When we spoke to Joel Beckerman about his new book Sonic Boom: How Sound Transforms the Way We Think, Feel, and Buy, we couldn't help but think of the movie trailer. Designed to show only the best parts of a movie, a trailer's job is to convince you to pay the price of admission, and give you a sense of the movie. Movie trailer directors artfully use sound to create a mood in just a few short minutes. So what happens when you change the sound? Suddenly a beloved comedy feels like a horror movie, and a spine tingling drama turns into the feel good movie of the year. Below is a selection of movie trailer remixes presented alongside the originals. Did we miss any of your favorites? Let us know in the comments.
You can also hear Joel's interview with Virginia below, plus find links to more about his book right here.
1. If Dumb and Dumber Was Actually a Drama
The score for Christopher Nolan's Inception was masterfully created by Hans Zimmer. In the book Sonic Boom, Joel Beckerman quotes Zimmer on page 124 of his book as saying: "If you talk to any director, they'll say music is fifty percent of the movie." Someone decided to put that to the test and used Zimmer's genius score to create a mash up of the movies Dumb and Dumber and Inception:
Compare to the original Dumb and Dumber trailer:
2. Stanley Kubrick's The Shining as a Romantic Comedy
Here's how the horror movie The Shining looked in the original trailer back in 1980:
And here's how it looks re-imagined as romantic comedy:
3. Mrs. Doubtfire Rewritten as a Horror/Thriller
Mrs. Doubtfire is one of Robin Williams' stand out performances as a master of disguise. The original trailer:
Change the music, and suddenly Mrs. Doubtfire is a horrific thriller:
4. Breaking Bad as a Sitcom
Breaking Bad was one of the most captivating television dramas in recent history. Its star, Brian Cranston, came to the dramatic role of Walter White after starring in the hit television comedy, Malcolm in the Middle. So what if Breaking Bad was a sitcom? It might look like this:
Here's what Breaking Bad looks like with its dramatic pedigree intact:
5. Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory: From Family Friendly Movie to Creepy Thriller
There are parts of the original Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory that hint at it being more than just a delightful family comedy--that scene on the boat going through the tunnel is the stuff of nightmares--but what if it gets pushed just a little further to the side of creepy?
And here's the original trailer:
