Tuesday’s Top Trailer: The Way Back

Welcome to a weekly feature here at Movies with Abe, Tuesday's Top Trailer. One of my favorite parts about going to see movies is the series of trailers that airs beforehand and, more often than not, the trailer is far better than the actual film. Each week, I'll be sharing a trailer I've recently seen. Please chime in with comments on what you think of the trailer and how you think the movie is going to be.

The Way Back - Opening December 29, 2010



I wanted to make sure to catch this trailer online after hearing that this forthcoming film would be premiering at the last minute in Los Angeles on December 29th before opening wider in early 2011, therefore making it into the eligibility period for this year’s Oscars. And Oscar bait it is! Director Peter Weir has four previous nominations – “Master and Commander,” “The Truman Show,” “Dead Poets Society,” and “Witness” – three of which also ended up with Best Picture bids. The cast is impressive, led by Jim Sturgess of “Across the Universe” and “21,” Colin Farrell, and Saoirse Ronan, astonishing in both “Atonement” and “The Lovely Bones.” Don’t forget Ed Harris – a magnificent actor who has yet to win an Oscar and could finally do it this year if the film, along with his performance, is a hit. This is a true epic, the likes of which haven’t quite been mimicked recently, and therefore this could be a welcome film for general audiences and Oscar voters. Even though “Defiance” didn’t fare too well two years ago, this harrowing and breathtaking (at least as the shots in the trailer indicate) story very well may. The tagline, “The escape was just the beginning,” is strikingly similar to that of a silly 2005 FOX show that went on too long, but I have a feeling that this will be more structurally sound than “Prison Break,” and equally thrilling. The uber-late release date means that most of us, even those in New York City, may not see it until the new year, but I’m looking very forward to it.