'Bumblebee' trailer combines high action with 80s nostalgia
Paramount Pictures released the trailer of 'Bumblebee' on September 25. The film is a spin-off of the popular 'Transformers' franchise, that has recently fallen on hard times. Set in 1987, it is the first live-action Transformers movie not directed by Michael Bay. Instead, Travis Knight of 'Kubo and the Two Strings' fame will helm the project. Read about it here.
What does the trailer tell us?
The trailer shows San Francisco in 1987, following 18-year-old Charlie Watson, played by Hailee Steinfeld. She buys a Volkswagen Beetle only to discover it is the battle-scarred Autobot, Bumblebee. Together, they team up and save the world from Decepticons. The girl-Transformer duo also has to evade Sector 7, the secret government agency, led by Agent Burns. WWE star John Cena plays Burns.
The people behind the movie
The film will be produced by veterans of the Transformers franchise, Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Michael Bay. The executive producers include Steven Spielberg, Mark Vahradian and Brian Goldner. The script of the film has been written by Christina Hodson.
Why the 80s setting for Bumblebee?
At the 2018 San Diego Comic-Con, scriptwriter Hodson commented, she chose the 80s setting to pay tribute to 'Generation 1', the original Transformer series. The series aired from 1984 to 1987 and the Transformers trend impacted both Hodson and Knight. This is why Bumblebee is a Beetle, rather than the Camaro we saw in previous movies.
The comfort of period nostalgia
Bumblebee becomes the second film, in recent times, to hark back to older times. Interestingly, Marvel's Captain Marvel is also set in the 90s. These backdrops tell us how nostalgia works in Hollywood. An older setting will draw more fans who want to see their childhood replicated on screen. The rising trend equates success to relatability and timelessness of stories.
