Gravity

[Ultimatehero]

Regardless of the marketing, how is the content any different?

There's a HUGE difference --

1) Survival horror film - okay, they're surviving oxygen big whoop. The other films had better threats and antagonists. They had something that truly terrified you -- oxygen just can't be terrifying as the trailers have failed to make any sort of 'intense' statement.

2) A character piece - 127 Hours, yeah part of it was a hand in a wall but the larger part was a character piece flashing back on what led up to that moment. THAT by large measure was the film. And it was marketed as such.

As a character piece it would work but there's no evidence that it is. If it's a survival horror film, it looks plain out boring just with pretty images.

 

[Liam_H]

I'm already psyched to see this in IMAX 3D. The concept alone has me curious enough to see how it plays out. Of course the movie could be an absolute drag that can't keep you engage the entire time but I trust the team behind this to deliver.

Being flung out into deep space isn't intense?

 

[redhawk23]

There's a HUGE difference --

1) Survival horror film - okay, they're surviving oxygen big whoop. The other films had better threats and antagonists. They had something that truly terrified you -- oxygen just can't be terrifying as the trailers have failed to make any sort of 'intense' statement.

2) A character piece - 127 Hours, yeah part of it was a hand in a wall but the larger part was a character piece flashing back on what led up to that moment. THAT by large measure was the film. And it was marketed as such.

As a character piece it would work but there's no evidence that it is. If it's a survival horror film, it looks plain out boring just with pretty images.

I just meant you could just as easily have a "survival horror" trailer for 127 hours.

Half of that trailer is just that "Man with arm stuck under a rock with little water."

 

[ThePowerCosmic]

I really really really want to be excited, but I don't know if I can sit through two hours of this.

While she's drifting through space, we can drift in and out of sleep. It's the type of movie that really gets the audience involved.

 

[Ultimatehero]

127 Hours wasn't a survival horror film. Out of the rest of the films in the genre, it was the ONLY one to truly show what led up to that moment happening. Or at least to my knowledge.

Watch from the 1:58 mark onwards to see the true difference:



Had they put something like that into it - it would have told me that there's more here than just "let's float through space!" As said, pretty images. But the trailer's already failed to thrill a majority of people as seen here and in many theaters with people laughing, the idea just doesn't have enough antagonist as it's presented right now to really be gripping outside of cinematography.

 

[Rocketman]

I'm still questioning what it's about and how it can go on for this long...

Buried - terrorists outside
Cujo - vicious dog outside
Open Water - sharks outside
Frozen - wolves outside
Gravity - lack of oxygen?

Also for anyone who brings up 127 Hours - I don't remember that being marketed as a survival horror film.

If this is another character piece like that and they're just incorrectly trying to sell it as just a survival horror film - okay, that's one thing - but if it is just a survival horror film the other films I listed had a more intense antagonist.

I would be incredibly impressed if there was a secret element to the ending or something...

Spoiler

... like aliens, perhaps.

 

[redhawk23]

I don't necessarily need to see what they did the day before though to learn about their character is my point. Characters can be established through their actions. The film will be extremely focused on very few characters so will definitely have time to do so. More than one way to skin a cat.

 

[Liam_H]

Had they put something like that into it - it would have told me that there's more here than just "let's float through space!" As said, pretty images. But the trailer's already failed to thrill a majority of people as seen here and in many theaters with people laughing, the idea just doesn't have enough antagonist as it's presented right now to really be gripping outside of cinematography.

The only reason people are laughing is cause of that end shot, if it wasn't part of the trailer they wouldn't be.

 

[Ultimatehero]

I don't necessarily need to see what they did the day before though to learn about their character is my point. More than one way to skin a cat.

I don't really see them as talking a lot - just a lot of actions to stay alive and to me? That's just not enough. And for A LOT of people? That doesn't seem to be enough. You have people audibly saying in theaters while laughing, "what was that?" That's the last reaction you want people to have to a marketing campaign. Basically because the movie seems to have no visible threat. Yeah, in the situation - there would be a threat. Lack of oxygen is scary. But there's nothing enticing narratively about it.

The only reason people are laughing is cause of that end shot, if it wasn't part of the trailer they wouldn't be.

I've seen this trailer play in theaters about ten times now. Each and every time there are audible, "um, okay" "what is that?" and not in a positive way.

 

[redhawk23]

Again I'm talking about the potential of the film itself not #13487 in the collection of poorly selected trailers.

We've seen what 2 minutes from the beginning of a movie?

 

[Ultimatehero]

And those two minutes don't look enticing at all. And floating through space without anything happening isn't interesting at all.

On a visual level? Yeah, the visuals look interesting but film is more than just putting pretty images up on a screen. And if audience reactions are like that to the trailer I seriously don't see them improving with the film which just seems to be a lot more of the same.

And this (summary I found):

Spoiler

so after bullocks character is thrown from their shuttle, clooneys character goes after her because he has maneuvering jetpack of sorts (you can see it used in the 1st clip). Sandra's suit is losing pressure due to a microscopic hole in her suit, so clooney tells her to hold on as they go back to the original shuttle to find something to patch it up or shell die. so they get back, sandra must go into the shuttle bc clooneys pack fit through the entrance. (at this point everything in the ship is open to space and the 2 crew inside are dead) she finally finds duct tape and they patch her up. they then make a journey to a space station a few miles away with clooneys pack and her tethered to it. clooney knows about how long the debris will take before making a full circle around the earth and having be threat to them again (40 mins. they notice half way there that a an escape pod is leaving the station but is not heading to them but back to eather. they barely make it to the 1st station with clooneys pack out of juice and both sandras and clooneys air almost out. they bounce around the station and clooney is eventually thrown off and presumed dead. right after the debris returns and does some serious *beep* to the station. sandra makes it into the haul of the station where there is only one pod left put the chute is already deployed. it can only used to go the last space station which is chinese. she barley makes it out with the pod. during that time is the emotional part of the film where its still very intense but she feels very helpless. once to the chinese station which is also damaged. she must climb out of the pod, use a fire exstinguisher that she got from the last station to project herself to the chinese station for being bounced off into space like clooney. she does so successfully. there is no one there but there is an extra pod left. a couple fire start on board but no real way to put them out. she jumps in the pod just as the 3rd wave of debris comes. she barely makes it and crash lands to earth into a lake

Isn't really interesting to me. It just sees like more of the same. Not a lot of room for character development. Just in space and with pretty images. To me, I am pretty sure that the trailer is representative of the overall because it sounds really close to the above. In theory and on page it might work, and I commend them for the risk - but on screen, I just don't see it doing that much for that many people. It's the same old A to B to C with increasing challenges that's in these films, nothing outside of visuals to truly set it apart.

I would be incredibly impressed if there was a secret element to the ending or something...

Spoiler

... like aliens, perhaps.

That would make it interesting and make it more original.

 

[redhawk23]

The last line of the official plot description is telling I think:

But the only way home may be to go further out into the terrifying expanse of space.

It would seem there definitely is a goal they are working towards, rather than just waiting around to die.

 

[Ultimatehero]

The last line of the official plot description is telling I think:



It would seem there definitely is a goal they are working towards, rather than just waiting around to die.

Dude, I just gave you an exact precise summary from the script that I found.

Spoiler

It's them bouncing or floating around between shuttles and avoiding debris. That's the movie.

And that's what the trailer was. The trailer outside of pretty visuals really had nothing that stood out about it and it wasn't intense. The film is just more of the same just different levels.

 

[redhawk23]

And 127 Hours is an arrogant assh*** chopping off his arm.

 

[Ultimatehero]

And 127 Hours is an arrogant assh*** chopping off his arm.

127 Hours was a character piece and an artistic character piece at that of exploring life and how precious all the moments in one's life are and that is something worth fighting for.

What is the message of this film exactly? Survive floating shuttle debris?

You might think that's interesting and are open to that, I just find it boring since it says absolutely nothing and its antagonist is lesser than those of a similar genre. Air - wolves, sharks, terrorists -- I'm readily more afraid of the last three on an emotional level.

 

[Kane52630]

geeze...

 

[redhawk23]

I'm just saying it is silly to write off a movie by attempting to reduce it to its most basic plot description as that can be done for any movie.

What trailer contains the breath of performances and themes?

 

[Liam_H]

Really? The fear of being lost in space and suffocating to death doesn't scare you.

 

[Ultimatehero]

Dude, I just posted the SUMMARY of the film -- beat for beat, moment for moment from the script -- it's just a longer version of the trailer.

Spoiler

Shuttle breaks down. Get to safety! Hop to next shuttle! Avoid debris. Get something. Need to hop back to the shuttle! Escape debris! Reach the next shuttle. Realize something. Need to get the next shuttle! Escape debris! Find a pod. Have to get to the next shuttle. Escape debris. Chinese shuttle. Pod to lake. The end.

That? Outside of pretty images does absolutely nothing for me. The thing is from the summary online from the script -- the trailer is marketing EXACTLY what it is.

Really? The fear of being lost in space and suffocating to death doesn't scare you.

On an intellectual level? Yes. On a gut emotional level? No.

 

[jmc]

I'm not quite understanding what it is people are having issues with. The crux of it seems to be 'I'm not sure what this film is trying to be about'. Well, given the director involved shouldn't you be giving this film more than enough benefit of the doubt before crapping all over it?

 

[Whiskey Tango]

What is the message of this film exactly? Survive floating shuttle debris?

It's cute how you play up the film you like as some deep meaningful journey, yet in the same breath accuse a film you haven't even seen of having no message.

Personally I think you'd be better off seeing the movie before you continue to tell everyone how wrong they are for liking this trailer.

 

[Ultimatehero]

I'm not quite understanding what it is people are having issues with. The crux of it seems to be 'I'm not sure what this film is trying to be about'. Well, given the director involved shouldn't you be giving this film more than enough benefit of the doubt before crapping all over it?

Even great directors can sometimes slip. So while name says something, it doesn't say everything. And I know what it's about - I've read the summary of what it's about beat by beat and moment by moment and it's basically the trailer just longer and more stations. Plus repetitive.

Personally I think you'd be better off seeing the movie before you continue to tell everyone how wrong they are for liking this trailer.

Actually if you re-read I have never said anyone was wrong for liking it, I said quite clearly that they are open to liking it, I just said it looks utterly boring to me and the synopsis of it from the script makes it seem doubly so and the only redeeming factor I see is visual. It comes across to me, quite clearly, as something that works in idea but not much beyond that and for that I commend them for experimenting it just doesn't seem like it paid off this time.

 

[Whiskey Tango]

I just said it looks utterly boring to me and the synopsis of it from the script makes it seem doubly so and the only redeeming factor I see is visual.

It takes nearly a dozen posts to get this point across?

 

[Ultimatehero]

It takes nearly a dozen posts to get this point across?

With, as obvious to see, redhawk's badgering to run around in circles - yes. All I've been doing is replying.

 

[jmc]

Even great directors can sometimes slip. So while name says something, it doesn't say everything. And I know what it's about - I've read the summary of what it's about beat by beat and moment by moment and it's basically the trailer just longer and more stations.

Um, yeah, so until the film comes out you don't have any real reason to think he isn't capable of turning a seemingly simplistic outline it to something riveting are you?