There is a major shift taking place in Hollywood right now, and for some reason, I was completely oblivious of it until today.

There was a time in Hollywood when actors were clearly differentiated into three categories. Comedic actors appeared in comedic movies, dramatic actors appeared in dramatic movies, and action stars appeared in action movies. Period.

I guess the first major deviation from this occurred when Robin Williams was cast in Good Morning Vietnam, and since then, pretty much every major comedic actor has tried his hand at dramatic acting. More recently, dramatic actors have also been dabbling in comedies (Robert De Niro, John C. Reilly, etc.). But up until very recently, action movies were still reserved for guys whose muscles were far more impressive than their acting chops (Arnold, Sly, etc).

I’m not sure when this started to change exactly, but telling by the global outcry over Daniel Craig’s selection as the newest Bond, I’m thinking it wasn’t that long ago.

But this year, the phenomenon has been taken to the next level: Superhero movies. There are two major Superhero movies coming out this summer (Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk), and by some strange imbalance in the universe, they’re both being helmed by tremendous actors (Robert Downey Jr. and Edward Norton). I for one have no idea how this shift occurred, but I can tell you this: I’m absolutely loving it!!

I love Superhero movies, and it can only improve them to put some actual actors in the leading roles. And if you compliment their acting skills with all that glorious CGI and other special effects (as they clearly did with this movie), well, I don’t know about you, but I’m giddy just thinking about it.

I guess it goes without saying that The Incredible Hulk is a SEE IT for me. And I do hope that everyone else will see it as well, just so that Hollywood will be persuaded to keep this miraculous new trend alive.

The Incredible Hulk is not yet rated and opens June 13. (Official Site)

The more trailers I watch, the more I feel like it really ain’t that hard to make a good one. For those aspiring trailer makers out there, I’ll tell you what I think are the three most important things to consider while making your trailer: Music, Music, and Music.

There’s a misconception out there that movie trailers are supposed to be mini-movies. In other words, you take the best dialog and drama and comedy from your movie, and you cram them into a two and a half minute short. However, in my opinion, a good movie trailer isn’t a mini-movie; it’s a Music Video.

Trailers are a medium far different than a movie. They’re not meant to teach you anything or move you or surprise you. They’re just meant to pump you up for the future film. So I say, leave the heartwarming drama and the intriguing twists for the actual movie, and instead, just make a fun little music video. Pick out a couple catchy tunes, throw in some flashy scenes, finish it off with a witty one-liner, and vuala, a sure seat-filler.

And with that, I give you the trailer for Street Kings. It’s the best trailer I’ve seen in a long while (which automatically makes the movie a SEE IT for me). And I don’t say that because I like the Speed/Training Day feel they got going on, nor because I’m a die-hard House fan and love the idea of seeing Hugh Laurie on the big screen. The real reason I love this trailer is because of the music. It’s perfect.

And speaking of music, if you’re like me and you just have to know what songs are playing in a trailer, I’ll clue you in.

The song in the beginning is Lupe Fiasco’s “Put You On Game.” And the song at the end is RZA’s “Fatal,” from the Blade:Trinity soundrack.

Street Kings is rated R and opens April 11. (Official Site)

Oh, and as always, you can leave a comment here.

Every once in a while, a trailer comes along that makes me giddy with delight. A huge grin spreads across my face as I clap like a four-year-old on Christmas morning. The trailer for The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian is one of these trailers, a trailer that reminds me why I love going to the movies.

Prince Caspian, like its predecessor The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, is a faithful adaptation of the saga written by C.S. Lewis. I read The Chronicles of Narnia annually during my dorky childhood, and so far the movies are even better than I had ever imagined in the books. In this installment, the Pevensie kids return to Narnia one year later to find that an eon has passed and their kingdom is in turmoil. The battle scenes alone will be worth my $11.

Prince Caspian is unmissable. For everyone who loves an epic adventure on the big screen, SEE IT. For everyone who wishes there could be another installment of Lord of the Rings, SEE IT. For all you Harry Potter fans in withdrawal, SEE IT. For all the fellow dweebs who still hope to find Narnia waiting behind the next door, SEE IT.

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian is not yet rated and opens May 16. (official site)

P.S. This installment comes to you from Puerto Iguazú, Argentina. Check Globestompers.com for the latest on my trip around the world.

Feel free to comment on Julie’s post here.

In my post for Dan in Real Life, I stated that I was officially experiencing Steve Carell overload. Which is still true. By my estimation, Steve Carell has starred in about 200 movies over the past year (OK, so it’s actually only 4 or 5, but it does feels like a lot more).

I guess that’s why I was so quick to discredit his new movie, Get Smart. That is, until I saw this trailer.

The idea behind Get Smart is pretty simple: bumbling idiot becomes international spy. However, the idea behind casting Steve Carell in this role is nothing short of brilliant.

Get Smart is essentially a live-action version of Inspector Gadget. Or to put it in terms of more modern pop-cultural phenomenon, Get Smart is what would happen if Michael from The Office became an international spy. Which is exactly why this casting is so spot on. There’s a lot of good comedic actors around these days, but none of them do the self-righteous moron character quite as well as Steve Carell does. And this movie seems to be the natural progression for Carell’s self-righteous moron character. In other words, if you think he was funny running an office, wait till you see him trying to save the world…

So I guess that Get Smart is going to be a SEE IT for me. Granted, I still wish that Carell would tease us a little more by making fewer movies. However, this is certainly one of the movies that he should have made. And from the looks of the trailer, I expect it to be damn funny.

Get Smart is rated PG-13 and opens on June 20. (Official site)

Thanks to this TrailerSpy gig, I’m constantly searching the internet to see if there have been any new trailers released lately. However, the majority of the trailers I find are either for movies that really don’t interest me or for movies that I already knew were in the pipeline. But then, every once in a while, I’ll stumble upon a trailer for a movie that I had no idea was being made and which looks frickin’ awesome.

Such was the case with this Hancock trailer. Maybe I just wasn’t paying enough attention, but I had no idea that one of my favorite actors (Will Smith) was making a movie on one of my favorite topics (superheroes). And not only that, the protagonist in this movie is one of my favorite types of protagonist: the anti-hero (or in this case, anti-superhero). In other words, Hancock is about a superhero with serious character flaws, who really could care less about being a superhero. How can you not love that premise?

With the recent spate of cartoon superhero adaptations, it seems to me that this movie is exactly what we need right now. Superman is great and all, but all that do-gooder stuff can get a little boring sometimes. So why not utilize all that great CGI technology to make a superhero who’s a little more interesting. And did you see the scenes with him flying without a cape…tell me that didn’t look pretty cool.

As you may have guessed, Hancock is a SEE IT from me. I’ve been hearing bad things about I Am Legend (which is probably why I haven’t seen it yet), but even if that does flop, it looks like Will Smith has enough good stuff in the works that he won’t completely fall out of the public’s good-graces.

Hancock is not yet rated and opens July 2. (IMDB page)

Is it possible to have absolutely no desire to see a movie and yet, at the same time, be very excited to see that same movie? Well, I suppose it is possible, because that’s exactly how I feel about this new Speed Racer flick.

When I first heard that they were making a Speed Racer movie earlier this year, I recall feeling very nauseous. Granted, I had recently eaten some bad sushi, but I’m sure the Speed Racer thing didn’t help. Maybe I’m alone on this one, but I personally think it’s a horrible idea to make a movie off of the Speed Racer cartoon. Not that the cartoon wasn’t entertaining, but I don’t remember the episodes being all interesting or the plots that engaging. All I remember is some fun animation and a catchy song. Plus, I’m still not convinced that cartoons make for good live-action movies (Scooby-Doo comes to mind).

Of course, then I heard that the Wachowski brothers (The Matrix, V for Vendetta) were writing and directing this film, and my nausea started to subside a bit (then again, I hadn’t eaten any sushi in a while). And then I heard that Emile Hirsh was playing the starring role, and that again made me feel a little better (have you seen Into the Wild yet????). And then I finally saw this trailer, which does look pretty cool, so now I suddenly find myself very excited about seeing this film.

Except that I still have absolutely no desire to see a movie based on Speed Racer!!!

As you can see, I’m still fairly confused about this one. But I guess when I really think about it, I know I’m going to SEE IT in the theaters. And that’s really for only one reason: the Wachowski brothers. Those guys are geniuses, and I know that this movie will be great because of them. But I still wish that they would have chosen a different vehicle (pun intended) with which to display their genius.

Speed Racer is not yet rated (though it’s rumored to be rated G) and opens May 9 (Official Site)

I don’t envy the jobs of those who cut together movie trailers. After going through a movie several times to find the pieces to use, they must reach a point where they say, “F*** this movie, f*** this trailer, I don’t give a f*** anymore!” Apparently, whoever put together the trailer for Fool’s Gold reached his breaking point sooner than most of his colleagues, because it’s a mess.

Attempting to become the next Meg Ryan/Tom Hanks onscreen power couple, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days costars Kate Hudson and Matthew McConaughey team up again for another romantic comedy. Or at least I think it’s a romantic comedy, but it may be an adventure movie (there’s something about sunken treasure going on). Kate and Matt are unhappily married and on the way to divorce. Kate wants to sell her boat and go back to school, so Matt blows up Kate’s boat. Matt is an amateur treasure hunter, and while on one of his hunts, he finds his way into the good graces of a wealthy daddy/daughter duo. But then Kate is working on their yacht as a waitress or something, and it none too pleased to see Matt dining with them. Then they hear about some sunken treasure, and the squabbling divorcees-to-be decide to team up and find it. Then they get it on in a cave. Oh, and Donald Sutherland is there, too. Confused yet? Good, because so am I.

So is this a romantic chick flick, or an action/adventure movie? Or some sort of combo meal? And why is Kate complaining about how stupid and lazy Matt is, yet implies that he’s the one with all the money in the relationship? And why would two people who supposedly hate each other (though we know they don’t) agree to go treasure hunting together? And why do I still plan to RENT IT, despite not knowing what the f*** is going on? Damn you Hudson and McConaughey, and your charming ways that compel me to watch your mess of a movie!

Fool’s Gold is rated PG-13 and opens February 8. (Official site)

I want to start this post off with a warning (although it may be too late): If you’re like me and you’re going to watch the next Guy Ritchie film no matter how good the preview is, please do not watch this trailer. It gives away far too much about the movie, and I really wish that I could rewind time and unwatch it.

That said, this trailer does prove that Guy Ritchie is finally back to form. After the atrocity known as Swept Away, it looks like Guy Ritchie has finally learned a very valuable lesson: if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

Let’s face it. Guy Ritchie only knows how to make one kind of movie, as he proved by following Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels with Snatch, which was essentially the same film but with the addition of a gibberish-talking Brad Pitt.

But the truth is that although Guy Ritchie may be just a one-trick pony, he is certainly a very talented pony, and his one-trick is pretty damn impressive. And any movie Guy Ritchie makes that doesn’t star his wife will always be a SEE IT for me.

Now if only his marketing guys had as much faith in him as I do…maybe then they wouldn’t feel the need to show me the whole damn movie to try and convince me that it’s worth my 11 bucks.

Revolver is rated R and opens December 7 (although it opened in Europe two years ago…that’s probably a bad sign, but oh well).

Is it me or have there been about twenty superhero movies in the past two years? What does Hollywood think we are, a bunch of idiots? I mean, it’s not like we’re just going to watch any superhero movie they throw at us, right? Right????

Well, unfortunately Hollywood has us by the balls on this one. Fight as we may, we all know that superhero movies are box-office gold. Even when all the critics warn us that the movie is awful, we still seem to watch it in droves. Hell, even when we don’t particularly care for the superhero being portrayed, we still watch, if only just to see what all the hype is about.

Take this new Iron Man movie for example. It’s a guy in a metal suit with a jet-pack. I mean, I could think up a more creative superhero in my sleep. And I’m about as anxious for another superhero movie as I am for my next dentist appointment. And yet, I have no doubt that I am going to SEE IT in the theaters.

Why, you ask? Why don’t I just stick to my principles and boycott this thing? Well, because I know I’ll be entertained. Even if the dialogue is cheesy (which it certainly will be) and the story is formulaic (ditto), I know that it’ll still be action packed from beginning to end, which is more than I can say about most films.

Plus, I love Robert Downey Jr, and I think he’ll make a great superhero. The Iron Man character is somewhat of a poor man’s Batman, and Robert Downey Jr. fits the bill perfectly. He’s playful, irreverent, and suave in a kind of dorky way. And from watching this trailer, you can tell that they gave him the necessary creative freedoms.

Yeah, I guess I am a bit of an idiot, but I’m not going to miss a good flick just because I’ve got principles.

Iron Man is not yet rated and opens May 2. (Official Site)

For me, National Treasure was a pleasant surprise. Despite my reservations that it would be two hours of Nicolas Cage’s typical shlock, one night it was the best choice at our local cinema, so I saw it. National Treasure was total brain candy: action with a good dose of comedy. I loved every second of it.

Disney smells a franchise. Ed Harris and Helen Mirren join Cage, Diane Kruger, Justin Bartha, and Harvey Keitel for the sequel. (This is Mirren’s first post-Oscar role, and why not? At this point in her career, she can do whatever she wants.) The stakes are greater this time around; Cage must clear allegations that his ancestor was involved in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. My only gripe about this trailer is that it doesn’t show enough of the hilarious one-liners that made the first movie so enjoyable. Still, I am going to SEE IT with a big bucket of popcorn.

National Treasure: Book of Secrets is not yet rated and opens on December 21. (official site)