Movie Trailer Music Madness: The Elite Eight
32 trailers entered the tournament. Now the remaining eight will duke it out for a chance to reach the Final Four!
This story is part of a larger series. Our most recent story breaks down the Sweet Sixteen. The prior story features links to the first three editions, so check that out if you’d like to see what has so far been a very dramatic Movie Trailer Music Madness.
We’ve done it, folks. We’re down to the cutoff weekend. Sure, being one of the eight best trailers for the bracket is cool and all. But being one of the final four? That’s special.
The Elite Eight, taking place in Anaheim, features some memorable faces. The last surviving Tom Cruise, despite defeats for M:I 4 and M:I 5, is still in the running (get it?). Fallout Cruise is the best Cruise, after all.
But other heavyweights like Old Man Logan and Jordan Belfort might have something to say about that. So do some surprising Cinderellas, like Lorraine Broughton of Atomic Blonde and Baird Whitlock of Hail, Caesar! And wait a minute — how did three different Jonah Hills sneak into the Elite Eight?
Anyway, with a trip to the luxurious U.S. Bank Stadium on the line, and a lovely weekend in Minneapolis, the stakes have never been higher.
So who will advance to the Final Four? Below is the bracket up until this point, and a breakdown of how the judges voted on each match-up. Enjoy!
HYPE: #4 Atmoic Blonde vs. #2 Mission: Impossible — Fallout
Jake Graber-Lipperman: “The Fallout trailer just bumps. I’m gonna go ahead and say it’s the greatest trailer of all time. Keep running Tom!”
Nathan Graber-Lipperman: “Charlize, I love ya, you got a great thing going, but there’s only one Tom Cruise, and he ain’t stopping any time soon.”
Jack Lido: “There’s nothing cooler than a modern song transitioning into an old-school theme. I also love the establishing shots to introduce some of the most pivotal characters in the franchise.”
Karim Noorani: “Come on. This is like the 2018 Cavs-Warriors Finals. Charlize Theron has some good moments, but there’s no way Atomic Blonde would upset MI6.”
Owen Guetschow: “Not a whole lot to say. Atomic Blonde was great, but there’s nothing you can do against Tom.”
Atomic Blonde — 0
Fallout — 5
ATMOSPHERIC: #1 Logan vs. #2 Avengers: Age of Ultron
OG: “This one wasn’t even close for me. Sure, the Avengers trailer was cinematic and combined well with that creepy-ass music, but it didn’t hold a candle to Logan. ‘Hurt’ was far and beyond the perfect music for that trailer — I’m having a hard time seeing anything beating it.”
JL: “The Logan trailer’s use of ‘Hurt’ makes it feel like an even more epic ‘House of the Rising Sun.’ The deep, acoustic tones tell you that this is not your typical superhero movie. It’s gonna get real.”
NGL: “This. Was. A. Tough. One. Two of the best in the business, swinging at each other. I have to go with Logan in the end because the marriage of song lyrics and visuals makes for a thing of beauty.”
KN: “These trailers are so different from one another. Avengers goes over-the-top with it, and Logan banks on emotional effect and subtlety. I wouldn’t blame anyone for going the other way, but I gotta go with Logan.”
JGL: “This is easily the hardest choice I had to make. One trailer uses Pinnochio — of all things — to give you the heebiest of jeebies. The other makes you tear up. *Sniff* I gotta go with Logan *Sniff*. His heart was *Sniff* in his hand *Sniff*.”
Logan — 5
Avengers 2–-0
LIT: #1 The Wolf of Wall Street vs. #6 War Dogs
NGL: “Look, War Dogs makes a great argument and all. Seeing Fat Jonah Hill come back with that insane laugh was something for the ages. But we all know it was completed modeled after Scorsese’s cut; Wolfy (and Kanye shrieking) moves on.”
KN: “I compare this trailer match-up to The Godfather debate. Sure, without The Wolf of Wall Street, there would be no War Dogs trailer, but War Dogs just does it better (it also doesn’t hurt that Jonah Hill is a badass in the trailer.) Plus one for War Dogs.”
JGL: “The films themselves are a master versus impostor scenario. And the trailers reflect that, with thumping tunes and bright yellow title cards. Like Scorsese, Wolfy and Ye just do it a little more artistically than your average director.”
OG: “Funny how two of the most similar trailers in this whole bracket matched up here in the Elite Eight. And while they both certainly spurred my 15-year-old self to hustle to my nearest theater, pairing Kanye with the likes of Leo and Jonah Hill just couldn’t quite be toppled here.”
JL: “In the battle of white boys trying to make money in douchey and questionable ways, the music for both trailers are quite similar. While both try to be fast paced, percussive, and as the region states, lit, the underdog does it better. While the Wolf grabs most of the box office and academy success, my pick is for the Dogs.”
The Wolf of Wall Street — 3
War Dogs — 2
FUN: #4 Hail, Caesar! vs. #2 Baby Driver
OG: “So plain and simple, using ‘Tequila’ in this trailer was just about as genius as the movie itself. Hail, Caesar! is fine, don’t get me wrong, but it just isn’t close to what Edgar Wright whipped up for Baby Driver.”
KN: “All-star cast. Perfect music. This movie was built for the trailer. Put me down for Hail, Caesar!”
NGL: “Upset time! ‘Don’t you tell me no truths / I want all of your lies,’ and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t love the Baby Driver trailer. Yet I have to go with just how effectively the Coen Bros. sold me on their hilarious romp — even if the final product couldn’t have been further from the truth.”
JL: “Jamie Foxx as Bats (short for Batsh…well you know) saying ‘TEQUILA’ as the lyric goes off in the song is amazing. Edgar Wright made a genius movie and this trailer lives up.”
JGL: “As William Bibbiani is quoted in the trailer, Baby Driver ‘uses music the way the rest of us use air.’ So does this trailer. Full send.”
Hail, Caesar! — 2
Baby Driver — 3
The Final Four is set, as Tom Cruise and co. descend upon beautiful Minneapolis, Minnesota. The bracket up to this point is below, and we’ll see you one final time next week!
What trailers do you think deserved a place in the Final Four? Let us know in the comments below, and tweet at us @unplugg_d! Stay tuned for all the inevitable shocking upsets, close calls, and banging tunes in subsequent editions of Movie Trailer Music Madness. 32 trailers entered the tournament, but only four remain. Come back next time to see the Final Four!
