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Topic: Juxtaposition of Trailers

Greg Anderson
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 766
From: Ogden Valley, Utah
Registered: Nov 1999

posted 05-26-2000 10:54 PM

I was at the cinema today and there was a trailer for Shaft... a movie which will try to exploit stereotypes based on the "cool black guy" theme. Soon after that, there was a trailer for The Ladies Man which is based on a Saturday Night Live character who shows how ridiculous those black stereotypes are. Whose idea was it to show the trailers in that order?

Can you give other examples of strange trailer juxtaposition?

John Walsh
Film God

Posts: 2490
From: Connecticut, USA, Earth, Milky Way
Registered: Oct 1999

posted 05-26-2000 11:34 PM

We are running a public service ad that says; "..and noisy watercraft tramatize wildlife.." After that, we are running an ad for Ski-Doo jet-skis.

Tom Ferreira
Expert Film Handler

Posts: 203
From: Conway, NH, USA
Registered: Jun 99

posted 05-26-2000 11:41 PM

We are running a Screenvision anti-drug ad before....Road Trip.

Brad Miller
Administrator

Posts: 17775
From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall)
Registered: May 99

posted 05-26-2000 11:51 PM

This isn't funny, but...I remember very briefly running a promotional trailer for "feed the homeless" right after the big flashy "go to the concession stand and pig out" trailer. The homeless ad pictured people starving to death and lots of other very depressing images of that nature. What a way to make people feel good about spending $10 on a drink and popcorn just before their movie starts!

(No, I did not choose to run the trailers in that order as a very sick joke. That command came from the big people upstairs. These corporate people sometimes never seem to use common sense in their trailer programming.)

Dustin Mitchell
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1865
From: Mondovi, WI, USA
Registered: Mar 2000

posted 05-26-2000 11:59 PM

We're running a US Navy recruitment ad. Right after it we have the Perfect Storm trailer

Charles Lubner
Film Handler

Posts: 78
From: Milwaukee, WI USA
Registered: Sep 1999

posted 05-27-2000 12:28 AM

Recently at my theatre we were running a trailer that showed mentally and physically challenged children in "normal" society, with a song in the background to the tune of "Don't laugh at us, don't call us names" sponsored by the Variety Club. Anyways, it was nearly impossible not to laugh, because the trailer was only printed in flat format, yet we were required to run it on scope films as well.

The end result: short and fat stubby legged retarded kids running around a park with a goofy song in the background.....

I felt bad, but it was impossible not to laugh. :-(

Scott Magie
Film Handler

Posts: 73
From: St. Albans, VT USA
Registered: Mar 2000

posted 05-27-2000 12:33 AM

Way back when we were showing "Half-Baked", we received a written notification asking us not to run our Anti-Drug PSA before it. I can't remember who sent it... probably the anti-drug people... Carmike wouldn't care and neither would the distributor.
I just remember thinking it was funny.

The other fun trailer combos to program are the twin-movies... such as "Armageddon" & "Deep Impact"... or "Volcano" & that other movie about volcanoes... etc.

Or that Spy Who Shagged Me trailer with an Episode 1 trailer.

------------------
Scott A. Magie

scoooot@hotmail.com
"Anybody wanna peanut?"

Greg Anderson
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 766
From: Ogden Valley, Utah
Registered: Nov 1999

posted 05-27-2000 12:45 AM

I'm also reminded that, late in the summer of 1983, we were running a double feature of Snow White and WarGames. I don't know who paired up those movies. But, anyway, our signs above the auditorium doors weren't as nice as they are today. We had to spell out the film titles with individual letters (which were stored in the booth). And there wasn't enough room to spell out the full titles of two movies. Sooo...

We would put things like "Snow and War" above the door or "White and Games." Then my friend (and fellow employee) posted the best title combination and we ran with it. The sign read "War Dwarfs" for the rest of the run.

Paul Konen
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 981
From: Frisco, TX. (North of Dallas)
Registered: Jun 99

posted 05-27-2000 02:03 AM

How about programming for The Mummy.

End of Days
Inspector Gadget
Stigmata

Paul

Scott Norwood
Film God

Posts: 8146
From: Boston, MA. USA (1774.21 miles northeast of Dallas)
Registered: Jun 99

posted 05-27-2000 06:43 AM

Is anyone else playing the "Psychic Child" Moviefone ad? Apparently, this is considered to be disturbing to children, and is only supposed to be running with R-rated films. Unfortunately, the trailers arrived before the "only show these with R-rated films" letter, so at least one theatre was showing them before "Dinosaur" for a few days...

Greg Anderson
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 766
From: Ogden Valley, Utah
Registered: Nov 1999

posted 05-27-2000 06:56 AM

And who can forget that incredibly long, boring and totally inappropriate trailer for Inventing the Abbotts which we had to endure before each and every showing of the Star Wars (episode 4) Special Edition a few years back?

Tom Ferreira
Expert Film Handler

Posts: 203
From: Conway, NH, USA
Registered: Jun 99

posted 05-27-2000 06:59 AM

Greg's post about War Dwarves reminds me of my all time favorite marquee. In North Conway, NH, our mall theatre doesn't have an outdoor marquee due to sign ordinances, so the films playing there are listed on the side of the marquee of the twin theatre down the street. Due to the lack of space, and a strange combination of films, one week the marquee read 'Stop Or My Mom Will Shoot JFK'. I still have a picture somewhere.

John Walsh
Film God

Posts: 2490
From: Connecticut, USA, Earth, Milky Way
Registered: Oct 1999

posted 05-27-2000 08:29 AM

Scott:
My girlfriend is the mom in, "Psychic Child." She said they shot a fairly complex scene where the kid waves a knife around (like Jack in "The Shining") but dropped it after that one kid shot another at school a few months ago. We didn't get any notice about only running it with "R" films.

There was always a sort of contest to see who could change the marquee, bringing up and moving the fewest letters.

At a theater up the street, someone left the ladder out after changing the letters on the their marquee. The next morning the cops called the manager. Someone had put the usual swear words on the marquee.

Kids had fun knocking off the "y" in "Three Men and a Little Lady."

And knocking off one of the "n"'s in "Pennies from Heaven." We finally spelled it "Pennys."

A savings bank nearby had a sign: "Tuck-a-buck-a-day-away." A graffiti artist did a perfect job changing the T to an F.

Paul Goulet
Master Film Handler

Posts: 347
From: Rhode Island
Registered: Jan 2000

posted 05-27-2000 08:49 AM

I remember when we were playing "The Goofy Movie" for the Matinee and "Sleeping with the Enemy" at night. Because of space limitations the Ad in the Newspaper ended up reading "GOOFY SLEEPING WITH THE ENEMY"

Tim Reed
Better Projection Pays

Posts: 5246
From: Northampton, PA
Registered: Sep 1999

posted 05-27-2000 09:07 AM

These are all good combos! I can't think of any to offer myself, other than noting that nothing will make you sweat like running an early-morning kid's show rental of "Annie" in a porno house! (Man, you triple and quadruple-check for the right reels!)

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Better Projection Pays!

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