Since I finished commenting on trailers for 2011 best film nominated pictures last week, I figured writing about a brand new trailer for a movie no one expects to get nominated for anything would be a good direction to go.
Did this trailer make me want to see the movie?
Kind of.
I love the premise.
The story of the kid and his favorite toy, or intimate best friend, that magically comes to life was just waiting for a clever twist. The first 37 seconds of the trailer made me enormously excited. Unfortunately, the following 2 minutes deflated my hopes almost entirely.
The 2 minute 30 seconds of TED Universal has chosen to show me lead me to believe that much of the film will be a lot like Family Guy. The motel fight scene is a gag used in FG no less than 346 times. As is the schtick on the couch with the trashy girls. Oh, and Ted humping the cash register makes me think of Brian getting drunk and acting out, another tired gag from the show.
The premise has promise, but it is hard to imagine from the trailer that it will follow through.
Regardless of Ted‘s success, expect a South Park spoof soon. Mark my words.
Was the trailer effective as a commercial?
Yes.
This movie is not for me.
I do not watchFamily Guy anymore. I am not seventeen. And I do not smoke pot.
This trailer was made for people (mostly male), who fit at least two of the three requirements above.
I think the film will do well and I might even see it on DVD at some point or with my brother (who does, by the way, fit two of the three requirements above).
But, disregarding how I feel about the film based on the trailer, I think the trailer does a good job of baiting the hook for the right audience. And the scene where the bear is driving did make me chuckle. I do not think this movie will be devoid of laughs, I just think it will disappoint me.
Good marketing, and good products and successful films, is not about making something everyone will love. Not anymore, anyway. It is about making something that as many people as possible will love. If you try to make the product and the ad for it entice everyone in the whole world, you will fail. If you try to make the product and the ad for it appeal to folks you know are likely to like what you have on offer, your success rate (obviously and naturally) increases.
The Ted trailer is effective as a commercial because it does not try to get stuck-up, pompous, crotchety grumps who hate laughter and having fun like me to spend money seeing it because that would be a waste of time. Instead, it (smartly) targets mostly male stoners, who thinkFamily Guy is funny between the ages of 17 and 25 (whether in actual years or in maturity).
Side Note: This movie is not brought to us by a Fox-owned studio or affiliate. Hmmmmm…..
