New 'Avatar' trailer -- and why it's still not good enough

By Andrew Wallenstein

Given the mixed reaction to the teaser trailer for James Cameron's "Avatar," release of the full-length trailer might have been even more highly anticipated. Would 20th Century Fox recalibrate the tone and style of the second trailer to whip the masses into the frenzy the first one fell short of doing?

Sadly, the second trailer just out today in the U.S., as well as a behind-the-scenes featurette that was released Wednesday, takes the "Avatar" marketing strategy in a slightly different direction -- but it's the wrong direction.

Yes, there's more never-before-seen footage of the blue Na'avi creatures traipsing all over planet Pandora, as well as first glimpses of cast members Michelle Rodriguez and Giovanni Ribisi. That's all well and good, but where this trailer goes wrong is an overload of exposition that spells out the storyline in way too much detail. A mix of voiceover and select excerpts of dialogue erase any sense of mystery cultivated in the previous trailer.

"Avatar" hype strategy should go in the opposite direction. Enhance the mystery by providing viewers with beguiling images they can't make sense of -- and have to come to theaters to decipher.

But what's worse is that these trailers are not delivering the one thing that "Avatar" has made the foundation of its marketing: the wow factor. The featurette tells us again and again how Cameron is taking some sort of quantum leap forward in filmmaking with "Avatar," but it's just not at all evident in the footage in the trailer. Intriguing visuals? Sure, but nothing George Lucas hasn't delivered before. What "Avatar" trailers needed to bring was the kind of jaw-slackening images the "Matrix" made its trademark.

The featurette is committing the cardinal sin of telling, not showing us, Cameron's genius. If it's not evident onscreen, dial back all the visionary talk or risk raising expectations too high. And drop the trailer's coloratura soprano music, another cliche too many films take to convey a sense of awe that just has to be on the screen to be induced.

Blow some minds or risk blowing an opportunity to make "Avatar" the sci-fi classic it so desperately wants to be. 

Comments

[Ryan]

This trailer got applause at the theater I saw it in last Friday... and that was a crowd there for "Amelia"

I think it's doing something right.

Cameron did the same thing with the theatrical trailer for Titanic and we all know how that turned out.
I wouldn't jump so quickly to saying that this is a bad marketing move...

[twitter.com/JaxConrad]

I think this new trailer is pretty darn good. Teaser was boring, but I'm really looking forward to it after this new trailer. I'll agree it doesn't show anything that caused me to think 'wow' tho, but I'm sure when its on the big screen and in 3D it'll be a different story.

[ABking]

The new trailer is friggin awesome. No one does awe better than Cameron, well except Spielberg. This film will gross over 250 million domestic and 600 million worldwide and spawn many sequels. Hopefully AVATAR 2 will star Schwarzenegger or Stallone as muscle bound Na'avi!

[tom ebbers]

The aliens look like something out of an old Star Trek episode, and plot looks recycled from "Dances With Wolves." That's what $300M buys? How underwhelming.

[A Martin]

Where the first trailer was truly dreadful, this second attempt is merely boring; a paint by numbers approach to trailer-making. Can it really be that difficult?

[Sean]

To say that this trailer doesn't deliver the wow factor is missing the point of this whole endeavor taken on by Cameron - the main way to see this is in 3D. This is merely a 2 dimensional representation of what the final product will be.

[Dylan Silverman]

I thought it was good not great. And your just jumping on the Cameron hating wagon because that's what is fashionable in Hollywood. Americans will vote with their feet and I'd peg the final domestic gross at. 355 million and 500 over seas.

[ABking]

By Dylan Silverman's box-office estimate, AVATAR will gross 855 million worldwide. If Cameron had that kind of gross after TITANIC being the most successful film of all time, Jim would move right next to Steven Spielberg as the most powerful man in Hollywood!

[twitter.com/momzilla54]

I don't agree this is awful. As someone pointed out above, Cameron did the same thing with Titanic, and that -ahem- turned out OK. May turn out to be a brilliant marketing move - let's wait and see.

[Bob Loblaw]

It may still not be good enough to you, but judging from the online reaction most people think, at the very least, it's an improvement on the teaser and many others are in love with it. And you claim it doesn't deliver on the WOW factor, but that's purely subjective since I think it provides that in spades. You also say you want the marketing to be more mysterious, yet you later complain it doesn't have any amazing imagery. Well which one is it, do you want them to be coy or to show us all of their money shots up front?

Wack sauce. Ya, that just happened.

[1upnya]

abking Titanic grossed over a billion dollars worldwide. 600 domestic.

[Andrew Wallenstein]

Bob Loblaw,
I think you can be more mysterious AND also show amazing imagery; that's not contradictory at all. And yes my observation that the trailer doesn't deliver the WOW factor is subjective. Guilty. Welcome to blogging.

[derek]

The narrative total of a film of this scope cannot be conveyed in 3minutes and a few seconds.

If one tried to condence the narrative of a film (say titanic) into a 3 minute trailer it would be nigh impossible let alone spectacular and mysterious at the same time. Trailers should not be scrutanised for more than a glimps into the world of a film. I have seen many excellent trailers to dissapointing films which they are supposed to sell. Visa-versa also applies of course. Lets just wait and see what Cameron pulls out of his bag of story-telling tricks... We all know what happened when we started caring for the characters of titanic... Box-office gold!

[Zip]

This trailer is weak, and the Hollywood Reporter writer is right on the money. You guys are largely being James Cameron apologists. I am a huge fan of Cameron, but this movie isn't adding-up to be the visionary film that we were promised.

[protein powder]

At least now it seems that there's an actual movie there and not just a bunch of blue creatures running around in a forest. I've written it off after the last teaser, but the new trailer got me interested again.

[Serge]

The movie is not out yet or an idiot is trying to critisize a trailer??? OMG Where is this world going to?? Besides no matter what the so-called-critics say... People will go to see this... Good critics or bad critics... Cameron doesn't need the promomachine going crazy...

[Bob]

Looked real good to me... some people are NEVER satisfied. The writer further appears to thing he/she is the director of the film, perhaps the world... um.. get a job?

[Leif Jensen]

WTF...based on the trailer, this is like cowboys and indians on steroids. It's the Marines as the bad guys wanting to kill or move an entire population for some resource. It's a liberal's wet dream. Boring. Have you noticed how in new movies of the Hollywood socialist left, the United States is always evil and trying to kill or invade some poor defensless people. This is the world as seen by those who remain after the grownups leave. Big flash...then flame out.

[B Miller]

The film will do well. Not Titanic well...but well. The difference? All the family (even grandparents) went to see Titanic. Will not be the case with this Sci Fi futuristic thriller. But, hey....does it really matter? Kudos to James for following his artistic dream as well as developing a new 3-D technology. For that..I am more than excited. Wanted to see 3-D done right for many years now.