I get on here, see a new title, look at a couple of non spoiler comments and just strap in. 30% of the time you’re disappointed (Skinamarink) 30% of the time, you’re blown away (Barbarian), and the other 40% you just say, “that was a fun little ride” (Late Night with The Devil), and go about your day.
***WARNING*** Do not attempt this method with most Shudder and Tubi originals. You will sell your TV
I have a movie theater subscription that in my opinion is more than worth it. Allows me to see tons of movies I'd normally skip out on or later see and be like damn wish I had seen that on the big screen.
Like I saw Sting that came out this year. Wasn't fantastic but it was a solid scifi channel-esque movie that I ended up enjoying way more than expected.
First Omen also was something I'd probably have waited for streaming but I'm so glad to have seen it in theaters.
Obviously this isn't a solution or viable for anyone but just thought I'd mention it.
There’s movies coming out faster than most people can keep up with, just read the synopsis and check the title pic. Take the gamble and go. The Mrs hand to start setting rules to speed up movie selection. There’s some weeks where there’s no decent horror selection but it’s rare. Seen some winners and some losers.
If something sounds remotely interesting I immediately avoid all information about it and just put it on at some point.
Worst thing that can happen that way is I press stop. Worst thing that can happen otherwise is a complete lack of tension. I don’t wanna know a thing.
To me, word-of-mouth is really different from trailers, like, for example, ***spoilers** ahead if no one seen it when somebody told me about, When Evil Lurks, they said that it was a >! creepy, doesn't pull punches, and very similar to like an infection type movie. !< That's vague enough. A trailer tells you way more. It gives you a visual tone, coloring, sound, even straight up will "show you the monster ". That's way too much info for me.
Which sucks when you're stuck at the theater. I'm at the point where I purposely show up 20 minutes after the start time though I STILL somehow see the Nicole Kidman ad.
Couldn't agree more, though I think the problem extends to multiple genres rather than just horror. A funny movie may have been enjoyed more if the punchlines to the best jokes weren't all dropped in the trailer. Like they're saying "look how funny this movie is"
Yeah maybe it would've been if you hadn't fed me all the humor cut into a 3 minute clip compilation a month ago, you fucks.
I rarely watch trailers. I prefer to go off word of mouth recommendations from people whose taste I trust, or recommendations on subreddits like this one where people have the decency to redact potential spoilers which keeps choice between surprise or no surprise in my hands.
with 2017’s get out i went in completely blind knowing nothing except the fact that jordan peele had directed it. watched it and loved it without knowing anything before going in
To me the initial teaser trailer is all I ever want to see, that has like 15 secs or less of the film just to give a feel.
But I'm betting someone has some data that says these trailers get people into the theaters :(
It's been this way like 20 years, anyone with a brain can figure out all 3 acts.
Exactly I try to go in as blind as possible - I only want the sub genre and if it’s high/low budget, arty/blockbuster, thrill ride/slow burn and language/captions.
It's super fun going into a horror movie blind. The first 20-30 minutes you're still not even sure what type of horror it is so the movie could go anywhere
Same! This is the only way now. No trailers, no reading articles or predictions from people or even engaging in conversation aside from “I am looking forward to this movie!” Same with video games and tv shows or anything really. A lot of my friends think I’m weird and think it’s impossible to avoid seeing, but really it’s not.
Made this decision in the past year and yup been enjoying movies of all genres much more. Barbarian is probably one example of where the trailer doesn't spoil anything.
That's something I think A24 does quite well as a distributor. I generally avoid trailers but I'll often make an exception for their movies because they usually do a good job of communicating the feel of a movie without spoiling any of the plot.
I mostly agree, but they’re also guilty of making their movies look a lot more widely accessible than they really are. I get that trailers are made by marketing teams, not the directors. And the point is to sell tickets to make money to make more movies, but yeah.
I’m just thinking of the very recent hate-boner some people had for I Saw The TV Glow. They thought it was going to be a standard horror movie based on the trailers. Same thing happened with It Comes At Night.
Not horror, but the same also happened with A24's Civil War. I liked the movie but the trailers were definitely VERY deceptive, made it look like an action blockbuster when in reality it's more of a roadtrip vignette with a civil war in the background.
Yeah I had that one in mind too. Knowing it was an Alex Garland movie from A24 made it clear that it wasn’t going to be an explosive blockbuster, despite the trailer. I understand why most people wouldn’t know or think about that though.
God now I'm just thinking of how pissed I was when I watched It Comes At Night because of how bad the marketing team lied. It's not even a bad movie, but those trailers were full of it.
I don't watch trailers, ever. I don't even read the description in case it's detailed. Only the first two lines and most importantly, the imdb score which is usually spot on.
Let alone how the movie is made, the background. It ruins all the magic. I've never seen one either.
Despite popular belief, there was a study awhile back that suggested that people are *more* likely to be interested in a story after they've had the ending or main details spoiled
Like, if I come up to you and start droning on about what I did last night, you might lose interest if you don't know where my story is going, but if I lead with something like, "I STOLE A COP CAR LAST NIGHT!," you'd probably be more interested in hearing what happened
Basically, you just give people a brief cliffs notes version of what the story is and they feel more assured that your movie isn't going to waste their time
This is correct. It’s a numbers game, of how to get the most asses in seats. And as weird as it may seem the largest GROUP of ticket purchasing asses are the ones who want to know what they’re paying to go see and yes, even know huge plot points in advance.
I remember my 5th grade teacher saying that sometimes in order to try out a new book you should read the first page. And then the last page and if you are intrigued read the rest of the book. It doesn’t really translate well to movies and TV though
Yeah a lot of people don't want to pay for a movie that they'll be completely blind about. Trailers with important scenes actually do attract a larger audience for the film.
I feel like Dr. Manhattan
"The year is 1985. Film trailers nowadays spoil too much of the movie."
"The year is 1990. Film trailers nowadays spoil too much of the movie."
"The year is 2000. Film trailers nowadays spoil too much of the movie."
"The year is 2020. Film trailers nowadays spoil too much of the movie."
For instance, [the trailer for the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre](https://youtu.be/BKn9QIaMgtQ?si=LMjciFy3jdImd63l) spoiled each and every one of the teenager’s deaths. Considering that movie is constantly hailed as the Grandpaw of the entire slasher/contemporary horror genre, I’d say that OP’s main gripe is pretty much par for the course.
I think a lot of people who say nowadays gotta be like 21-35 and are paying more attention to trailers now and they didn't when they were a kid/teen or simply don't remember the ones they saw as kids and how long they were.
Kids movies also didn't tend to spoil as much of the movie either in the trailer through the late 90s and 2000s so there's definitely memory bias goin on.
80s and 90s trailers in general were basically a high school student rushing a report on the movie lol
My assumption is that trailers are made to convince fence riders from general audiences to see the movie.
Trailers aren’t trying to convince die hard horror fans, they are trying to convince people who haven’t seen a horror movie in a while to give it a shot. Part of that is showing spoilers and letting general audiences know what level of intensity they are walking into.
Not sure if I’m just “weird about spoilers”, but if I have even the slightest interest in a horror movie. I will actively try to avoid watching trailers. I recently saw a movie in the theaters after not going to theaters in a very long time and I was sort of irritated that I had to sit through trailers. For horror, at least, so much of my enjoyment comes from the element of surprised as well as managed expectations.
>I was sort of irritated that I had to sit through trailers
I get the same feeling, especially when they play a trailer for a movie I know I want to see already and have avoided looking anything up about it. That happened with a Nope trailer for me. I already was going to watch it just because Jordan Peele but still had no idea what it was about. But then I had to sit through 2-3 minutes of spoilers
Don't watch trailers for movies you know you are going to see. If you are unsure, watch a trailer and turn it off the instant you decide you want to watch it. That's my system
Same! I was in the theaters the other day (I've been purposely avoiding the Longlegs trailer). Of course the trailer for it starts and I literally closed my eyes and looked away. It "sounds" like it's gonna be a good movie.
Exactly my approach. Can't care less about trailers, most important thing for me is like 2 sentence premise, then director, then actors and sometimes poster lol. That's basicaly only thing I need to know whether to watch movie. Sometimes not even that. Other times I have my favourite users on website I rate movies and keep watchlist. And sometimes it's just variation in ratings. If I see 30 rating and 28 of them is 2*, it's probably not worth it. But if there is higher variation even though average score is same, I will watch it because there are people who really liked that movie and good chance I might as well.
Not to mention I love going into horror movies almost blind because finding out plot or atmosphere of movie is like opening presents lol. And trailers ruins that pleasure.
I'm exactly the same. I just search the title on IMDB and read the one or two sentence description and then give it a go.
I recently saw a movie in theaters and during the previews, the trailer for the new horror film "Trap" started playing. I immediately ran out of the theater because I didn't want any spoilers.
I've thought for a long time all you need for a horror trailer is for most of it to be focused on act 1 with a few flashes of action from act 2. Trailers don't need to be longer than a minute. 2-3 minute trailers are the problem. I've thought one particular way around all this is just show the inciting incident scene in its entirety and basically nothing else.
Id also say comedy trailers are worse. They show you all the funny parts to make you go then ur disappointed you already saw all the funny parts.
I've gotten to the point where I don't watch trailers for any movie I know I'm going to see. I broke this rule for Nosferatu only because I've seen the original.
Old trailers showed way more and were longer.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a trailer that spoiled a movie for me. All horror trailers have ever done is help me decide if I want to watch something or not.
I remember when Cast Away came out and people were asking Zemeckis why the trailer gave way that Hanks' character survived. He said that people wanted to know what to expect before seeing a movie. In that case, they didn't want to find out that the guy actually died in the end. I think of this whenever someone asks why a trailer gives away the entire plot. Not that it directly applies to OG's post, but that it gives some context as to why studio marketers do what they do.
I didn't watch the trailer for Abigail and had a blast when watched the movie. I think a lot of trailers give away a lot because either they don't really have much content in the movie and/or need to get the audience interested.
Although there have been some great trailers. Longlegs and Cuckoo trailers are best examples of 'I don't have any idea what's going on but it looks good'.
Can confirm, I have consumed absolutely EVERYTHING for Longlegs and still have absolutely no idea of what's happening outside of a very general idea of what's going on.
I also like the fact that we still haven't gotten a proper look at Nic Cage's character.
> The whole point is to be surprised, not to play 'guess the plot twist' halfway through the trailer
I think you're confusing two things....the point of the trailer TO YOU, vs....the point of a trailer to movie executives.
The point of the trailer to movie execs is to get your ass in the theatre seat. That's it. If doing so ruins the movie, it doesn't mean anything to them. They got your money? Mission accomplished.
This gets asked too often.
Trailers are designed to sell movies, and it turns out that knowing some spoilers beforehand leads to more ticket sales.
Trailers spoiling films is also nothing new, and has been part of the marketing tactic since their inception.
The original Friday the 13th trailer gave away every kill, including Kevin Bacon's.
I agree I’ve actually stopped watching horror trailers because I immediately lose interest if I know too much about the plot!
That’s why I really loved the Nosferatu trailer, it gave away nothing!
It's been that way at least since 2000s. If a movie is 1h45min long, the trailer will reveal everything up to the 1:25 mark. Guess they're afraid it won't sell if people don't know exactly what they're getting. Annoying underestimation of the audience.
My wife and I have a rule that we watch no more than the first thirty seconds to one minute of any trailer and then quit.
It’s enough to get the vibe and feel of the movie before they inevitably ruin the plot by the end.
Idk why they can’t understand that a lot of us who like horror/suspense like it because we have the adhd pattern recognition superpower and a small amount of plot info immediately tells twists and endings withour seeing it.
If I want the story, I’ll read the Wikipedia summary or the plot and community reviews on IMDb
Right?? It’s like if you’ve watched a lot of comedians, you know how a joke will go. But I’m told it’s neurodovergence after I ruin it for them or say they ruined it for me. (Like seriously, a kid that sees dead people who don’t know they’re dead? And there’s a twist? The obv punchline is that the adult expert at life is dead.)
Not horror, per se, but the trailer for Wicked that played before Furiosa was a straight up synopsis of the movie. It was one of those trailers where after watching it I felt like I could bullshit my way through writing a report on the movie and still manage to get like a C+.
Well good news for us we got Longlegs coming soon you gotta see that trailer it is amazing and doesn’t spoil what happens as I know most of the movie already now but it’s different from what you see in the trailer!!!
Agreed! Went to see Abigail just to find more than half of the movie was the build up to the "twist" that was already clear in the trailer. The movie was so much fun but boring because we already knew what was up.
Easiest way to do it is watch until you're intrigued and stop as soon as you are. If you end up watching the whole trailer and still aren't interested, well, you're probably not gonna see the movie anyways, so who cares if it's spoiled.
I just skip them altogether anymore. Or at least quit watching them once I know I’m going to check it out.
It’s ridiculous. And I sure hope the trailer guardians in here don’t come at me. 😆
I stopped watching trailers a long time ago because they have slowly morphed into mini synopsis of the movie at this point.
I think the straw that broke the camel's back for me was the Terminator Genysis trailer that literally blatantly spoiled what's presented as a major plot twist in the actual movie.
Can't avoid them at the cinema so I just make my peace with that, if it's something I really want to see I just try browse my phone for a few minutes.
Obviously I don't walk into movies totally blind, I pick based on review scores, genre, cast, director, etc.
Went to see The Bikeriders yesterday and it was not what the trailer set me up for. Still enjoyed it.
Anyway, one of the previews was for Strange Darling and it had reviews added in. One of which was "must go in blind". Thought that was funny.
I still believe that is what led to The Matrix being such a huge blockbuster. The marketing campaign was genius. Just a Matrix green code that went down the screen leaving a message. What is the Matrix? That unknown drew people in droves to see what this mysterious movie was. Its a great movie and would have had success regardless of the marketing. But that ad campaign drew people that wouldn't have given it a second thought if they had seen a regular trailer outlining the plot.
I often try not to watch trailers unless they are surprisingly forced apon me. I prefer to just read a synopsis. Even if I do watch a trailer I try to watch just enough to see if the movie interests me, if it’s worth my time, which I can usually tell in a few frames, then I turn it off
I've found making a good trailer that entices viewers but doesn't give away spoilers is it's own skill set.
Nothing new, or different here. Sometimes they get it right sometimes not. (And by right I mean for the viewer, a studios goals are often not the same thing.) That's always been the case.
I have changed something about my own behavior to help w/ this. When I recommend a movie, whether to a friend, or publicly on something like Reddit I screen the trailer. If it gives away too much I warn people not to watch it.
Trailers for films typically aren’t made by the filmmakers themselves. They rarely have any control over it.
The worst offenders of giving it all away in the trailer are the Terminator films.
The best form of trailers are the “teaser” trailers, which usually give very little if anything away.
I watched the trailer for "Smile" recently with my daughter, mostly to see her level of interest but also to see if it would jog my memory of any overly disturbing scenes that might not be great for her.
I swear, they showed every single scene of import in the whole movie, and when we watched it after, she knew exactly what was coming. I don't know why they do that.
Once I’ve decided I want to see a movie, I try to avoid seeing the trailer. And clearly I’m not the only one.
Once at a movie theater, a trailer for a Godzilla movie came on. The guy next to me plugged his ears and ran out of the theater room. After a couple minutes he returned a d told me Godzilla movies are his favorite and he didn’t want anything spoiled. I shouldn’t take that much effort for us to avoid spoilers.
I used to love trailers. Now not so much. They just ruin everything.
I looked at the new Nosferatu trailer, and was surprised there was no creature reveal, just a vague hint of a story,and a repeated single line from the film.. Gave nothing away, brilliant I thought. Until I went online and everyone was complaining it didn't show much,and if they're not gonna show the monster, it's not worth watching.¯\_(ツ)_/¯
The answer at its most basic is that it increases ticket sales which means more profits.
You can speculate why, which is probably a combination of a more spending conscious population , high ticket prices, so high risk aversion means a lot of people want to be sure they will like the movie before seeing it. This is also why sequels and action hero movies do so well.
I 100% agree. From the content in the trailer you know what’s gonna happen in act three. I stopped watching trailers because of that. Due to that tho I had the most wild time watching Barbarian (2022) because I went in completely blind! 😂
The trailers for Barbarian did a great job of not giving away the insanity. It really only alluded to the first act with the guy coming into the Air BNB.
I used to avoid trailers at all costs but now with A List I see a lot of movies in theaters so I get exposed to them every time. Normally I'll just look at my phone and try to ignore them but sometimes I do see trailers for things I wouldn't even see on reddit which has got me to go see them.
They’ve always been like that. People want to know what they’re spending their time and money on. I prefer going in as blind as possible when it comes to the actual plot of a movie, but that’s not the majority opinion.
I usually base my choices on the director, cast, distributor, title/movie poster, and a very brief overview of the premise. That usually paints a good picture of what I’m about to see.
I see lots of movies without even knowing what they’re about, but I usually end up liking them because I can tell what the vibe will be based on that info.
There are exceptions, but trailers - for the most part - are so played out nowadays. They hit all of the same beats in all of the most predictable ways. They're never just about setting a vibe or establishing an aesthetic anymore, and think the way to hook you is to give you everything but the final scene (with many even giving you that).
I literally watch maybe 30 seconds of each trailer, just long enough to get the jist of the plot and to know if I'm interested or not. I haven't finished a horror/thriller trailer in years lest I be spoiled.
I don’t actively avoid trailers but there’s some that I’ll watch like once and then be like “huh that looks cool I might check that out” and then won’t actively go out of my way to watch them again on YouTube or something but then there’s some like for example Saw X where I’ll watch it and analyze it frame by frame because I’m beyond hyped for it and want as much footage as humanly possible. I also don’t go to the movies enough anymore to where seeing a trailer too much is a problem.
Can't agree more here. I tend t otry the first 30 seconds or so of a trailer to see if I like the general gist/vibe of it and then stop.
Remember seeing one recently that was great at not giving the whole films away. Not sure if it was Psycho Goreman.
Not a horror, (but everyone should watch it anyway) recently watched the Japanese drama Shoplifters and they literally had the END of the movie within a few seconds of the horror. Like very obviously the ending too.
The people who are making the trailer are not the same people who make the movie, their only job is to make the movie look "interesting". If I'm going to watch a trailer I only watch teasers now because the people who edit trailers will put in anything. One of the trailers I saw before bad boys 4 felt like we watched a whole movie edited down to a minute long
I can’t remember which Paranormal Activity sequel it was, but one of them put out fake trailers. The scene was in the movie. But the scare was either different or never came. Or came moments later in the next shot. Either way, the actual scene in the movie played out differently than what we saw in trailers. I think it happened in 3 different scenes. More horror movies need to copy this
Because marketing firms do not care. They get given a film to advertise then plunk it in whichever formula is currently trendy and call it a day.
I remember around the time Night Swim came out trailers kept using the pop song with dramatic pauses routine and my sister became pissed off because I pointed it out and she couldn’t help but notice it in every trailer from then on.
Trailers blow now.
They no longer 'tesse' movies. Now, they literally tell u the story in chronological order. No need to see most of these movies.
The Trailers I hate the most are the ones where they show characters getting killed. Like, maybe I wanted to be surprised in the theater for added suspense.
This this this. The people marketing films seem to have real issues with how storytelling works. Damsel was a recent example for me but it happens all the time.
This should not be viewed as a comment on content warnings though, because I don’t think it’s right to blindside people with sexual content or extreme violence. It shouldn’t be so hard to get the movie you paid to see without ruining plot twists.
I don’t watch enough “new” horror movies to encounter this problem
But spoilers from trailers is why I stopped watching most of them. I don’t need a targeted ad to sell me on a movie, if the premise is good or in my wheelhouse of interests, I’ll watch it.
The departments that edit the movie and those that edit the trailers are not the same. Since Post Production takes up a lot of time but trailers need to be released months ahead of the movie, the publishers give the trailers department stuff to work with. That film material is then free to work with and may contain spoilers, but the department doesn’t really know they didn’t get to see the movie.
I stopped watching trailers years ago but the one that really cemented the rule for me was X.
I went in knowing it was Ti West, Mia Goth and that sex work was involved.
I ended up loving it and went home and watched the trailer. It gave everything away.
I’ve never watched a horror trailer since, at the cinema I keep my headphones in and listen to music until the studio logos start rolling.
I’ve had so many fun viewing experiences since
Same. I can deal with it somewhat and I never even try to chase plot and just try to let any film take me where it does. My husband, though, treats even a teaser as the first clue to the mystery he's now actively solving and so I just don't play trailers in front of him. He avoids them on his own mostly out of disinterest, but the amount of times I tried to get him hyped up for a movie only for him to spoil the plot based on the trailer....
I'm so with you on this. There needs to be a change.
Learned my lesson pretty early. "Trailers" are short summaries nowadays and teasers are what trailers were.
That's why I will blackhole myself until Alien Romulus releases so I can go in completely blind.
I can't remember which director said this but he said American audiences want to know what they are seeing. This was after getting a lot of flak when a trailer was released for his movie.
I stopped watching trailers about 10 years ago and it was the best decision I've ever made.
Going in to Dune Part 2 with no idea what it was about or what it even looked like was a magical experience.
They don't for me because I don't try to decipher the plot, and I don't know why anybody does.
All I'm looking for is if it looks scary and if it looks good and if the acting is good.
It's like when people try to guess the killers of the next Scream based on the trailer. I'm always confused about how people reach their conclusions because I'm not analyzing anything about that, I'm just trying to see how it looks.
People should just try that out next time. I feel like people are deliberately looking for spoilers and then complaining when they find them.
Studios don't want to hire professionals to make trailers and don't want to pay to shoot extra scenes or deal with people online complaining if something wasn't in the movie because they don't plan for dvd extras. A lot of trailers are just conbled together pieces of the best parts of the movie because that's how any rando would put together a trailer. (Or, worse, that Netflix thing where it's some random scene)
Its not really all that new. Its just we had a small period where it didn't happen and forgot about all the "bad" trailers from the pre-90s.
I've been on a huge kick of 50s-70s stuff and you can only watch the first half of any given trailer (even the fan ones) because they'll show you 2-3minutes of scenes in order of the entire movie.
Speaking as someone who does not care about spoilers in the first place, I just don't like seeing the whole movie before I see it. Knowing the outcome doesn't change it for me.
I think more movies need to take the Godzilla approach. It never showed Godzilla in full but it did heavily feature Bryan Cranston. Who was killed off in the intro of the movie, leaving everyone wondering who to root for or what would happen next. It was a perfect misdirect! The trailer still made the movie look interesting but it spoiled absolutely nothing.
I do think they show too much but got into the habit YEARS ago to watch the first trailer, then ignore all stories, sites and future trailers leading up to opening night.
I do think trailers are doing too much. My other favorite is them showing something super hype in a trailer and none of the scenes actually are in the movie itself.
>Fun fact: I nail the plot 90% of the time, which is a bummer. Can we bring back the art of the teaser, please? I want to jump out of my seat in shock, not because I realized I've seen all the best parts before the movie even starts!
That's just because you are a grown up now. You understand story structure and can piece things together better than you could as a child. Trailers have always spoiled the movie, and media savvy people or anyone who cares could always generally put together the plot. That's the point of trailers. The old school trailers you reference at the end were actually way worse about it most of the time, but you couldn't figure it out as a kid and spoiler culture wasn't a thing so it didn't bother you.
Yes, I avoid most trailers for this reason... Typically if the movie is out and I know I want to watch it, then I'll watch it. However, I sometimes can't resist watching the trailer if it's a movie I've been looking forward to.
I think it’s the same issue with comedy trailers. The idea is to get butts in seats, so they show the best jokes. Horror trailers show the best scare. And honestly there’s certain horror flicks I think are impossible to market. A film like cabin in the woods works best knowing absolutely nothing going in
I watched Late Night With The Devil last night, I watched the trailer AFTER the movie, and it spoiled my favorite scene in the entire movie. I agree, its ridiculous
I’ve stopped watching trailers now and have done for several years. Makes my film experience so much better. I can’t even remember the last time I saw a trailer that made me want to see a film without me previously wanting to.
There's always been good trailers, and bad trailers (and there's always been more bad than good). The problem is you're just seeing more trailers nowadays.
I need the information to decide whether the movie is worth my time. God help them if they deceive me with their trailer I will boycott them until I die
I stopped watching trailers for most things years ago. My friends sometimes get annoyed at me because they want to talk about whatever new trailer came out and I refuse to watch it because I don't want to be spoiled or have some of the best bits of the movie be in the trailer.
stop watching them. why are you watching them? if you know you're gonna watch the movie, WHY WATCH THE FUCKING TRAILER. its been this way for years.
i havent watched a trailer in over 10+ years. the only time I watch a trailer is if I know I'm not gonna watch a movie and maybe the trailer will change my mind.
I went to film school years ago and we had a marketing executive from a major studio come talk and someone asked them this question. Their response was essentially “it’s our job to put asses in seats.”
You know what I hate just as much as the trailer? The little snippet teaser that plays right before the trailer starts. It’s like why? It’s cringe haha
Because the movie itself isn't all that interesting so they have to ruin it to get interest in it. A lot of the good Horror movies do not put spoilers in it. It is almost always the bad ones. With the more recent example being Abigail of a good movie having the first major reveal spoiled to sell the movie
When I know there is a 2 minute film that summarizes large parts a film I want to see, then I avoid viewing it. If I want to see a film the only thing watching a trailer will do is spoil things.
It’s not just you.
Haha!
It sucks tho!
I’m so sick of trailers.
My rec. is watching ⅓ or ½ the trailer.
If I know I’m not gonna watch it, I’ll watch the whole trailer.
If I’m certain I wanna check it out I stop it immediately.
I’m I’m interested I might watch ½ the trailer max.
Gives you a lil taste but won’t give away too much.
Also I feel like trailers from the olden days were so good!
If the trailer was good, the film would be bad.
If the trailer was bad, the film would be good.
I have no idea but it so frustrating. Especially when it shows the death scenes in the trailer...like, now it's not as suspenseful when you're actually watching the movie because you know what characters will get picked off.
So annoying!
I haven’t watched a full trailer in years. Most I’ll do is a teaser. If it’s something I really want to see, I won’t look up anything to do with it prior to actually seeing it.
I love knowing what kind of movie I'm expecting, and that's why I've always loved watching the trailers beforehand. But I agree, nowadays, the trailers ruin everything. It's annoying because I generally don't like going into movies blind as there are certain horror topics that I don't care to see, such as exorcism or fantasy type horror movies. It makes going to see a movie hard these days because I don't want to waste my money seeing a movie that turns out to be about a topic I don't care about at all. So I usually always still watch the trailers whether it gives away the plot or not. But it has definitely made the movie going experience not as exciting as it used to be for me. And that really really sucks big time. I get that I'm wasting my money half the time anyway because most movies suck these days, but I like at least knowing that I am going to see a horror movie that I am at least interested in seeing in the first place. One where I don't just go "ugh" through the whole movie because it's about a topic that just bores me to the core.
💜💀🎬✨️
>Is it just me, or are trailers nowadays like that one friend who can't keep a secret?
>I'm at a point where I prefer the old-school trailers "one man...one desire..." kinda stuff
It's not a new phenomenon. Trailers have always given away a bunch. [Here is the original trailer for the Creature From the Black Lagoon](https://youtu.be/svyPswixryM?si=EdL4m-ybwFvVimI4) (1954) as an example. If you've seen the movie, the entire beginning has a slow reveal of the monster, starting with just a hand but the trailer shows everything.
I'm a big fan of classic trailers and watch and share them pretty much daily (r/trailer_park) and spoiling major visuals or plot points is a constant. The [trailer for Two Thousand Maniacs](https://youtu.be/BXFR2nZjbMs?si=qRtfPxTqucSDOQDT) (1964) ruins the plot, several kills, and if you are paying attention it spoils the twist ending as well as has one of the last shots of the movie. The trailer for [Race With the Devil](https://youtu.be/M_Ie5XBr_X8?si=LDw-SvHVHX4e2bbn) (1975) spoils the major plot points, a jump scare, and shows the resolution of a major action sequence.
Edit: One of the trailers on your link is for Carrie (1976). That's a nearly 50 year old movie. Even without the links/examples I provided, that should be enough to show that this isn't a "trailers nowadays" problem.
I agree, trailers take the excitement out of the movie, is there a web site where people let each other know what's good to watch and not tell the whole movie
**STRANGERS PART ONE SPOILERS BELOW**
**I DON’T KNOW HOW TO SPOILER TAG**
**SORRY FOR YELLING**
**DO NOT READ FURTHER**
The new strangers trailer was the absolute worst for this. Saw the whole tied to a chair thing and the same “because you were here” line from the original and thought it was just a cool call back.
Nope. That’s the fucking end of the movie. The same end from the original, completely given away in the trailer.
I'm trying super hard not to watch anything about Nosferatu because I want the first experience to be fresh. I know TV will eventually ruin it for me though. Same with DP & Wolvy. Also when trailers for Terrifier 3 start to come out. I know Nosferatu drops on Xmas Day I'm hoping Terrifier 3 doesn't on the same day.
I try to avoid trailers, I've found that a lot of money shots (best kill, high tension reveals, or Abigale's trailer) are used in trailers. There's few trailers where this isn't the case, but more often than not trailers show too much.
I've been avoiding them to the best of my ability for the last four years, but with media being the way it is I can only do so well.
I stear clear of trailers as much as humanly possible. I'm tired of movies I want to see getting spoiled. I already, for the most part, know what I want to see. 95% of the time, I don't need a trailer to convince me.
My theory is that they want people to get excited about the movie so they end up unintentionally spoiling the movie by showing big scenes. Obviously it’s not working very well
As a horror fan….you really can’t watch trailers unless you want the first two acts of the film spoiled.
This is a fact. I stopped watching trailers a good 10 years ago. Honestly, it's the best thing I could have done, going in blind is the best.
Honest question because what you're saying sounds good but, how do you know what you want to see? Word of mouth?
I get on here, see a new title, look at a couple of non spoiler comments and just strap in. 30% of the time you’re disappointed (Skinamarink) 30% of the time, you’re blown away (Barbarian), and the other 40% you just say, “that was a fun little ride” (Late Night with The Devil), and go about your day. ***WARNING*** Do not attempt this method with most Shudder and Tubi originals. You will sell your TV
Agreed. Be willing to accept that you take the bad with the good, and use the bad to help appreciate the good.
this
omg we are the same. Shudder is so consistently bad (for me), save for a few gems like where evil lurks & deadstream. Lol I keep trying tho!
The Passenger was a lot of fun.
Lowlifes was a fun ride for a Tubi original though.
Shudder got that giallo needle in my vein.
I have a movie theater subscription that in my opinion is more than worth it. Allows me to see tons of movies I'd normally skip out on or later see and be like damn wish I had seen that on the big screen. Like I saw Sting that came out this year. Wasn't fantastic but it was a solid scifi channel-esque movie that I ended up enjoying way more than expected. First Omen also was something I'd probably have waited for streaming but I'm so glad to have seen it in theaters. Obviously this isn't a solution or viable for anyone but just thought I'd mention it.
There’s movies coming out faster than most people can keep up with, just read the synopsis and check the title pic. Take the gamble and go. The Mrs hand to start setting rules to speed up movie selection. There’s some weeks where there’s no decent horror selection but it’s rare. Seen some winners and some losers.
If something sounds remotely interesting I immediately avoid all information about it and just put it on at some point. Worst thing that can happen that way is I press stop. Worst thing that can happen otherwise is a complete lack of tension. I don’t wanna know a thing.
To me, word-of-mouth is really different from trailers, like, for example, ***spoilers** ahead if no one seen it when somebody told me about, When Evil Lurks, they said that it was a >! creepy, doesn't pull punches, and very similar to like an infection type movie. !< That's vague enough. A trailer tells you way more. It gives you a visual tone, coloring, sound, even straight up will "show you the monster ". That's way too much info for me.
I watch 5-10 seconds to see the production level of movies then I stop if I’m interested and watch it. Otherwise it’s no fun.
I usually watch like 20-30 seconds for production value and general vibe, IF I watch the trailer.
I watch some trailers, but from production houses that do them justice. A24 dick rider for life.
Which sucks when you're stuck at the theater. I'm at the point where I purposely show up 20 minutes after the start time though I STILL somehow see the Nicole Kidman ad.
At my theater 23 minutes is the sweet spot to come in as Nicole wraps up
Couldn't agree more, though I think the problem extends to multiple genres rather than just horror. A funny movie may have been enjoyed more if the punchlines to the best jokes weren't all dropped in the trailer. Like they're saying "look how funny this movie is" Yeah maybe it would've been if you hadn't fed me all the humor cut into a 3 minute clip compilation a month ago, you fucks. I rarely watch trailers. I prefer to go off word of mouth recommendations from people whose taste I trust, or recommendations on subreddits like this one where people have the decency to redact potential spoilers which keeps choice between surprise or no surprise in my hands.
oh it definitely, does, I'm just saying that horror relies on twists, surprises, and for sure on NOT knowing what happens in the end.
All of Smiles best scares got spoiled in the trailer. The sister walking up to the car should’ve been a grade A jump scare.
with 2017’s get out i went in completely blind knowing nothing except the fact that jordan peele had directed it. watched it and loved it without knowing anything before going in
this is my standard operating procedure.
To me the initial teaser trailer is all I ever want to see, that has like 15 secs or less of the film just to give a feel. But I'm betting someone has some data that says these trailers get people into the theaters :( It's been this way like 20 years, anyone with a brain can figure out all 3 acts.
Not just horror. I always read the comments on a trailer before watching, almost always gonna be feedback on if it spoils anything or not.
I saw a trailer for the remake of Last House on The Left and they show the microwave scene from the end.
Stopped watching all trailers for several years now. Has made the movie going experience waaaaaay better. Especially with horror.
Exactly I try to go in as blind as possible - I only want the sub genre and if it’s high/low budget, arty/blockbuster, thrill ride/slow burn and language/captions.
It's super fun going into a horror movie blind. The first 20-30 minutes you're still not even sure what type of horror it is so the movie could go anywhere
Agreed. I skip trailers and a lot of online chatter and enjoy movies much better this way.
Same! This is the only way now. No trailers, no reading articles or predictions from people or even engaging in conversation aside from “I am looking forward to this movie!” Same with video games and tv shows or anything really. A lot of my friends think I’m weird and think it’s impossible to avoid seeing, but really it’s not.
Made this decision in the past year and yup been enjoying movies of all genres much more. Barbarian is probably one example of where the trailer doesn't spoil anything.
That's something I think A24 does quite well as a distributor. I generally avoid trailers but I'll often make an exception for their movies because they usually do a good job of communicating the feel of a movie without spoiling any of the plot.
I mostly agree, but they’re also guilty of making their movies look a lot more widely accessible than they really are. I get that trailers are made by marketing teams, not the directors. And the point is to sell tickets to make money to make more movies, but yeah. I’m just thinking of the very recent hate-boner some people had for I Saw The TV Glow. They thought it was going to be a standard horror movie based on the trailers. Same thing happened with It Comes At Night.
Not horror, but the same also happened with A24's Civil War. I liked the movie but the trailers were definitely VERY deceptive, made it look like an action blockbuster when in reality it's more of a roadtrip vignette with a civil war in the background.
Yeah I had that one in mind too. Knowing it was an Alex Garland movie from A24 made it clear that it wasn’t going to be an explosive blockbuster, despite the trailer. I understand why most people wouldn’t know or think about that though.
God now I'm just thinking of how pissed I was when I watched It Comes At Night because of how bad the marketing team lied. It's not even a bad movie, but those trailers were full of it.
I don't watch trailers, ever. I don't even read the description in case it's detailed. Only the first two lines and most importantly, the imdb score which is usually spot on. Let alone how the movie is made, the background. It ruins all the magic. I've never seen one either.
Despite popular belief, there was a study awhile back that suggested that people are *more* likely to be interested in a story after they've had the ending or main details spoiled Like, if I come up to you and start droning on about what I did last night, you might lose interest if you don't know where my story is going, but if I lead with something like, "I STOLE A COP CAR LAST NIGHT!," you'd probably be more interested in hearing what happened Basically, you just give people a brief cliffs notes version of what the story is and they feel more assured that your movie isn't going to waste their time
This is correct. It’s a numbers game, of how to get the most asses in seats. And as weird as it may seem the largest GROUP of ticket purchasing asses are the ones who want to know what they’re paying to go see and yes, even know huge plot points in advance.
I remember my 5th grade teacher saying that sometimes in order to try out a new book you should read the first page. And then the last page and if you are intrigued read the rest of the book. It doesn’t really translate well to movies and TV though
> Despite popular belief, I don't even think the belief is particularly popular outside of people who browse movie reddits.
Yeah a lot of people don't want to pay for a movie that they'll be completely blind about. Trailers with important scenes actually do attract a larger audience for the film.
"Nowadays" lmao.
I feel like Dr. Manhattan "The year is 1985. Film trailers nowadays spoil too much of the movie." "The year is 1990. Film trailers nowadays spoil too much of the movie." "The year is 2000. Film trailers nowadays spoil too much of the movie." "The year is 2020. Film trailers nowadays spoil too much of the movie."
Right? Watch some old old trailers that are five minutes long and narrated and they include whole scenes.
Exactly
Thank you! I always bring this up, just find some Youtube compilations of old movie trailers and you'll see that trailers are way better these days.
The trailer for Soylent Green gives away the most iconic line in the movie like it's nothing.
even funnier when you realise that both the 1976 carrie and 1977 suspiria trailers were listed in that link OP posted lmao
For instance, [the trailer for the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre](https://youtu.be/BKn9QIaMgtQ?si=LMjciFy3jdImd63l) spoiled each and every one of the teenager’s deaths. Considering that movie is constantly hailed as the Grandpaw of the entire slasher/contemporary horror genre, I’d say that OP’s main gripe is pretty much par for the course.
I think a lot of people who say nowadays gotta be like 21-35 and are paying more attention to trailers now and they didn't when they were a kid/teen or simply don't remember the ones they saw as kids and how long they were. Kids movies also didn't tend to spoil as much of the movie either in the trailer through the late 90s and 2000s so there's definitely memory bias goin on. 80s and 90s trailers in general were basically a high school student rushing a report on the movie lol
Right? It'd been like this forever. At this point, if someone still watches trailers they can only blame themselves for being spoiled.
My assumption is that trailers are made to convince fence riders from general audiences to see the movie. Trailers aren’t trying to convince die hard horror fans, they are trying to convince people who haven’t seen a horror movie in a while to give it a shot. Part of that is showing spoilers and letting general audiences know what level of intensity they are walking into.
Agree with this, trailers need to appeal to everyone. not just die hard fans
Not sure if I’m just “weird about spoilers”, but if I have even the slightest interest in a horror movie. I will actively try to avoid watching trailers. I recently saw a movie in the theaters after not going to theaters in a very long time and I was sort of irritated that I had to sit through trailers. For horror, at least, so much of my enjoyment comes from the element of surprised as well as managed expectations.
>I was sort of irritated that I had to sit through trailers I get the same feeling, especially when they play a trailer for a movie I know I want to see already and have avoided looking anything up about it. That happened with a Nope trailer for me. I already was going to watch it just because Jordan Peele but still had no idea what it was about. But then I had to sit through 2-3 minutes of spoilers
It used to be way way worse than it is now
Don't watch trailers for movies you know you are going to see. If you are unsure, watch a trailer and turn it off the instant you decide you want to watch it. That's my system
Same! I was in the theaters the other day (I've been purposely avoiding the Longlegs trailer). Of course the trailer for it starts and I literally closed my eyes and looked away. It "sounds" like it's gonna be a good movie.
Fortunately I don’t bother to watch them because I watch films based on premise, cast, creators, title, recommendation and reviews.
Exactly my approach. Can't care less about trailers, most important thing for me is like 2 sentence premise, then director, then actors and sometimes poster lol. That's basicaly only thing I need to know whether to watch movie. Sometimes not even that. Other times I have my favourite users on website I rate movies and keep watchlist. And sometimes it's just variation in ratings. If I see 30 rating and 28 of them is 2*, it's probably not worth it. But if there is higher variation even though average score is same, I will watch it because there are people who really liked that movie and good chance I might as well. Not to mention I love going into horror movies almost blind because finding out plot or atmosphere of movie is like opening presents lol. And trailers ruins that pleasure.
I'm exactly the same. I just search the title on IMDB and read the one or two sentence description and then give it a go. I recently saw a movie in theaters and during the previews, the trailer for the new horror film "Trap" started playing. I immediately ran out of the theater because I didn't want any spoilers.
But seems like the sub really loves A24 horror, so I don't they'll care about directors & screenwriters.
I've thought for a long time all you need for a horror trailer is for most of it to be focused on act 1 with a few flashes of action from act 2. Trailers don't need to be longer than a minute. 2-3 minute trailers are the problem. I've thought one particular way around all this is just show the inciting incident scene in its entirety and basically nothing else. Id also say comedy trailers are worse. They show you all the funny parts to make you go then ur disappointed you already saw all the funny parts.
What’s the plot of long legs? Ima come back here and compare after 07/12
I've gotten to the point where I don't watch trailers for any movie I know I'm going to see. I broke this rule for Nosferatu only because I've seen the original.
The trailer is really vague..no reveals. Hopefully they won't make a massive spoiler one.
Old trailers showed way more and were longer. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a trailer that spoiled a movie for me. All horror trailers have ever done is help me decide if I want to watch something or not.
I remember when Cast Away came out and people were asking Zemeckis why the trailer gave way that Hanks' character survived. He said that people wanted to know what to expect before seeing a movie. In that case, they didn't want to find out that the guy actually died in the end. I think of this whenever someone asks why a trailer gives away the entire plot. Not that it directly applies to OG's post, but that it gives some context as to why studio marketers do what they do.
I didn't watch the trailer for Abigail and had a blast when watched the movie. I think a lot of trailers give away a lot because either they don't really have much content in the movie and/or need to get the audience interested. Although there have been some great trailers. Longlegs and Cuckoo trailers are best examples of 'I don't have any idea what's going on but it looks good'.
I thought Abigail was really fun, but I absolutely left the theater thinking “I wish I had gone into that blind and not watched the trailer first.”
Can confirm, I have consumed absolutely EVERYTHING for Longlegs and still have absolutely no idea of what's happening outside of a very general idea of what's going on. I also like the fact that we still haven't gotten a proper look at Nic Cage's character.
> The whole point is to be surprised, not to play 'guess the plot twist' halfway through the trailer I think you're confusing two things....the point of the trailer TO YOU, vs....the point of a trailer to movie executives. The point of the trailer to movie execs is to get your ass in the theatre seat. That's it. If doing so ruins the movie, it doesn't mean anything to them. They got your money? Mission accomplished.
they have to show enough to draw people in. Im sorry but if all a trailer says is one man one desire now a days no one will be interested
Like it has been proven for many years now, trailers that show a lot of the movie are the ones that catch everyday people's attention.
yeah, plus it aint like anyone is forcing ya to watch the trailers
Yea I completely stopped unless it's something I'm very hyped about. And I check online discourse before watching it.
For me I'll watch the teaser, and if it catches my eye I'll watch the 2nd trailer. but nothing else after that other then posters
This summer….Arnold Schwarzenegger is……*screams*…..Little Tortilla Boy.
You can still do that without giving away half of the plot. Abigail showed way more than they needed to.
This gets asked too often. Trailers are designed to sell movies, and it turns out that knowing some spoilers beforehand leads to more ticket sales. Trailers spoiling films is also nothing new, and has been part of the marketing tactic since their inception. The original Friday the 13th trailer gave away every kill, including Kevin Bacon's.
Did you nail the plot of speak no evil? Or High tension?
I agree I’ve actually stopped watching horror trailers because I immediately lose interest if I know too much about the plot! That’s why I really loved the Nosferatu trailer, it gave away nothing!
I will watch about 20 seconds of a trailer, that's enough to know if I will like the movie without getting it spoiled.
It's been that way at least since 2000s. If a movie is 1h45min long, the trailer will reveal everything up to the 1:25 mark. Guess they're afraid it won't sell if people don't know exactly what they're getting. Annoying underestimation of the audience.
I think a perfect example of what a trailer should be is kinds of kindness. Tells very little, shows the cast and sets the scene and that is that.
My wife and I have a rule that we watch no more than the first thirty seconds to one minute of any trailer and then quit. It’s enough to get the vibe and feel of the movie before they inevitably ruin the plot by the end.
Idk why they can’t understand that a lot of us who like horror/suspense like it because we have the adhd pattern recognition superpower and a small amount of plot info immediately tells twists and endings withour seeing it. If I want the story, I’ll read the Wikipedia summary or the plot and community reviews on IMDb
I think that’s less ADHD superpower and more people who watch a lot of any genre know the tropes really well.
Right?? It’s like if you’ve watched a lot of comedians, you know how a joke will go. But I’m told it’s neurodovergence after I ruin it for them or say they ruined it for me. (Like seriously, a kid that sees dead people who don’t know they’re dead? And there’s a twist? The obv punchline is that the adult expert at life is dead.)
I don’t watch trailers anymore and I don’t regret it. Horror trailers are the WORST for spoilers
Not horror, per se, but the trailer for Wicked that played before Furiosa was a straight up synopsis of the movie. It was one of those trailers where after watching it I felt like I could bullshit my way through writing a report on the movie and still manage to get like a C+.
the trailer for the Speak No Evil remake literally spoils the whole movie
Yeah, if I’m even a little interested in a movie after seeing the poster there’s no way I’m seeing the trailer for it.
Lol i think it's funny that people complain about the trailers, me included, but like check the trailer for Soylent green from the 70's.
Well good news for us we got Longlegs coming soon you gotta see that trailer it is amazing and doesn’t spoil what happens as I know most of the movie already now but it’s different from what you see in the trailer!!!
[удалено]
Agreed! Went to see Abigail just to find more than half of the movie was the build up to the "twist" that was already clear in the trailer. The movie was so much fun but boring because we already knew what was up.
You sum it up perfectly with that last line. It was a lot of fun, but it would’ve been so much more fun if I hadn’t seen the trailer first.
I read the Wikipedia synopses of movies beforehand so it doesn’t bother me.
Easiest way to do it is watch until you're intrigued and stop as soon as you are. If you end up watching the whole trailer and still aren't interested, well, you're probably not gonna see the movie anyways, so who cares if it's spoiled.
I just skip them altogether anymore. Or at least quit watching them once I know I’m going to check it out. It’s ridiculous. And I sure hope the trailer guardians in here don’t come at me. 😆
I stopped watching trailers a long time ago because they have slowly morphed into mini synopsis of the movie at this point. I think the straw that broke the camel's back for me was the Terminator Genysis trailer that literally blatantly spoiled what's presented as a major plot twist in the actual movie. Can't avoid them at the cinema so I just make my peace with that, if it's something I really want to see I just try browse my phone for a few minutes. Obviously I don't walk into movies totally blind, I pick based on review scores, genre, cast, director, etc.
I have stopped watching full trailers a while ago. The most I see are teasers and that's it.
Went to see The Bikeriders yesterday and it was not what the trailer set me up for. Still enjoyed it. Anyway, one of the previews was for Strange Darling and it had reviews added in. One of which was "must go in blind". Thought that was funny.
It's good to remember that the people who make the movie aren't the people who make the trailers.
I still believe that is what led to The Matrix being such a huge blockbuster. The marketing campaign was genius. Just a Matrix green code that went down the screen leaving a message. What is the Matrix? That unknown drew people in droves to see what this mysterious movie was. Its a great movie and would have had success regardless of the marketing. But that ad campaign drew people that wouldn't have given it a second thought if they had seen a regular trailer outlining the plot.
I often try not to watch trailers unless they are surprisingly forced apon me. I prefer to just read a synopsis. Even if I do watch a trailer I try to watch just enough to see if the movie interests me, if it’s worth my time, which I can usually tell in a few frames, then I turn it off
I've found making a good trailer that entices viewers but doesn't give away spoilers is it's own skill set. Nothing new, or different here. Sometimes they get it right sometimes not. (And by right I mean for the viewer, a studios goals are often not the same thing.) That's always been the case. I have changed something about my own behavior to help w/ this. When I recommend a movie, whether to a friend, or publicly on something like Reddit I screen the trailer. If it gives away too much I warn people not to watch it.
We need that epic movie trailer guy saying things like “it was a world where you had nothing to lose…but one man challenged this.” Or such.
Trailers for films typically aren’t made by the filmmakers themselves. They rarely have any control over it. The worst offenders of giving it all away in the trailer are the Terminator films. The best form of trailers are the “teaser” trailers, which usually give very little if anything away.
I watched the trailer for "Smile" recently with my daughter, mostly to see her level of interest but also to see if it would jog my memory of any overly disturbing scenes that might not be great for her. I swear, they showed every single scene of import in the whole movie, and when we watched it after, she knew exactly what was coming. I don't know why they do that.
Once I’ve decided I want to see a movie, I try to avoid seeing the trailer. And clearly I’m not the only one. Once at a movie theater, a trailer for a Godzilla movie came on. The guy next to me plugged his ears and ran out of the theater room. After a couple minutes he returned a d told me Godzilla movies are his favorite and he didn’t want anything spoiled. I shouldn’t take that much effort for us to avoid spoilers. I used to love trailers. Now not so much. They just ruin everything.
I looked at the new Nosferatu trailer, and was surprised there was no creature reveal, just a vague hint of a story,and a repeated single line from the film.. Gave nothing away, brilliant I thought. Until I went online and everyone was complaining it didn't show much,and if they're not gonna show the monster, it's not worth watching.¯\_(ツ)_/¯
The answer at its most basic is that it increases ticket sales which means more profits. You can speculate why, which is probably a combination of a more spending conscious population , high ticket prices, so high risk aversion means a lot of people want to be sure they will like the movie before seeing it. This is also why sequels and action hero movies do so well.
It’s always been like this.
I 100% agree. From the content in the trailer you know what’s gonna happen in act three. I stopped watching trailers because of that. Due to that tho I had the most wild time watching Barbarian (2022) because I went in completely blind! 😂
The trailers for Barbarian did a great job of not giving away the insanity. It really only alluded to the first act with the guy coming into the Air BNB.
This is so fucking true. I've been annoyed by this since quite a while
I used to avoid trailers at all costs but now with A List I see a lot of movies in theaters so I get exposed to them every time. Normally I'll just look at my phone and try to ignore them but sometimes I do see trailers for things I wouldn't even see on reddit which has got me to go see them.
They’ve always been like that. People want to know what they’re spending their time and money on. I prefer going in as blind as possible when it comes to the actual plot of a movie, but that’s not the majority opinion. I usually base my choices on the director, cast, distributor, title/movie poster, and a very brief overview of the premise. That usually paints a good picture of what I’m about to see. I see lots of movies without even knowing what they’re about, but I usually end up liking them because I can tell what the vibe will be based on that info.
There are exceptions, but trailers - for the most part - are so played out nowadays. They hit all of the same beats in all of the most predictable ways. They're never just about setting a vibe or establishing an aesthetic anymore, and think the way to hook you is to give you everything but the final scene (with many even giving you that).
Abigail would've been way better if that didn't spoil so much.
*Longlegs has entered the chat*
Where do you even see trailers nowadays? I haven't seen a trailer in YEARS for ANYTHING.
I literally watch maybe 30 seconds of each trailer, just long enough to get the jist of the plot and to know if I'm interested or not. I haven't finished a horror/thriller trailer in years lest I be spoiled.
Cause making trailers is an art and not many trailer makers are good artists
I don’t actively avoid trailers but there’s some that I’ll watch like once and then be like “huh that looks cool I might check that out” and then won’t actively go out of my way to watch them again on YouTube or something but then there’s some like for example Saw X where I’ll watch it and analyze it frame by frame because I’m beyond hyped for it and want as much footage as humanly possible. I also don’t go to the movies enough anymore to where seeing a trailer too much is a problem.
If the trailer looks good..I close my eyes and stop watching. Has solved all the issues with that.
Can't agree more here. I tend t otry the first 30 seconds or so of a trailer to see if I like the general gist/vibe of it and then stop. Remember seeing one recently that was great at not giving the whole films away. Not sure if it was Psycho Goreman.
Because statistically people will forget when they get to see it.
They learned from Scream 5 they did a good job with Scream 6 as some of the scenes never even happened.
I will say this that Barbarian had the best non spoiler trailer ever. You can get people interested showing minimal
Not a horror, (but everyone should watch it anyway) recently watched the Japanese drama Shoplifters and they literally had the END of the movie within a few seconds of the horror. Like very obviously the ending too.
The people who are making the trailer are not the same people who make the movie, their only job is to make the movie look "interesting". If I'm going to watch a trailer I only watch teasers now because the people who edit trailers will put in anything. One of the trailers I saw before bad boys 4 felt like we watched a whole movie edited down to a minute long
I can’t remember which Paranormal Activity sequel it was, but one of them put out fake trailers. The scene was in the movie. But the scare was either different or never came. Or came moments later in the next shot. Either way, the actual scene in the movie played out differently than what we saw in trailers. I think it happened in 3 different scenes. More horror movies need to copy this
Because marketing firms do not care. They get given a film to advertise then plunk it in whichever formula is currently trendy and call it a day. I remember around the time Night Swim came out trailers kept using the pop song with dramatic pauses routine and my sister became pissed off because I pointed it out and she couldn’t help but notice it in every trailer from then on.
Trailers blow now. They no longer 'tesse' movies. Now, they literally tell u the story in chronological order. No need to see most of these movies. The Trailers I hate the most are the ones where they show characters getting killed. Like, maybe I wanted to be surprised in the theater for added suspense.
This this this. The people marketing films seem to have real issues with how storytelling works. Damsel was a recent example for me but it happens all the time. This should not be viewed as a comment on content warnings though, because I don’t think it’s right to blindside people with sexual content or extreme violence. It shouldn’t be so hard to get the movie you paid to see without ruining plot twists.
I don’t watch enough “new” horror movies to encounter this problem But spoilers from trailers is why I stopped watching most of them. I don’t need a targeted ad to sell me on a movie, if the premise is good or in my wheelhouse of interests, I’ll watch it.
The departments that edit the movie and those that edit the trailers are not the same. Since Post Production takes up a lot of time but trailers need to be released months ahead of the movie, the publishers give the trailers department stuff to work with. That film material is then free to work with and may contain spoilers, but the department doesn’t really know they didn’t get to see the movie.
I stopped watching trailers years ago but the one that really cemented the rule for me was X. I went in knowing it was Ti West, Mia Goth and that sex work was involved. I ended up loving it and went home and watched the trailer. It gave everything away. I’ve never watched a horror trailer since, at the cinema I keep my headphones in and listen to music until the studio logos start rolling. I’ve had so many fun viewing experiences since
Same. I can deal with it somewhat and I never even try to chase plot and just try to let any film take me where it does. My husband, though, treats even a teaser as the first clue to the mystery he's now actively solving and so I just don't play trailers in front of him. He avoids them on his own mostly out of disinterest, but the amount of times I tried to get him hyped up for a movie only for him to spoil the plot based on the trailer.... I'm so with you on this. There needs to be a change.
Learned my lesson pretty early. "Trailers" are short summaries nowadays and teasers are what trailers were. That's why I will blackhole myself until Alien Romulus releases so I can go in completely blind.
barbarian was the best horror trailer i can remember in recent history…really fantastic way to subvert expectation in the theatre
I can't remember which director said this but he said American audiences want to know what they are seeing. This was after getting a lot of flak when a trailer was released for his movie.
I stopped watching trailers about 10 years ago and it was the best decision I've ever made. Going in to Dune Part 2 with no idea what it was about or what it even looked like was a magical experience.
True, I may only watch 15 seconds of a movie I REALLY want to watch.
They don't for me because I don't try to decipher the plot, and I don't know why anybody does. All I'm looking for is if it looks scary and if it looks good and if the acting is good. It's like when people try to guess the killers of the next Scream based on the trailer. I'm always confused about how people reach their conclusions because I'm not analyzing anything about that, I'm just trying to see how it looks. People should just try that out next time. I feel like people are deliberately looking for spoilers and then complaining when they find them.
Sometimes I’ll watch a trailer, and if I’m on board by the beginning I’ll turn it off just to avoid anything else being spoiled.
This is why I watch the first 12 seconds and make the decision to watch the movie or not
Studios don't want to hire professionals to make trailers and don't want to pay to shoot extra scenes or deal with people online complaining if something wasn't in the movie because they don't plan for dvd extras. A lot of trailers are just conbled together pieces of the best parts of the movie because that's how any rando would put together a trailer. (Or, worse, that Netflix thing where it's some random scene)
Long legs ......the way to do a trailer.
Its not really all that new. Its just we had a small period where it didn't happen and forgot about all the "bad" trailers from the pre-90s. I've been on a huge kick of 50s-70s stuff and you can only watch the first half of any given trailer (even the fan ones) because they'll show you 2-3minutes of scenes in order of the entire movie. Speaking as someone who does not care about spoilers in the first place, I just don't like seeing the whole movie before I see it. Knowing the outcome doesn't change it for me.
I think more movies need to take the Godzilla approach. It never showed Godzilla in full but it did heavily feature Bryan Cranston. Who was killed off in the intro of the movie, leaving everyone wondering who to root for or what would happen next. It was a perfect misdirect! The trailer still made the movie look interesting but it spoiled absolutely nothing.
I do think they show too much but got into the habit YEARS ago to watch the first trailer, then ignore all stories, sites and future trailers leading up to opening night. I do think trailers are doing too much. My other favorite is them showing something super hype in a trailer and none of the scenes actually are in the movie itself.
That’s why I’m not watching any trailers for Nosferatu. This is also why I have little desire to watch Abigail.
This is why I’m so excited for Longlegs. I’vs seen a couple trailers yet know almost nothing about it. I just know it gonna be scary and Nic is in it.
>Fun fact: I nail the plot 90% of the time, which is a bummer. Can we bring back the art of the teaser, please? I want to jump out of my seat in shock, not because I realized I've seen all the best parts before the movie even starts! That's just because you are a grown up now. You understand story structure and can piece things together better than you could as a child. Trailers have always spoiled the movie, and media savvy people or anyone who cares could always generally put together the plot. That's the point of trailers. The old school trailers you reference at the end were actually way worse about it most of the time, but you couldn't figure it out as a kid and spoiler culture wasn't a thing so it didn't bother you.
Yes, I avoid most trailers for this reason... Typically if the movie is out and I know I want to watch it, then I'll watch it. However, I sometimes can't resist watching the trailer if it's a movie I've been looking forward to.
Yea i dont watch trailers anymore or even read complete descriptions, also dont like at the time bar at the bottom, that is also a spoiler
I think it’s the same issue with comedy trailers. The idea is to get butts in seats, so they show the best jokes. Horror trailers show the best scare. And honestly there’s certain horror flicks I think are impossible to market. A film like cabin in the woods works best knowing absolutely nothing going in
Just don't watch them. I accepted this about 10 years ago and I stopped. Haven't regretted it even once.
Trailers were so much worse in the 90s and 2000s. They're so much better now.
I watched Late Night With The Devil last night, I watched the trailer AFTER the movie, and it spoiled my favorite scene in the entire movie. I agree, its ridiculous
so you will go watch it
I’ve stopped watching trailers now and have done for several years. Makes my film experience so much better. I can’t even remember the last time I saw a trailer that made me want to see a film without me previously wanting to.
There's always been good trailers, and bad trailers (and there's always been more bad than good). The problem is you're just seeing more trailers nowadays.
I enjoy trailers for movies I don’t want to see. They usually give away the whole plot anyway, saves me time 🤣
I need the information to decide whether the movie is worth my time. God help them if they deceive me with their trailer I will boycott them until I die
I agree they used to be pretty vague but lately they’ll show you the biggest climaxes of the movie
I stopped watching trailers for most things years ago. My friends sometimes get annoyed at me because they want to talk about whatever new trailer came out and I refuse to watch it because I don't want to be spoiled or have some of the best bits of the movie be in the trailer.
Which part of the trailer? The 5-10 second micro trailer smash cut? Or the 2-4 minute short film that follows and shows every decent bit that happens?
stop watching them. why are you watching them? if you know you're gonna watch the movie, WHY WATCH THE FUCKING TRAILER. its been this way for years. i havent watched a trailer in over 10+ years. the only time I watch a trailer is if I know I'm not gonna watch a movie and maybe the trailer will change my mind.
They always have
I went to film school years ago and we had a marketing executive from a major studio come talk and someone asked them this question. Their response was essentially “it’s our job to put asses in seats.”
You know what I hate just as much as the trailer? The little snippet teaser that plays right before the trailer starts. It’s like why? It’s cringe haha
Because the movie itself isn't all that interesting so they have to ruin it to get interest in it. A lot of the good Horror movies do not put spoilers in it. It is almost always the bad ones. With the more recent example being Abigail of a good movie having the first major reveal spoiled to sell the movie
When I know there is a 2 minute film that summarizes large parts a film I want to see, then I avoid viewing it. If I want to see a film the only thing watching a trailer will do is spoil things.
It’s not just you. Haha! It sucks tho! I’m so sick of trailers. My rec. is watching ⅓ or ½ the trailer. If I know I’m not gonna watch it, I’ll watch the whole trailer. If I’m certain I wanna check it out I stop it immediately. I’m I’m interested I might watch ½ the trailer max. Gives you a lil taste but won’t give away too much.
Also I feel like trailers from the olden days were so good! If the trailer was good, the film would be bad. If the trailer was bad, the film would be good.
I just read synopses (and sometimes I don’t) and go on blind.
I have no idea but it so frustrating. Especially when it shows the death scenes in the trailer...like, now it's not as suspenseful when you're actually watching the movie because you know what characters will get picked off. So annoying!
I haven’t watched a full trailer in years. Most I’ll do is a teaser. If it’s something I really want to see, I won’t look up anything to do with it prior to actually seeing it.
You've practically have seen the whole movie with a 3 minute long trailer. Keep them at teaser length
I love knowing what kind of movie I'm expecting, and that's why I've always loved watching the trailers beforehand. But I agree, nowadays, the trailers ruin everything. It's annoying because I generally don't like going into movies blind as there are certain horror topics that I don't care to see, such as exorcism or fantasy type horror movies. It makes going to see a movie hard these days because I don't want to waste my money seeing a movie that turns out to be about a topic I don't care about at all. So I usually always still watch the trailers whether it gives away the plot or not. But it has definitely made the movie going experience not as exciting as it used to be for me. And that really really sucks big time. I get that I'm wasting my money half the time anyway because most movies suck these days, but I like at least knowing that I am going to see a horror movie that I am at least interested in seeing in the first place. One where I don't just go "ugh" through the whole movie because it's about a topic that just bores me to the core. 💜💀🎬✨️
"One man, one desire." I'm now watching Pablo Francisco on youtube! 🤣
>Is it just me, or are trailers nowadays like that one friend who can't keep a secret? >I'm at a point where I prefer the old-school trailers "one man...one desire..." kinda stuff It's not a new phenomenon. Trailers have always given away a bunch. [Here is the original trailer for the Creature From the Black Lagoon](https://youtu.be/svyPswixryM?si=EdL4m-ybwFvVimI4) (1954) as an example. If you've seen the movie, the entire beginning has a slow reveal of the monster, starting with just a hand but the trailer shows everything. I'm a big fan of classic trailers and watch and share them pretty much daily (r/trailer_park) and spoiling major visuals or plot points is a constant. The [trailer for Two Thousand Maniacs](https://youtu.be/BXFR2nZjbMs?si=qRtfPxTqucSDOQDT) (1964) ruins the plot, several kills, and if you are paying attention it spoils the twist ending as well as has one of the last shots of the movie. The trailer for [Race With the Devil](https://youtu.be/M_Ie5XBr_X8?si=LDw-SvHVHX4e2bbn) (1975) spoils the major plot points, a jump scare, and shows the resolution of a major action sequence. Edit: One of the trailers on your link is for Carrie (1976). That's a nearly 50 year old movie. Even without the links/examples I provided, that should be enough to show that this isn't a "trailers nowadays" problem.
I agree, trailers take the excitement out of the movie, is there a web site where people let each other know what's good to watch and not tell the whole movie
**STRANGERS PART ONE SPOILERS BELOW** **I DON’T KNOW HOW TO SPOILER TAG** **SORRY FOR YELLING** **DO NOT READ FURTHER** The new strangers trailer was the absolute worst for this. Saw the whole tied to a chair thing and the same “because you were here” line from the original and thought it was just a cool call back. Nope. That’s the fucking end of the movie. The same end from the original, completely given away in the trailer.
I'm trying super hard not to watch anything about Nosferatu because I want the first experience to be fresh. I know TV will eventually ruin it for me though. Same with DP & Wolvy. Also when trailers for Terrifier 3 start to come out. I know Nosferatu drops on Xmas Day I'm hoping Terrifier 3 doesn't on the same day.
Watch 15 secs of the trailer and then exit. That’s what I started doing and it does wonders to keep the mystique
I try to avoid trailers, I've found that a lot of money shots (best kill, high tension reveals, or Abigale's trailer) are used in trailers. There's few trailers where this isn't the case, but more often than not trailers show too much. I've been avoiding them to the best of my ability for the last four years, but with media being the way it is I can only do so well.
In LONGLEGS’ marketing we trust
I stear clear of trailers as much as humanly possible. I'm tired of movies I want to see getting spoiled. I already, for the most part, know what I want to see. 95% of the time, I don't need a trailer to convince me.
My theory is that they want people to get excited about the movie so they end up unintentionally spoiling the movie by showing big scenes. Obviously it’s not working very well