The process of cutting together a theatrical film trailer is fraught with difficulty; somehow, without the entire picture to plunder, editors need to cobble together a Frankenstein’s monster of zinging one-liners, character introductions, plot development, fan-servicing references, first and second-act action sequences, allusions to third-act twists, and some maudlin nostalgia piano music. And all that in about 150 seconds. Or, as in increasingly the case, you can stretch that out to five full minutes that, apparently, doesn’t spoil the entire plot.
That’s that the marketing team behind the soon to be released Independence Day Resurgence, with a third trailer jam-packed with new footage and set to play in cinemas all over the world ahead of screenings of X-Men: Apocalypse. The sequel to a movie released in 1996, which became the second highest-grossing film of all time and established German director Roland Emmerich as a disaster movie auteur, the new film’s trailer’s stretched length has seen it referred to as “epic” far and wide across the Internet.
Multiple problems arise when trying to entice viewers with a 285-second selection of any movie, particularly when it comes to an action-packed CGI-filled spectacle of alien invasion. In lieu of luring in fans with the promise of what’s to come, showing the blueprints of the entire plot can alienate others who feel it’s not worth spending the admission fee on. Trailers like this don’t necessarily spoil a spoiler, but they often hint at every conceivable one in the film, leaving viewers feeling cheated then their alluded-to theories turn out to be true.
For what it’s worth to those who’d rather not look, the new ID:R trailer mostly seems to add atmospheric moodiness to its extended takes on scenes we’ve mostly already seen in the two other trailers thus far; Jeff Goldblum, reprising his role as David Levinson, and Charlotte Gainsbourg, discover an alien spaceship, and we get a better sense of how humanity has adapted the technology left behind by the failed alien invasion from the first movie to become a more advanced and weaponised world. Just as well – a distress beacon sent out during those battles sees re-enforcements arriving for round two.
You can watch the trailer below. Independence Day: Resurgence will be released worldwide on June 24th, bringing with it the destruction of every major landmark you’ve ever seen on screen.
