Saturday, October 30, 2010

trick or treat (or trailer)?

since it's Halloween, here's a fun treat.

check out the trailer for the original 1978 Halloween film (below) and compare it to the trailer for the 2007 remake (below-er).



the trailer for the original is playful. it starts through the eyes of a killer, underscored by creepy music, and just as we think we've pieced together what's happening--there's a twist. the guy behind the mask is a little boy.

what's interesting about this spot is that it's all set-up. they give us the backstory about the original murder, and the rest of the time is spent building tension-suspense-excitement, until the final seconds when the voiceover says, "Halloween. The night he came home." in other words, the whole thing is an introduction.

oh, and the studio wasn't very subtle about its branding. lest you forget what you're watching, the film's title comes up a whopping three times.

now here's the trailer for the 2007 version:



this one is less of a tease. we actually see a lot of the action, the confrontations, the murder scenes. this spot places a lot of emphasis on the fact that it's a remake, which means the studio is primarily aiming to hook fans of the original.

it's also using the remake angle as a way to distinguish itself from the plethora of horror films vying for space in the 2007 box office (30 Days of Night, Hatchet, Vacancy, Grindhouse, The Mist, Hostel 2, 28 Weeks Later, Severance, The Host, etc).

happy hauntings!

1 comment:

  1. Speaking of 28 Weeks Later, that trailer kicked all kinds of butt too:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RtvP7tGJm4

    Too bad the movie itself wasn't very good.

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