How About That Trailer? - Passengers

Well it seems like this took some time to finally happen, but the first trailer for Passengers is here. This is the upcoming science fiction/romantic drama starring Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt. The film is directed by Morten Tyldum, who is coming off of his Oscar-nominated biopic, The Imitation Game.

Based on a previously black listed story by Jon Spaihts (that means the screenplay was among the best Hollywood had yet to put into production), the film involves two passengers aboard a spaceship (who happen to look like movie stars), who have awakened from their hyper-sleep 90 years before they were supposed to. This situation is made interesting and difficult by both the romance that blossoms between the two, as well as the possible threats the spaceship may be coming under.

I have been very much intrigued by what this film would have to offer, as its story hook provides plenty for me to be excited about. I love me some sci-fi and recent years have been very good for the genre when it comes to mainstream efforts (think Gravity or The Martian). This seems to fall in with those recent examples, with the addition of a romance angle, which is a neat way to separate things out. It helps that Lawrence and Pratt are both terrific performers and the trailer seems to sell their natural chemistry.

Even more intriguing is the mystery surrounding the nature of this situation. I like how the trailer hints at new developments, without revealing too much. I enjoy seeing glimpses of other cast members such as Laurence Fishbourne and Andy Garcia, though I'd also argue that leaving them out may have helped as well. The best presence may be Michael Sheen though, as legless space bartender (I definitely hope that is his credited name by the way).

While I didn't have effusive praise for The Imitation Game, Tyldum has proven his solid directorial hand with both that film and his previous (and much better) feature Headhunters. Here's hoping Passengers is among the great films to catch this Christmas.

Passengers arrives in theaters December 21.