Comedy movie trailers often spoil the best bits in their two-minute blitzkrieg to get your ticket dollars.
It makes sense. You want to put your funniest foot forward, to mangle a common phrase.
But bad comedies often can’t even muster enough yuks to fill a two-minute trailer.
That makes this critic suspicious of “Your Highness,” a new medieval comedy starring Danny McBride, Natalie Portman and James Franco hitting theaters April 8. The film’s trailer can’t muster a single guffaw, and that’s a shame given the caliber of talent involved. But what’s most galling is one of the gags chosen for the trailer.
It’s the weary “suck out the poison” routine, where someone is bitten by a snake and the poison must be sucked out of the wound before it spreads.
As comedy shtick goes, the bit is as shopworn as a pie in the face and a seltzer bottle spritz. But here it anchors the trailer.
Maybe “Your Highness” has plenty of comedy arrows still remaining in its quiver. But if I’m a paying movie goer and I see a trailer like that, my hunch is to stay far, far away.
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{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
Not sure your specific criticism applies here, Toto. The film appears aimed solidly at the teen market which means that anything more than 8 years old is unknown to the audience and therefore effectively new and fresh.
I see your point … but I still think the poison bit wasn’t very funny when comedians first trotted it out years ago. And seeing it front and center here is a sign of a comedic void.
Not all comedy ages well … which is a topic for another day (and blog point)
I’d like to think, that given Natalie Portman and Zooey Deschanel’s involvement in this that this wouldn’t happen, HOWEVER, when I saw this trailer, I was reminded of the trailer for Employee of the Month, in which anything that was funny about the movie was put into the trailer, and I mean ANYTHING. The movie had nothing.
In retrospect we all can say, no surprise, but at the time I remember thinking that this was exactally what I hated about the industry. Not only that, but it insults their target audience.
Frankly the demographic they’re going for in this film is teenage boys who only want to look at Natalie Portman in a bikini. I’ll give you guys a clue, all you’ll see is in the trailer, so save your money and download the trailer for free off the net.
However I know this film will make money so, whatever.
Whoo, I’m sorry, I’m still on the floor from the knight falling down the stairs bit. Lemme catch my breath. If nothing else, Natalie “body of a 13 year old boy” probably got to borrow some of Keira Knightley’s outfits from King Arthur. Wait, never mind.
Sorta redefines comedy, doesn’t it, Eric? And how lame is the bit where Portman beats up McBride? You can tell the trailer editors sped up the scene to make it – gasp – even funnier.
The “suck out the poison” gag might seem overused to us, but this movie’s herbally-enhanced target audience is notorious for having memory issues. It’s possible that they’ll be seeing it for the first time…again.
So, now that Portman has done the under-whelming Oscar bait Black Swan people suddenly think that she is some high minded actress with amazing talent? Have people forgotten the horrible Star Wars prequels, already? I’ve seen department store mannequins that emote better. She decided to follow up Swan with this mess and the odious Friends With Benefits??? With Ashton Kutcher? Sorry, but this doesn’t sound like an actress with wise decision making powers. Or maybe it’s just I really, really don’t like her squeaky little voice and sad personality.