Trailer Trash Thursday

In a contrast from last week, which saw almost no new trailers that I actually had any interest in whatsoever, there are multiple new previews out this week that have piqued my interest.  First off, probably the most noteworthy trailer of the week is for the upcoming sequel to The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, titled The The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug, which you can watch here. I did not get around to watching the first movie in this series, so I can't really comment on how much different and/or better or worse this movie looks compared to the last one, but I can say it looks pretty darn cool. It seems very exciting and fun, not to mention appropriately epic. If nothing else, it makes me want to go back and give the first movie a shot.

Secondly, a movie that could be hit or miss, but that I have pretty high hopes for, is The To Do List, the trailer for which you can watch here. Ever since Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World and (especially) Safety Not Guaranteed, as well as her role on Parks and Recreation, I've been an ever growing fan of Aubrey Plaza and her dry humor. I can imagine it might be off putting to some, but I dare you to watch Safety Not Guaranteed and not fall in love with her in all her strange, sarcastic charm. This movie could definitely be a hit or miss affair, but I think it looks like a fun and funny sex comedy. If nothing else, I'm willing to take my chances on it simply because of Plaza's starring role.


I'm perhaps a bit more excited than I should be after seeeing the new trailer for 300: Rise of an Empire here. While it's not a movie I return to or think about very often, I did enjoy the first movie. I love movies with a great sense of visual style, it that movie certainly had its fair share. The fact that Zak "Man of Steel" Snyder is no longer handling directing duties could be a good or bad thing.  I've never seen anything from Noam Murro, who has assumed the position as director for this movie, so it's hard to judge whether I will likely enjoy his style or not. The trailer makes it look promising to me, but then, do we really even need a 300 sequel?


A new trailer for White House Down reinvigorates my interest what could potentially be a movie that is a lot of fun and really awesome. That's a huge if, but two big ingridents for success are there in the form of Channing Tatum and Jamie Foxx. I'm not a big fan of Roland Emmerich, but both of these actors have been super impressive as of late, and I have faith that they wouldn't choose to star in a stinker, or at least that they could cause a stinker to rise above that status. At the very least, hopefully it will be better than Olympus Has Fallen.

Movie Trivia Tuesday: Singin' in the Rain

This coming Thursday, I will have the opportunity to see Singin' in the Rain on the big screen for the second time in my life at the Garden Theatre in Winter Garden, FL. If I were to make a top 5 list (and someday I still might, even though it's a nearly impossible task), then singin' in the Rain would probably land as my #2 favorite movie of all time. It is an amazing, entertaining, funny, awe-inspiring film that is a joy to watch over and over again. It is certainly the best musical of all time, with multiple excellent and memorable songs and the talents that populate the movie are all remarkable. I could really go on and on about how much I love this movie. Given this exciting occasion, I thought it only appropriate to make Singin' in the Rain this weeks trivia subject.
 
 

• Different actors were considered for all three of the main roles at various times. Judy Garland was considered among several other actresses to play the part of Kathy Seldon, but was deemed too old for the part, the role of Cosmo Brown was originally written for Oscar Levant before Donald O’Connor was suggested, and Howard Keel was the original choice to play Don Lockwood.

 

• Gene Kelly was seen by Donald O’Connor as somewhat of a tyrant while making the movie, and supposedly even criticizing Debbie Reynolds dancing to the point of making her cry

 

• In 2007, the American Film Institute ranked Singin' in the Rain the #5 greatest film of all time

 

• The film was nominated for two Oscars, one for Best Supporting Actress, Jean Hagen and another for Best Music, Scoring of a Musical Picture. Donald O’Connor also won a Golden Globe for his performance as Cosmo Brown.

 

• The script was written after the songs. A plot had to be devised around which the songs would fit

 

• Only two songs were written specifically for the film, “Moses Supposes” and “Make ‘Em Laugh”

 

• In the songs “Would You” and “You Are My Lucky Star,” Debbie Reynolds is being dubbed by Betty Noyes

 

• The melody for “Make ‘Em Laugh” is strikingly similar to the song “Be a Clown” sung by Gene Kelly in The Pirate. Nobody was ever accused of plagiarism, though. Judge for yourself here and here.

 

• Gene Kelly had a 103 degree fever during the filming the “Singin’ in the Rain” musical number

 

• The rain used in the “Singin’ in the Rain” musical number was actually a combination of water and milk, which was used to make it show up better on film