Wednesday Trailerama

New Trailer: 9

What happens when the quasi-indie production company behind Brokeback Mountain, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and a few dozen other indie classics decides to finance an animated film? 9 happens, and it looks – in a word – fantastic. The plot may sound Terminator-esque – "All humans are gone, and it is only by chance that (9) discovers a small community of others like him taking refuge from fearsome machines that roam the earth intent on their extinction. Despite being the neophyte of the group, 9 convinces the others that hiding will do them no good. They must take the offensive if they are to survive, and they must discover why the machines want to destroy them in the first place. As they’ll soon come to learn, the very future of civilization may depend on them." But watch the trailer below and you'll see that the organic feel and unique design is worlds away from James Cameron's patented blue steel vibe. And it's produced by Tim Burton and Wanted's Timur Bekmambetov. (Disclosure: I worked for Focus Features and one of its predecessors, Good Machine International, for more than six years. In fact, 9 was just ramping up towards the end of my tenure in 2005, which gives you an idea of how long a film like this takes to make.)

New Trailer: State of Play

Hmm.  I can't get terribly excited about Universal new action thriller State of Play; it just looks so been there, done that. But the talent both behind and in front of the camera is mighty impressive, so we'll blame the lackluster trailer on Uni's marketing department for now.  What's it all about?  Russell Crowe plays "D.C. reporter Cal McCaffrey, whose street smarts lead him to untangle a mystery of murder and collusion among some of the nation's most promising political and corporate figures", including Ben Affleck.