Dystopian Trailer Critique

2081 . Chandler Tuttle . Unrated . 2009
In the year 2081, the government has created equality by handicapping those who excel. George Bergeron (James Cosmo) watches as his extraordinary son Harrison (Armie Hammer) rebels on live television.

The trailer for 2081 is exemplary in that it clearly sets up the premise through film clips, text, editing, and style and connects all of these by a pivotal aspect of the story, the handicaps. The film clips and text throughout the trailer clearly depict how the Bergerons live in a dehumanized state by showing George's handicaps and the pain they bring, as well as spelling out much of the premise in bold red text in simple powerful phrases such as, "No one is better. Everyone is worse." The editing also revolves around the handicaps in that the text flickers from the screen in time with the noise that the intelligence handicaps transmit. This underlines the premise by showing the effect of a handicap. The style of the trailer is rather dark, with the exception of the stark white costume of ballerina that Harrison involves in his rebellion. This bold contrast shows accentuates the line that, "But in a world where the extraordinary is outlawed, only the outlaws will be extraordinary."The style as well as simply the handicaps themselves show how Harrison and his father are trapped both physically and in their dystopia. I hope that I can pick a certain element of my dystopian premise to develop my trailer around. The focus on the handicaps in the trailer for 2081 creates a unity in the trailer and makes it very powerful.