First trailer for "August: Osage County"

Without further ado...



It's exciting to have our first action shots of Meryl and the rest of the cast.  My main reaction upon seeing this the first time was "wow, they're sure trying to make us think this is a lot 'sunnier' of a story than it really is."  Literally the film production looks more sunny than the play, as they've obviously opened up the story to include some of the dialogue in areas outside the Weston home (which we expected).  The reason for the brighter and somewhat lighthearted feel to the trailer is likely a marketing ploy.  Not too many people rush out to see a depressing or disturbing story.  Although there are certainly comic parts to this script, the overall tone is dark and at times rather intense.

We already know from Tracy Letts himself that the film closely follows the play, so we should expect the full film to include all the aspects that develop this more complicated and engaging storyline.  Meryl is in a fair amount of the trailer and as expected, dons an Oklahoman accent.  To me it actually sounds like she's trying to sound a bit like Margo Martindale, which would make sense, as the two play sisters in the movie.  There aren't many really baity clips of her shown.  There are a couple cute lines from the dinner table scene, and we briefly see the start of her physical altercation with Julia Roberts (Barbara), but we obviously get essentially no sense of what that entire amazing scene will provide the audience when seen in its entirety.

This trailer arrived sooner that I expected.  I imagine we'll see a second sometime late summer perhaps, this time possibly showing a bit more of an edge to the plot.  Although I wouldn't be surprised if this first trailer is how they plan on promoting the film.  It's a bit disingenuous to be honest, but hey, get as many butts in the seats as you can.  Maybe Harvey wants to keep open the possibility of pushing musical/comedy categories at the Globes.  At his point, Meryl looks like an even stronger candidate for her 18th Academy Award nomination.  All that remains to be seen is how well the film works as a whole.    Can't wait!