Can you throw gorgeous teens together, give them a supernatural power or
two, and expect a hit? That’s what several studios are banking on in a
post-Twilight world, and one of these offerings is I Am Number Four.
Four is a fledgling series penned by James Frey, the notorious liar behind A Million Little Pieces.
Apparently after you’ve been scolded by Oprah on television, you turn
to writing young adult literature. It’s win win, because you’ve still
got enough buzz to get your series optioned by Michael Bay before it
even hits store shelves.
Four centers
on nine teenagers from an alien planet who have sought refuge on Earth.
They’re being methodically picked off by their longtime enemies the
Mogadorians, and it’s up to Number Four to stop them.
Of course, none of this Roswell-ish
plot is evident in the teaser. The marketing surrounding the book and
the adaptation really assumes there’s a massive and fanatic Four following the way there was with Twilight.
As far as I know, there isn’t. That’s too bad, because this trailer
It’s filled with money shots that only someone with insider tween
knowledge would be psyched about. The rest of us can only shrug and
think things like “Who are these numbered people?” “Why do they have
Sookie Stackhouse-like powers?” “Is this part of the Resident Evil or Underworld series?”
D.J. Caruso directed Four,
which stars Alex Pettyfer, Kevin Durand, Timothy Olyphant, and Dianna
Agron. (It once featured Sharlto Copley, but he dropped out due to schedule conflicts.) Only
Pettyfer gets a close-up, offered up like some dewy and virginal
sacrifice to appease preteen girls. “Look at his soulful eyes. So much
like Robert Pattinson. And you like Pattinson, don’t you?”
Will
that approach work when the trailer itself doesn’t? I doubt tween girls
are that easy — but then, I’m not a tween girl. And if you cut this
trailer with Gerard Butler or Viggo Mortensen in place of Pettyfer,
well, I’m not sure I could speak for my ticket buying actions. (Hey, don’t judge. If it
was Christina Hendricks, I’m pretty sure you boys might go similarly
mindless ….)
Check out the trailer below:
7 comments
Hey, don't lump us boys in with the girl crowd in regards to paying theatrical prices to see hot women; we have other means for that.
I worked on this for a day back in June I think, and I was really surprised that it's going to be out in February, which seems pretty quick for an effects film. Did anyone see that God awful trailer for "Beastly" a while back that this Pettyfer kid is in? Apparently, it's coming out a year late and is going to try to piggyback on the possible success of this thing. Speaking of the "Twilight"-ishness of it all, Taylor Lautner's new flick "Abduction", which I got to work on quite a bit (I'm a CIA Agent and also Jason Isaacs' body double in a few scenes), also just finished up in the Pittsburgh area. As someone that has had to work at a theater and deal with the "Twilight" madness, I feel a bit better knowing that I at least got to personally benefit financially from a Lautner-related film. It makes that kid having a career almost worth it. Almost…
Women still find Butler attractive? Viggo needs no explanation but I do not understand the appeal to chipmunk face, especially since he hasn't been worthwhile in anything since 300. As far as the trailer goes, it looks to be a spiritual successor to The Covenant.
Am I the only one who feels bad for James Frey? The question is whether it was a good book or not; who cares which section of the store it's shelved in. I only wish he'd cursed out Oprah and told her off instead of sinking into his chair for an hour.
Yes, women still find Butler attractive. I've got a thing for stocky Scotsmen which no crappy movies can quench.
Plan B, you were Jason Isaacs body double? Tell me more, because he narrowly avoided a namedrop for "hot guys I'll see a movie for" 😉
I was called in last minute to be a photo double for him (I'm his hands and torso in a couple of insert shots that involve him sneaking around in a track jacket with a gun) during the last couple days of shooting. I didn't get to meet him or anything, as he'd likely finished up on the film already. I also got to be the hands for another actor that wasn't there (might have been Alfred Molina, who I met on one of the other days) in an insert where the character was planting a bomb in Taylor Lautner's house, or at least a set for the kitchen. Pretty cool work if you can get it. Contact your closest film office for casting opportunities in your area!
They sure churned this one out quick.
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