40. Selma (Trailer #1)
Ava Duvernay has no interest in making your standard stuffy biopic, or in delivering the warped depiction of Martin Luther King, Jr. as the smiley sunshine and rainbows guy found in most elementary school lessons. Selma‘s theatrical trailer makes this clear right off the bat, framing the whole thing with a conversation of Lyndon B. Johnson expressing fears about King’s activism and political clout. The trailer delivers an excellent balance of action and character moments, and topping the whole thing off with Public Enemy’s “Say It Like It Really Is” is a perfect choice. (Ciara Wardlow)
39. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (Theatrical Trailer)
The Once Upon a Time in Hollywood trailer promises an absolute blast of a time for anyone whose idea of heaven looks a lot like Hollywood in the late 1960s. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is an absolute blast of a time for anyone whose idea of heaven looks a lot like Hollywood in the late 1960s. To all those people who do not fall into this category, went to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood anyway, and found it boring: what were you expecting? Did you not see the trailer? It gave you fair warning. (Ciara Wardlow)
38. Prometheus
This trailer isn’t exactly groundbreaking in terms of content or format, but damn is it effective. It follows a pretty standard “start with exposition and then dial up the tension” formula, but you can tell it’s a Ridley Scott film; all the (considerable) money is on the screen, and the use of sound is something else—if trailers were eligible for sound mixing Oscars, you would have a prime contender right here. By the time it crescendos with those familiar electronic shrieks made famous by Alien films past, the hairs on the back of your neck have been very successfully raised. (Ciara Wardlow)
37. “Guardians of the Galaxy” (Teaser)
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is at its best when it embraces its irreverent, campy strengths instead of trying to be “serious.” While with the hindsight of 2019, Guardians of the Galaxy would in time be ousted by another (we’ll get back to this later), when the Guardians of the Galaxy teaser came out in 2014, joyfully breaking with the unfortunate “darker n’ edgier” trend particularly prominent at that time with irreverence and jokes a-plenty—not to mention some killer tunes—audiences everywhere were charmed. Positively charmed, I say! (Ciara Wardlow)
36. The Last Black Man in San Francisco
The trailer for Joe Talbot’s masterful directorial debut is so good at what it does that when I rewatched it writing this list, I blinked, and then suddenly, I was clicking “proceed to checkout” with a Blu-Ray copy of the film in my cart. I genuinely don’t recall making any conscious decisions between points A and B. Mesmerism, I tell you. But it’s an utterly mesmerizing film, so hey, the shoe fits. (Ciara Wardlow)
35. Won’t You Be My Neighbor?
I am not easily moved to tears. Less than a dozen films have ever made me cry. So imagine my surprise in the spring of 2018 when I found myself sniffling over a trailer for a Mr. Rogers documentary. Well played, Morgan Neville. Well played. (Ciara Wardlow)
34. Eighth Grade
One of the most impressive elements of Bo Burnham’s debut feature Eighth Grade is its ability to viscerally evoke both the universal mortification of middle school, and the specific ways in which young Gen Z teenagers’ growing pains are intertwined with ever-present social media. The online comedian turned filmmaker’s compassionate balance of old and new coming of age struggles is portrayed stunningly in the film’s trailer, which centers around its 14-year-old protagonist, Kayla Day. Her earnest YouTube monologue about being yourself is interspersed with the booming thrums of Enya’s “Sail Away” and Perfume Genius’ “Slip Away,” creating an atmosphere that feels as overwhelming and ostracizing as a mundane classroom or classmate’s pool party feel to Kayla. As the trailer progresses, and the editing hovers less claustrophobically around her, this poignant summation of a girl attempting to break through her self doubts is hard to watch without feeling pangs of adolescent nostalgia at any age. (Abby Monteil)
33. Blue Valentine
The Blue Valentine trailer starts simply enough: Ryan Gosling sings a goofy rendition of an old standard, “You Always Hurt the Ones You Love.” Michelle Williams accompanies him with some equally goofy time steps. And then suddenly you’re faced with a montage of the highs and lows of their characters’ relationship, the audio from their initial song-and-dance serving as the backdrop for it all. That’s a lot of emotional dissonance to fit under two minutes, and yet the result hits hard; I’m always affected by how quickly the song can go from being sweet to foreboding and back again, creating a rocky undercurrent that signals Blue Valentine as something very real and raw without necessarily saying why. Plus, that final tremolo in Gosling’s voice just drives it all home so beautifully. Yes, the man can sing. This clip will make me die on that hill. (Christina Smith)
32. Man of Steel (Trailer #2)
Coming hot on the heels of the shiver-inducing teaser featuring a Russell Crowe voiceover for the ages, the first full trailer for Zack Snyder’s DCU-spawning Man Of Steel had a 2012 audience on the edge of their seats in anticipation of this bold new Superman. Oh, how naive we were. Despite the eventual shitshow that the DCU became, this trailer had everything; Christ Imagery, ethereal church vocals over a Hans Zimmer score, Ma and Pa Kent played by Diane Lane and Kevin Kostner (Kent parents spin-off movie when?), and the back-and-forth, propulsive editing of action scenes and stark imagery to an escalating symphonic movement that hadn’t yet become quite the cliche it is today. If a trailer is an advertisement for a film, this one sold us all a Superman movie that could be hopeful, powerful, and bold, and introduced much of the movie-going audience to Henry Cavill and his incredible upper body. (M. G. McIntyre)
31. Moonlight
Moonlight is not an easy film to distill into an enticing trailer, but A24 did an excellent job of shaping an enticing preview that accurately captures the spirit of Barry Jenkins’ masterpiece. In addressing Chrion’s sexuality upfront, it avoids the obvious trap of cheapening it in the name of adding a sense of “mystery.” Instead, the trailer stays true to the heart of the film, keeping the focus self-acceptance, the nature of our own relationships with our past, and the search for human intimacy and genuine connection. A beautiful trailer for a beautiful film. (Ciara Wardlow)
Related Topics: Ava DuVernay, Christopher Nolan, David Fincher, Decade Rewind, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Paul Thomas Anderson
