ranters and ravers

‘21’ Proves You Can Judge a Movie by Its Trailer

Photo: Courtesy of Sony Pictures


Nope, 21 didn’t get any better once New Republic movie critic Christopher Orr actually saw it. As we noted the other day, the first part of Orr’s review was completed without actually watching the movie — he’d just seen the trailer, which he suspected of giving away the entire plot. Indeed, upon viewing the entire film, he confirms that the movie is basically an Extended Director’s Cut version of its own trailer — longer, duller, and more confusing. (Most comically, he notes that in a film whose plot is driven by the main character’s need to pay for medical school, no one suggests the possibility of applying for a loan.) His assumptions about the plot turned out to be almost completely accurate. Alas, in a world where nothing is as it seems, it seems that everything was exactly as it seemed. —Ben Mathis-Lilley

The (Actual) Movie Review: ‘21’ [TNR]

Earlier: Throwing Up Hands, Critic Reviews ‘21’ Based Solely on Its Trailer

‘21’ Proves You Can Judge a Movie by Its Trailer