You expect movie trailers to be as misleading as a Match.com profile, but even so, some of them are masterpieces of misdirection. (Cheers, “Flight,” for getting us to sit through an alkie drama that we thought was going to be a cool plane-crash adventure). Here is a look back at five 2013 movies that failed to live up to their trailers:
“The Wolf of Wall Street”
Dwarf-tossing, bundles of money being taped to a half-naked girl, a yacht, more girls and Leonardo DiCaprio screaming with rude animal joy. “More is never enough” goes the tagline, but it turns out that three hours of booze and drug benders were way too much. At an hour and 20 minutes, “The Wolf of Wall Street” would have gotten monotonous. The crazy, rocking, 2 ¹/₂-minute trailer was just about the right length.
“Spring Breakers”
Expecting a sinister and sexy glimpse at the grimy underside of paradise? Then you must have seen the trailer for “Spring Breakers,” which turned out to be a moronic gang movie joined to a low-IQ satire. You want smart social commentary about randy youth on the make? Go back and watch “Risky Business” again.
“Man of Steel”
The almost wordless final trailer for the latest Superman relaunch combined a freaky score with nonstop gorgeous visuals of the destruction of Krypton, Superman’s early days on the prairie and his war with General Zod, but the film suffered from a somewhat sluggish pace and overkill in the extended fight scenes. At least it was better than “Superman Returns.”
“The Purge”
“America: A Nation Reborn,” promises the trailer for what looked like a politically intriguing Ethan Hawke horror thriller about how America maintains low crime and full employment by allowing one night a year of utter lawlessness. The actual movie, insipid and comically oversimplified, was about as thrilling as your average community college lecture on the income distribution curve.
“American Hustle”
From the trailer, you might have guessed that this was an epic chess match with much to say about the ’70s and American dreaming, but you’d be surprised how shapeless and self-indulgent the rambling final product turned out to be. It’s a comedy with very few laughs mixed with a drama that has no discernible point.