Who doesn't love Paul Rudd? Well, apparently this Facebook group doesn't, but I'm assuming they're doing a parody because, really, how can you hate Paul Rudd?
So, why not start off your day with a double helping of Rudd:
Ant-Man and the Wasp TrailerActually, it's silly of me to pretend like this is a new trailer. It debuted yesterday. It already has 5.5 million views on YouTube. Heck, the obligatory reaction videos from Collider and too many YouTube Channels to count have thousands of views a piece. Even Vox - left-leaning, political news-oriented Vox! - posted a reaction article yesterday containing their three favorite GIFS from the trailer.
I dragged my feet here because, frankly, I'm still deciding whether or not I'm even going to write about trailers anymore. After The Last Jedi, I don't think fan culture is in a healthy place, and our endless overanalyzing of trailers to get clickbait articles or videos is a part of that. However, Ant-Man is one my favorite MCU movies. This trailer for the sequel primarily delivers on the parting promise of its predecessor, which is to show us the Wasp in action. As the lady once said, it's about damn time, and she looks suitably badass. My instinct here is not to cheer the Wasp but instead to nod approvingly, the distinction being that post- Wonder Woman we shouldn't have to scream "Look, a female superhero!" but instead simply nod along "Yeah, it's a female superhero. What's the big deal? We have lots of those now." Except, of course, we don't. Not yet, at least not on the big screen. But we're getting there.
The trailer does also answer the question of whether or not, post- Civil War, Scott Lang will be on the run: apparently, yes, but not before being put on house arrest. How exactly that reflects on his role in Infinity War (which will come out two months earlier) or speaks to Ant-Man and the Wasp 's placement in the MCU timeline remains to be seen.
Mostly, this trailer gives us more of the same comedic spirit of the first movie with, perhaps, an ever-so-slightly more serious tone. For example, that opening question Scott poses to Hope would probably have been played for satire in the first film's marketing campaign. The reveal of who he's posing the question to would have been the joke (like maybe he's actually asking his daughter) or at least their response would have been a broader punchline than Hope's more resolute, "I'll guess we'll never know, but if you had you would have never been caught."
But it's the sequel. They don't have to work quite so hard to explain how different this is going to be from the rest of the MCU. Mostly, just show us Hope kicking ass, drop in some quick shots of the villain(s), tease Ant-Man as Giant Man, and close on another "only in an Ant-Man " movie sight gag. Check, check, and check. Job well done, Marvel.
Ant-Man and the Wasp is due July 6, 2018.
Mute TrailerPaul Rudd is not the star here; his mustache is!
No, seriously, the star of Mute, Duncan Jones' long-delayed fourth movie, is Alexander Skarsgard, but, true to the title, he's playing a mute bartender, quite possibly the perfect character for such a gorgeous, but dramatically limited actor. So, somebody has to step up to provide actual dialogue and exposition, and in this trailer the person who most fits the bill is Paul Rudd, delivering some rather peculiar one-liners, threats, and I-don't-know-whats. The plot, from a script Jones co-wrote with Michael Robert Jones, involves Skarsgard venturing into the underbelly of future Berlin to find his girlfriend. Rudd and an oddly blonde Justin Theroux co-star as "a pair of irreverent US Army surgeons on a mission all their own." They team with Skarsgard, but also seem to be working slightly against him. I don't know.
It's all very Blade Runner-meets- John Wick-meets- A.I. Because it's Duncan Jones and he made Moon and Source Code we have to pay attention, but because it's Duncan Jones and he made Warcraft we have to be skeptical. Moreover, this is a genuine Netflix Original, which on the TV side of things usually portends greatness but on the film side of things usually means an unpredictable roll of the dice (could be great, could be Fun Mom Dinner). The beauty of it all, of course, is that should you want to roll the dice on Mute it won't cost you anything other than your time, and, frankly, it's a new Duncan Jones sci-fi movie. I'm going to watch it. What about you?
Mute drops February 23rd.
Parting Mute TriviaSo some of you may be aware that I have previously called @Mute my "Don Quixote." I did this, as much like Terry Gillian's fabled film of that name, it seemed everything was against Mute ever being made. In fact, here's an early draft... from 2003! pic.twitter.com/wW3VwfLRRR
- Duncan Jones (@ManMadeMoon) January 19, 2018
It was going to be my first film. I sent it to Sam Rockwell who loved it!
...but he wanted to play Leo, the part that would later go to Alex Skarsgård. I wouldn't budge but was so enamoured with Sam, I decided to write something just for him. That was Moon. pic.twitter.com/8hViVmD7X2- Duncan Jones (@ManMadeMoon) January 19, 2018
Years past, Mute kept being pushed to the back burner. Life filled up with Source Code, my amazing wife's successful battle with cancer, Warcraft, dad's cancer, baby, the wonderful woman who raised me, Marion's sad loss to brain cancer. We'd do a graphic novel with @FabryGlenn pic.twitter.com/rWSMsPY2pG
- Duncan Jones (@ManMadeMoon) January 19, 2018
Netflix, these crazy new kids on the block, had this totally crazy philosophy on film making straight out of the 70s. Don't make 4 quad "please everyone" homogenous blobs! Make films fimmakers are passionate about & let the audience find them! pic.twitter.com/HpcgySkFoa
- Duncan Jones (@ManMadeMoon) January 19, 2018
Part three of the Moon/Mute/? trilogy stars two sisters. Wax meant to be made before Warcraft but couldn't get it financed. Still trying!
...next film Im writing now, is not part of trilogy, but DOES have female lead. https://t.co/TBTP3KryX8- Duncan Jones (@ManMadeMoon) January 19, 2018
