The Trailer Park: The Best New Movie Trailers of the Week from Clifford to The Many Saints of Newark

It’s so easy to miss a AAA trailer these days, even with all the endless marketing build-up around teasers, pre-trailers (“in one day,” etc) and other forms of cinematic hype. A good trailer is an art form, one that is able to convey a movie’s plot, tone and style all while resisting that ever-present urge to score it to a slowed-down pop song. So here’s the Trailer Park, where we’re parking all the trailers you may have skipped, missed or want to revisit from the past week. Appreciate them. Nitpick them. Figure out if the movies they’re selling are actually going to be any good. That’s all part of the fun, after all.

This week, we’ve got another look at the live-action Clifford, and first trailers for The Many Saints of Newark, Cinderella and Don’t Breathe 2.

Here are the best new movie trailers of the week:

The Many Saints of Newark

Director: Alan Taylor
Release Date: October 1, 2021

The long-awaited prequel film and first new piece of Sopranos media in 14 years has finally dropped its first trailer. The Many Saints of Newark, set to be released in theaters and on HBO Max in the fall, will take a look at Tony Soprano’s adolescence as he’s grandfathered in to a life in the New Jersey mafia. Starring Michael Gandolfini—tasked with filling in his late father James’ inimitable shoes as the Soprano patriarch—the film is set in 1967, following teenaged Anthony Soprano as he grows up during a fraught time in his hometown of Newark. Anthony comes of age as rival gangsters rise up against one another, and he finds himself increasingly influenced by his mobster uncle, Dickie Moltisanti. The prequel features an impressive cast portraying classic characters from the lauded HBO series, including Corey Stoll as Junior Soprano, Billy Magnussen as Paulie “Walnuts” Gualtier and Vera Farmiga as Tony’s mom, Livia Soprano. Alessandro Nivola will be portraying Dickie Moltinsanti—the father of Christopher Moltisanti, played by Michael Imperioli in the series—and Jon Bernthal will play Giovanni “Johnny Boy” Soprano, Tony’s father. The cast also includes Ray Liotta and Leslie Odom Jr. The trailer comes off as bombastic and violent—a far cry from the restrained qualities of the award-winning show, and it will be interesting to see how drastically director Alan Taylor (who helmed a number of Sopranos episodes, and won an Emmy for one) veers off from the the tone of the source material. The film was co-written by Sopranos creator David Chase alongside another Sopranos writer, Lawrence Konner.—Brianna Zigler

Clifford the Big Red Dog

Director: Walt Becker
Release Date: September 17, 2021

Answering all the questions no child ever asked like “How did Clifford get so big, anyways?” and “Why is he red?” comes the live-action Clifford the Big Red Dog film. In its first trailer, we see as the pooch goes from regular blood-soaked puppy (or at least that’s what the coloration looks like) to full-blown mega-Marmaduke. The John Cleese voiceover only makes the film seem even less genuine. Doing violence upon his owner (Darby Camp) and her uncle (Jack Whitehall), Clifford even accidentally eats a regular dog over the course of the trailer. Horrific.

Cinderella

Director: Kay Cannon
Release Date: September 3, 2021 (Amazon)

The highly anticipated musical take on the classic fairy tale character is coming to Amazon this fall, and now we’ve gotten to see a bit of what writer/director Kay Cannon has planned for her Cinderella. Camila Cabello plays the would-be princess, with Idina Menzel and Billy Porter among the supporting cast. Even if the pop songs and other musical elements don’t immediately seem fitting, the costumes look downright magical in this first peek.

Don’t Breathe 2

Director: Rodo Sayagues
Release Date: August 13, 2021

Wait a second, isn’t Stephen Lang’s character in Don’t Breathe like…really messed up? I guess we’re getting one with him as the protagonist, though, as the first film was such a surprise hit that the filmmakers needed to cash in on the now-known IP. It looks like it’s taking things in a kidnapping/revenge, John Wick-ish direction, so perhaps there’ll be room for complication to a series that’s now centered on someone that couldn’t even really be described as an antihero.