It looks like another Thursday dump. Once again we have several new trailers and a few new posters. Trailers: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part I (trailer #2), The King’s Speech, Zenith, Carlos, Toddstock, The Lion of Judah, Client 9 and Wild Target. Posters: Hereafter, Unstoppable (poster #2), The Company Men and Megamind (poster #8).

HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS, PART I, trailer #2

	Plot Summary: The first half of the final film in the acclaimed series takes Harry Potter and his friends Ron and Hermione and puts them square into the battle against Voldemart and his resurfaced army as they attempt to bring their new dominion to the world and kill Potter in the process. Release Date: November 19, 2010
	Trailer	Poster
	Rating: B+ Commentary: Another wonderful trailer from Warner Bros for its Harry Potter franchise. Although not at goose-pimply awesome as past entries, it does quite well highlighting just how spectacular the conclusion is going to be.	Previous Preview: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part I
	Trailer Link: Apple Trailers Oscar Chances: See Previous Preview

CLIENT 9: THE RISE AND FALL OF ELIOT SPITZER

	Plot Summary: Alex Gibney’s new documentary chronicling N.Y. governor Eliot Spitzer and his fall from grace and the controversy surrounding it. Release Date: November 5, 2010
	Trailer	Poster
	Rating: B Commentary: The best way to make a documentary feel important is to put it in context. With a strong dose of corruption and wrongs committed for personal gain, the trailer does a satisfactory job of piquing interest in its subject.	Rating: B- Commentary: For what it is, it works. Documentaries don’t often get great posters, but this one is much better than a lot that I’ve seen.
	Trailer Link: Apple Trailers Oscar Chances: Gibney’s been nominated and has won an Oscar for his work, so you have to keep this one in mind for consideration.

WILD TARGET

	Plot Summary: Protecting the con artist he was sent to kill, an assassin finds himself trapped in a comedy of errors with her and a young ward they picked up while escaping another assassin. Release Date: October 29, 2010
	Trailer	Poster
	Rating: B Commentary: It actually looks mildly amusing. Bill Nighy, Emily Blunt and Eileen Atkins seem to be the main assets to the film, but it could be an all around enjoyable ensemble if the trailer holds up.	Rating: None Commentary: None available.
	Trailer Link: Yahoo Movies Trailers Oscar Chances: None.

CARLOS

	Plot Summary: A terrorist going by the codename Carlos becomes bigger than anyone had ever expected, but the road to success is paved with death, bloodshed and jealousy. Release Date: October 15, 2010
	Trailer	Poster
	Rating: B Commentary: The biggest issue with this trailer is the use of music. The choice doesn’t seem to fit the genre or the era of the film in question. The images are well chosen and we get enough information to whet our appetites without getting too much to be disinterested.	Rating: C Commentary: Sometimes you can get too simplistic with your poster and this single image taken from the film just doesn’t jump off the wall at you.
	Trailer Link: Apple Trailers Oscar Chances: It could be an Oscar contender in the Foreign Language Film category if submitted, which I have a feeling it will be.

THE KING’S SPEECH

	Plot Summary: When his brother abdicates the throne, King George the VI must overcome his stammering problem to become a vocal and effective leader. Release Date: November 26, 2010
	Trailer	Poster
	Rating: B- Commentary: It’s a fairly rudimentary trailer that plays exactly as one would expect, but it’s not the kind of biopic that audiences just line up for, at least not with this kind of campaign.	Rating: None Commentary: I don’t review placeholders.
	Trailer Link: Yahoo Movies Trailers Oscar Chances: Doing an accent with a speech impediment should put Colin Firth into the lead for Best Actor this year, but the film and its other major actors (Geoffrey Rush and Helena Bonham Carter) will also be in heavy competition.

ZENITH

	Plot Summary: Two men in two different time periods try to uncover a deep conspiracy that forces them to question their humanity. Release Date: Coming Soon
	Trailer	Poster
	Rating: C Commentary: Who are they and why don’t they want you to see the film? It’s the kind of cheesy campaign that usually falls flat. It’s a bit too expected and making the director “Anonymous” only adds to the obviousness.	Rating: C+ Commentary: If more than half the poster weren’t taken up by a black background with white and red text, it would be a more effective poster. I like the use of the title in block letters at the top and the image selected is interesting, but it takes up far too little of the space.
	Trailer Link: Apple Trailers Oscar Chances: None.

TODDSTOCK

	Plot Summary: This documentary catalogs the 60th birthday celebration of music producer Todd Rundgren and the Utopian community he established as part of the celebration. Release Date: September 7, 2010
	Trailer	Poster
	Rating: C Commentary: Very much in the vein of home movie, this documentary seems to want multiple things, but foremost is to put forward the idea that Utopia can actually exist. However, the film is very unlikely to reach a wide audience since the trailer doesn’t do an adequate job making this feel like a must-see event.	Rating: C+ Commentary: Perhaps its symbolism will reach out to the initiated, but it doesn’t do a good job of reaching beyond that group.
	Trailer Link: Apple Trailers Oscar Chances: None.

THE LION OF JUDAH

	Plot Summary: A young lamb is captured by townsfolk and may become a sacrifice. His friends go on an adventure to save him. Release Date: February 25, 2011
	Trailer	Poster
	Rating: F Commentary: What a terrible trailer. Every cliched reference imaginable paired with terrible CGI animation make this look like one of the worst animated films ever made.	Rating: C- Commentary: The poster reminds me a good deal of the one used for Home on the Range. It’s relatively simple and lacking in richness, plus its evident how lacking in detail and quality the animation is.
	Trailer Link: Apple Trailers Oscar Chances: None.

HEREAFTER, poster

	Plot Summary: A psychic who is able to communicate with the dead finds it hard to cope with his “gift” and sequesters himself from the world until the world needs him. Release Date: October 22, 2010
	Trailer	Poster
	Previous Preview: Hereafter	Rating: B Commentary: It’s not a bad little poster. It could use a bit more color, but it should be effective enough.
	Trailer Link: See Previous Preview Oscar Chances: See Previous Preview

UNSTOPPABLE, poster #2

	Plot Summary: A runaway train threatens a major metropolitan area when it becomes unstoppable. Release Date: November 12, 2010
	Trailer	Poster
	Previous Preview: Unstoppable	Rating: B- Commentary: Adding details to an existing poster certainly helps make it more friendly on the eyes, but even tweaks can’t always help overcome obvious obstacles.
	Trailer Link: See Previous Preview Oscar Chances: See Previous Preview

THE COMPANY MEN, poster

	Plot Summary: A white collar worker is fired when his company is reorganized and must come to terms with his unemployment and struggle to restore the peace and serenity and safety he once possessed. Release Date: October 22, 2010
	Trailer	Poster
	Previous Preview: The Company Men	Rating: B- Commentary: Sometimes, trying to be too clever isn’t a positive quality. Still, the poster does work more often than it doesn’t, though what does an actress need to do to get credit. Of the five individuals shown, only Maria Bello doesn’t get her name in bold above the title.
	Trailer Link: See Previous Preview Oscar Chances: See Previous Preview

MEGAMIND, poster #8

	Plot Summary: After years fighting against one another, a new villain emerges forcing two arch enemies to work together to defeat him. Release Date: November 5, 2010
	Trailer	Poster
	Previous Preview: Megamind	Rating: C Commentary: And after all this time, the final poster is exactly as I expected. A full character suite bearing the theme of the past posters in the series. It’s not terribly inventive or exceptional.
	Trailer Link: See Previous Preview Oscar Chances: See Previous Preview