Ever since Duncan Jones WARCRAFT was announced, I’ve been waiting to see what the cerebral MOON/SOURCE CODE director was going to do with the massively popular video game property. I never watched that pirated Comic-Con footage, and was intrigued by that little mini-teaser earlier this week, but now, we get our best look yet at this Humans Vs. Orcs extravaganza via this full-length trailer.
The Orcs are losing their homeland, and need to share with the Humans, pitting both sides against each other while a select few try and find an alternative to war; sounds kinda like STAR TREK VI (even with an alternate version of “They’re dying, Jim.” “LET THEM DIE!”), minus the phasers and adding massive armies of horned beasts (and one hot looking halfie, played by Paula Patton).
My favorite shot, the human (Travis Fimmel?) jumping off the building onto that flying creature, was in the tease, but I’m not sure how much of this was in the Comic-Con footage that left some confused and worried at the commercial prospects of this tentpole. Admittedly, watching it now, I can’t see anyone but hardcore WARCRAFTers getting super-stoked over this trailer; there are no big stars, there’s nothing universally recognizable for non-fans, and it looks…mildly been-there, done-that.
The best thing it has going for it is still Duncan Jones; this feels big and cinematic in a way his last films didn’t even try, and it does seem that he injected the broader canvas with personality, filmatism, and intensity. The Orcs aren’t played quite as innocently as I expected (at least in this trailer), with Patton’s character singling out Robert Kazinski’s character as “one of the good ones” (like Serkis’ Caesar) while the rest duke it out with the Humans, but I like that they’re given equal footing with the normal-looking people-folk.
I’m sure I’ll see it, but I’m curious to see if this trailer wins over any newcomers. Y’all dig this?
WARCRAFT finally gives that guy I knew who stole money from his dad’s safe for WOW gold a reason to go to the movies on June 10th, 2016.
