to see the fourth Shrek film. For better or worse, each film was considered a blockbuster hit, and perpetuated the creation of other film. I bet right now there's someone in Hollywood who thinks another Shrek film is a brilliant idea. My point is, monetary success is not proportional to quality, and should not be considered as such.

Recently it was just announced that the "Night at the Musuem" franchise is getting another installment. Now, this one particularly bothers me. I remember being in elementary school when the first film came out, and I was very excited. Rightfully so, as the film was charming, witty, and had a pretty good premise. After seeing the second one, it was clear that the source material for the films had quickly evaporated. It was essentially the same as the first, only it had lost it's charm. I feel like this downhill slide could only continue with a third film. I mean, how many museums can Ben Stiller almost ruin?

It seems like this project is going to get the greenlight, as Robin Williams recently announced that he would reprise his role as Teddy Roosevelt. Nothing to keep a film going like the attachment of big-name actors.

Although I don't want it to, this film will definitely and unfortunately happen.