Best 2007: Trailers Part 2

Welcome back to the 100 Best Trailers of 2007. This is the 7th Annual List dating back to 2001 and my third year bringing it exclusively to JoBlo.com. If you visit the Trailers Page frequently, you should know my tastes quite well. Sit back and scan the list for your favorite trailer or movie of the year. Sometimes great trailers make great movies and other times they make you see awful movies. Don’t hesitate to strike back below if you think I must be completely nuts.

The 100 Best Trailers are listed in order from worst to first. Bear in mind that each year over 400 hundred trailers are released and not every one can fit on this list. The selection of the 100 Best is not compiled by the site as a whole; nor is it based on reader feedback. This is not a survey, nor did anyone vote. Just one Schmo’s opinion on things.

Selection of the 100 Best depends on a multitude of criteria. Paramount to making a great trailer, previews must excel in edit, music selection, character and story development, and originality. There are standard types of trailers that movie audiences are accustomed to seeing; this list intends to encourage filmmakers and marketing firms to break those molds. Each movie is only allowed one entry on the list. The power of the movie trailer is not in the safe and secure track, but the exploration of new ways to grab the audience’s attention. Trailers that were released last year (like the trailer for 300 or the teaser for HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX) are not qualified for this list.

This list will consist of two parts 100-41 and 40-1. I will feature the Worst Trailer of the year on my personal MYJOBLO Profile. Previous Best of the Years Winners include: 300, JARHEAD, GARDEN STATE, THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE, FEMME FATALE, and 40 DAYS, 40 NIGHTS.

40. I AM LEGEND

39. THERE WILL BE BLOOD

38. SUPERBAD

37. TALK TO ME

36. AN AMERICAN CRIME

35. LUST, CAUTION

34. JOSHUA

33. THE KINGDOM

32. AMERICAN GANGSTER

31. GHOSTS OF CITE SOLEIL

30. THE ORPHANAGE

29. ROCKET SCIENCE

28. SWEENY TODD

27. THE MACHINE GIRL

26. ATONEMENT

25. JUMPER

24. WALL-E

23. SHOOT ‘EM UP

22. LAKE OF FIRE

21. EAGLE VS. SHARK

TOP 20

These trailers are the best the year had to offer. Some missed out on the Top 10 just because there wasn’t enough room and something had to slip. THERE WILL BE BLOOD, SUPERBAD, JUMPER, and WALL-E all had exceptional trailers that just missed the cut. Perhaps they’re in your top 20. It is really just a matter of taste.

20. INTO THE WILD

19. BEOWULF

18. VACANCY

17. 28 WEEKS LATER

16. THE ASSASSINATION OF JESSE JAMES

15. DEDICATION

14. OCEAN’S THIRTEEN

13. THE SIMPSONS MOVIE

12. CLOVERFIELD

11. THE SIGNAL

TOP 10

# 10

THE PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD’S END

Kicking off the Top 10 is an exceptional trailer to close the PIRATES trilogy (hopefully for good). This clip captures the magic of the series quite well, never sullying things by coming across saccharinely. There is plenty of action and adventure to assure nay-sayers that the third PIRATES was worth seeing.

# 9

IRON MAN

I can’t imagine who would win in a fight Batman Joker fanboys or IRON MAN fanboys. Next summer they’ll have quite a tussle if both of these trailers have anything to say. You can tell from this trailer that IRON MAN is in good hands with Jon Favreau. The dude who brought us ELF (and the underrated ZATHURA) aims to blow the doors off of comic geeks and plebians alike.

# 8

BEE MOVIE

Last year the teaser for BEE MOVIE placed 7th. While this trailer is not as funny, it still stands out as the funniest trailer for a kids movie. Jerry Seinfeld proved that there is life after his sitcom and that he’ll be entertaining us for many years to come. I especially enjoyed the inclusion of George Michael. Yup, I said it. Even bad songs can be great in the right context.

# 7

SUNSHINE

If you followed the production blog for SUNSHINE, you probably saw that there were multiple trailers made for this cool space flick. This is the best of the group and puts a spotlight on the short life of one Captain Kaneda. This trailer is tightly edited, exquisitely photographed, and absolutely bone-chilling. This is definitely an example of trailer that is better than the movie being promoted.

# 6

TEETH

There’s always a little engine that could in the pack, and TEETH is this year’s standout. I have no doubts that this movie is going to have problems as a feature film. Fortunately, the vagina dentata bit works perfectly well in short form and sends chills down my spine here. Love the trailer and it is always great to see an indie making an impact.

# 5

KNOCKED UP

This pick was easy. The trailer isn’t even remotely showy or flashy. Instead, it just takes the funniest scene from the year’s funniest movie and lets you sit back and chomp on some popcorn. I had doubts about Katherine Heigl and Seth Rogen before this trailer – but within 10 seconds they cement their chemistry and insured a blockbuster summer. Bravo Mr. Apatow.

# 4

THE DARK KNIGHT

After all of the hype and all of the fake (fan made) trailers, THE DARK KNIGHT finally arrived in style. There is nothing unusual or unique in the edit or the style of this trailer. This is just a good movie glued together just perfectly. The Joker makeup is phenomenal and a great redesign for those who only knew the Jack Nicholson version. I was sad that “Bat Dance” is absent, but I guess Prince wasn’t interested in remixing a classic. The best part is that this trailer is good enough that anyone responsible for SPIDER-MAN 3 should be embarrassed.

# 3

TRANSFORMERS

Up until this trailer, TRANSFORMERS was not on my must-see list. All of the fanboy hype and drivel had me bored and disinterested. And did I mention Michael Bay? Nevertheless, this trailer took me for a spin I wasn’t ready for. The newly designed Autobots weren’t that poorly rendered, Josh Duhamel and Tyeres Gibson weren’t too corny, and Shia LaBeouf was hysterical. Megan Fox wasn’t too shabby either. This trailer had a great sense of humor and of action, two qualities that bring a summer blockbuster to the top.

# 2

NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN

Bad ass. I’ve always insisted that Red Band trailers are the best way to pitch R-rated movies and this is a perfect example. When a movie has the level of violence seen here you have to share just a smidgen with people. Javier Bardem strangling some dude while they squirm on the floor is jarring and fantastic at the same second. This is one hella cool trailer for one hella cool movie.

# 1

FUNNY GAMES

The best trailers jump out when they have absolutely zero hype. For every THE DARK KNIGHT or TRANSFORMERS trailer, there’s always one or two that are better because you don’t already know them. That goes for both FUNNY GAMES and NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN. If you don’t walk away from either of these trailers with an intense desire to see the movie then maybe you should go see THE BRATZ MOVIE.

The edit, music, and acting in FUNNY GAMES are all superb. The mixing of classical music is nothing new but always amazing when done right. There is an obvious homage to A CLOCKWORK ORANGE here, and considering the subject matter, it makes sense. While this trailer may not have the lifespan of last year’s winner (THIS IS SPARTA!), it definitely out ranks everything new this year.


Okay folks, that is the list for this year. Since I’m sure a lot of you disagree, gladly ream me a new one with a Strike Back.

Source: JoBlo.com

About the Author

81 Articles Published