Last week’s release of the new Transformers Dark of the Moon trailer got me thinking about my favorite trailers of all time.  Coming up with a list of 20 trailers is easy but settling on just one!?  Not so simple.  Especially when I’m ready to crown Transformers 3 because it’s the freshest in my mind. (I can’t wait to erase Revenge of the Fallen from my mind.)

What makes a trailer great?

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It really comes down to personal preference and truly depends on the types of movies that inspire you.  For me, the best trailers are for huge summer blockbusters.  I can’t get enough of them.  There have been tons of remarkable trailers for dramas and such as well but I’ve always been partial to the big time tent pole releases.

Still, here is my one of my favorite dramatic trailers:

Picking one was a really tough decision.  A great trailer has to wow you.  It has to get people talking.  The perfect trailer shows you enough to get you excited but leaves much to be desired.  A perfect trailer has a sense of mystery and intrigue. 

Take the J.J Abrams produced Cloverfield for example:

The trailer for Cloverfield literally took over the internet as speculation went wild over what the movie was.  Leaving the title out was a risky move but in the end it was brilliant because it got people talking.  That trailer boosted the film onto many film lover’s radars.

Lets stick with Abrams for a moment.  That man knows how to get people excited for a movie!  Movies like Star Trek, Mission Impossible 3 and Super 8 have amazing trailers.  I’ve never been a fan of Star Trek on the big or small screen but this trailer was phenomenal and sold me.

How about all the wonderful Star Wars memories that came roaring back when George Lucas unleashed the trailer for Episode 1: The Phantom Menace?  What about the incredible power of The Dark Knight’s epic trailer?

I could go on forever listing trailers that I love but for the purpose of this post, I had to select one.  In the end, the trailer I selected was for sentimental reasons not to mention the incredible feelings of anticipation it triggered.

THE MATRIX RELOADED

The Matrix is one of the coolest movies ever produced.  It redefined the action genre and pushed the limits of visual effects to new heights.

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The day I found out there would be two sequels was a happy day for me.  From that day on, I searched the internet every single day for information on the sequel.  This led to the discovery of other movies to look forward to and my daily movie news routine was born.

The Matrix Reloaded inspired me to follow the movies I love closely and began an obsession with the Matrix series.  Then this trailer was released and I was absolutely blown away.  At that time, no one had a clue where the Wachowski brothers would take the story.  After viewing this trailer you still have no clue but you know it will be cool.  That’s what a great trailer does.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE MOVIE TRAILER?

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