Movies can either make or break your moviegoing experience based on the impressions trailers give.
Because all too often, the movie winds up being nothing like what audiences expected after forming their impressions based on the trailer.
Sometimes, a movie can end up exceeding expectations, while other times, not so much.
Curious to hear from moviegoers, Redditor HalpornTamitha8U asked:
"What movie trailers were the most misleading?"
The cute and the fantastical moments depicted in trailers wound up revealing unexpected horrors instead.
Not Just About Gizmo
"I'm old. But if anyone was kicking around in the '80s, you'll have a hard time topping: Gremlins."
"It literally spawned cries for an entirely new film rating. 'Temple of Doom' was released a few months later and that was the last straw."
"The original trailer didn't flatly deny any creepiness per se, but the narrator's voice was more cheerful and the music used in the trailer was more upbeat - never mind the fact that Gizmo, the little monster, was one of the cutest little movie creatures in a long time -- giving the impression to an incredible amount of movie goers that it was about cute little 'monsters', in a fun, children's 'Curious George' style of movie."
"Nevertheless, parents lost their effing minds as kids had nightmares for weeks."
evil laugh gremlins GIFGiphyWhen Fantasy And Gore Collide
"I went into Pan's Labyrinth not expecting the ultra-violence in certain parts of the movie. That was a huge shock when it happened."
These trailers bamboozled audiences by promising elements of horror.
Bridge To Nowhere
"Bridge to Terabithia. The trailer shows kids in the woods with make-believe monsters. Coming on the heels of lion the witch and the wardrobe. I was like cool I really like these kinds of movies."
"Then it turned into a coming of age movie…with the monsters showing up 15 seconds before the credits."
Murder Musical
"One of the early trailers for Sweeney Todd completely hid the fact that it's a musical and just played it like a slasher film."
People reacted positively to these movies in spite of being different from the trailers.
The Director's Twist
"M night shyamalans 'the village' was advertised as a terrifying creature feature with a colonial style village. What we got was an (admitadly amazing in my opinion) love story with some decent plot twists and 5 minutes of 'monster.'"
More Cerebral
"Most recently The Green Knight. Watching the trailers in the cinema you'd be forgiven if you thought this film was going to be high fantasy action. Instead it's a lot of slow, metaphorical monologues and dry exchanges, with nothing really happening. I liked the film, but it's not what it was portrayed as."
There's nothing worse than expecting a comedy and then leaving the theater depressed.
A Thrilling Downer
"The Road. The trailer makes it look like an action packed chase plot. Instead it's the most depressing movie ever made. Really good though."
A Tarantino Masterpiece
"I went into Inglorious Basterds thinking it was a Brad Pitt led semi-comedy from one of my favorite directors."
"While watching the extremely long, suspenseful opening, I quickly realized I was misled. And it was a great movie, but when you watch a movie expecting it to be one way, you can be disappointed. I really need to give it a rewatch. Christolph Waltz was superb."
Wasn't Remotely Funny
"Click. I expected a lighthearted comedy and that is NOT what I got."
Forecast Was Cloudy
"'Weather Man' looked like a goofy slapstick funny flick, with Nicolas Cage getting hit in the face with milkshakes and food and god knows what."
"Turned out to be a dark comedy, with Cage doing that neurotic cynical stream-of-consciousness thing from more serious films."
Trailers are tricky because you don't want to give away too much of the plot or give the wrong impression about its genre.
When I saw the trailer for the Academy Award winner for Best Picture, Parasite, I knew nothing about what it would be other than a suspense film in the tradition of Alfred Hitchcock classics.
It was intriguing enough for me to see it, yet not vague enough for me to lose interest.
To me, the trailer was misleading in a good way. It wound up being so much more than just your average thriller.