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Movie trailers have not yet recovered from the loss of voice-over great Don LaFontaine in 2008. No other narrator could describe an existential threat or high-concept comedy with such authority, making even the most flimsy cinematic trifle seem larger than life. And yet the industry soldiers on in his absence. Tonight the D.C. Film Society—an organization perhaps still recovering from its own loss, the 2011 death of local film critic Joe Barber—hosts its semiannual Coming Attractions Trailer Night, where the $8 admission gets you promotional tchotchkes, raffle tickets, and the power to spout off on summer blockbusters. What can we look forward to this summer? There is the usual glut of franchise sequels (Madagascar, Ice Age), action movie reboots (The Amazing Spider-Man, The Bourne Legacy), and needless remakes (Total Recall), but there’s also Rock of Ages (shown), a Broadway-inspired fever dream through the 1980s where rock-and-roll dreams are realized through a shirtless Tom Cruise belting out Def Leppard’s “Pour Some Sugar On Me.” Not even LaFontaine’s legendary pipes could save this turkey.
Coming Attractions Trailer Night begins at 7 p.m. at E Street Cinema, 555 11th St. NW. $8. dcfilmsociety.org.