Cavemen and Rangers

I thought that DreamWorks wouldn't have a trailer for The Croods ready until the release of Rise of the Guardians next month, but they gave it to us now. Like the trailers for Rise of the Guardians, this shows that DreamWorks has really come a long way. Almost everything about this trailer works.



Pros:
- The animation in this looks wonderful. The environment of the new world is lush, colorful and packed with details.
- Also, take a look at the character designs. The humans look decent enough, your typical ooga-booga cavemen designs, but the glimpses of the beasts they encounter are just as colorful and imaginative as the art direction. Chris Sanders was a great choice of director, because this could've been by-the-numbers in terms of the visuals.
- Like Rise of the Guardians, this story seems serious and there wasn't a single comic relief moment in here. Just lots and lots of action. This one is going to be thrilling.
- I already like the whole idea of Grugg (the father) sticking to tradition while Eep (the daughter) wants to experience more. We didn't get much of the story where she meets the boy who looks forward into the future, but they're probably saving this for the next trailer.

Cons:
- I know I'm going to sound like a broken record here, but the dialogue is a bit off since it's gone the How to Train Your Dragon route. But it's barely, barely distracting. It's only somewhat noticeable since the voice work tends to gravitate towards a more modern feel, but it doesn't throw off what is a very good trailer.

Now, onto The Lone Ranger...



Pros:
- The teaser is very stylish, definitely trying to punch up the Western setting which could come across as bland.
- The apparent big set piece with the roaring train shows that this Western will definitely be action-packed.
- The setting is fine, no modernizations or anything.
- Some of the music is cool as well, hard rock and the wild West do go together.
- Since Gore Verbinski directed this film, there's a Rango vibe already.
- The film's version of Disney logo is pretty sweet. You got to admit that.

Cons:
- The story seems somewhat paper-thin, but it's just a teaser. We should get a more detailed outline in the next trailer, whenever it will show up.

Overall this teaser does its job right, and this'll be what John Carter's marketing campaign wasn't. This trailer and the poster alone beat a majority of the marketing for John Carter. Since Disney spent over $250 million on this picture, they don't want it to really go to waste. While it probably has to make over $500 million to break even, they at least want it to do the best it can at the box office. Will it flop and have the press kicking it around? Or will it surprise everyone?

Both trailers are impressive. The Croods showcases DreamWorks' newfound interest in storytelling rather than trying too hard to be funny, and The Lone Ranger looks like an action-packed take on the original radio show and television show and may just help revive the Western genre. Or not. Verbinski's Rango did well enough, so this could too.

What are your thoughts on these trailers? Does The Croods look like a potential classic from DreamWorks? Or another decent animated film? Does The Lone Ranger's new trailer interest you? Or does it bother you? Sound off!