Best Trailers of the Week! Toy Story, John Wick, that new Tarantino Joint

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

It's good week for trailers, gang. Buckle up, because we've got a lot of ground to cover.

Where do I begin? Oh yeah, how about that new Tarantino joint. If I could use one scene from the trailer to describe my feelings about the first official look at QT's latest, I'd have to go with the moment when Leo twists and jives ever so happily in a brightly lit room surrounded by beautiful blondes. I mean, this movie just looks downright terrific. Aside from the fact that I already know it's probably going to be the best movie of the year — honestly, how can you outdo the man who gave us JACKIE BROWN — the trailer itself just looks phenomenal.

There's not a ton of info that's been revealed about ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD yet, but various sources have gathered that the movie is probably set in the year 1969 in Los Angeles. Leonardo DiCaprio is playing Rick Dalton, a TV actor from fictional western show BOUNTY HUNTER, and Brad Pitt is playing his stunt double Cliff Booth. The pair are based on real life duo Burt Reynolds and Hal Needham. Charles Manson and his family members make an appearance, with Manson being played by JUSTIFIED's Damon Harriman. Dakota Fanning is playing infamous member Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme, the woman who in real life, attempted to assasinate President Gerald Ford, and GIRLS helmer Lena Dunham will play Gypsy, based on real life member Catherine Share. Maya Hawke, daughter of Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawke, and Harley Quinn Smith, daughter of Kevin Smith, will also play Manson girls.  Bruce Lee will be played by Mike Moh, and we will see him training various stars for upcoming roles in movies — including Jay Sebring (played by Emile Hirsch) and Cliff Booth (Pitt). In real life, Lee triained many actors for their stunt-heavy scenes, including Sharon Tate and Steve McQueen. Clearly, Tarantino is pulling from real-life stories and historical figures, but there's a good chance he will change the course of history. Just as he altered the outcome of Hitler's demise and the events of World War II in INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS, so, too, might Tarantino decide to change the fate of Sharon Tate, real life movie star and wife to director Roman Polanski, who was brutally murdered by members of the Manson family.

It's funny how as time goes on, you can see films imitating aspects from others films. It's not as much copying as it is film lovers appreciating other film lovers — I'm not even sure the filmmakers realize what's happening when they do it. It may be a scene from a movie they watched recently creeps its way in to their subconscious and resurfaces later as unintentional homage. Either way, it's cool when it happens, and I see it happening a few times in this week's trailer round-up. For instance, JOHN WICK 3 — which looks so dang good, fam — features a chase scene in which Wick battles a gang of hitmen while riding a motorcycle and simultaneously conducting a sword fight. This feels pretty similar to a scene from last year's THE VILLAINESS, a Korean vengeace tale about a female assassin who leaves a trail of bodies in her wake.

It's also worth noting that LUCY IN THE SKY, a movie starring the incomparable Natalie Portman as Lucy Cola, an astronaut losing touch with reality after witnessing the glory of space, seems to stylistically echo the choices of Paul Schrader and his film FIRST REFORMED. The shot of Lucy and her lover ? husband? engaging in an intimate act while seemingly floating through an endless void seems reminiscent of Schrader's surreal love scenes shared between Ethan Hawke's Toller and Amanda Seyfriend's Mary. I could definitely see Noah Hawley being a fan of Schrader's work.

There's also a brand new trailer for RED SHOES AND THE 7 DWARFS, which is…a choice. This story doesn't just pay homage to an older film, it actually takes a very, very dark centuries old fairytale and twists it into a kid's movie that's seemingly light and airy. As those who have seen Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger's 1948 film THE RED SHOES knows, the classic tale is about a girl who puts on a magical pair of red shoes in order to dance the night away with her sweetie, only to find herself cursed, trapped within the shoes, doomed to dance for all of eternity. Well, at least until she dies. I'm not sure how this animated family fun film will end, but I'm guessing it's chosen a lighter path for such young audiences. Still feels pretty strange, though.

Next up, we have TV trailers! This week brings us new peeks at STRANGER THINGS season 3, THE CHILLING ADVENTURES OF SABRINA Part 2, DEADWOOD The Movie, RILAKKUMA AND KAORU, GENTLEMAN JACK, BLACK SUMMER, THE LAST O.G. Season 2, OUR PLANET, TOP GEAR Season 26, HUGE IN FRANCE, GODFATHER OF HARLEM, KEVIN HART: IRRESPONSIBLE, 7 SEEDS, and IN THE DARK.

There were quite a few contenders this week, but let's be clear — there's nothing that I'm more stoked to see this year than Quentin Tarantino's ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD. Each one of his films feels like a gift, a reminder why we go to the movies, and a masterclass in the art of filmmaking. Also, the trailer features Margot Robbie as Sharon Tate, giggling and dancing in the sunshine. Sold.