Trailers are a touchy subject these days: on one hand, some fans' desire to learn about something before it launches is insatiable, while others want to know as little as possible going in. It's not easy finding a balance, either: while Star Wars managed to hold off on any major spoilers, the trailers for Terminator: Genisys basically ruined the movie before it came out.
Either way, trailers have come a long way since the early days of modern cinema. Back in the day, trailers would basically walk the audience through the core parts of the movie, and Star Wars was no exception. Go back and watch the theatrical trailers — they're almost painful to watch nowadays.
That's one of the reasons why it's so interesting to go back and compare trailers from the '70s and '80s to modern-day teasers — the only problem is that most movies from back then aren't getting any new trailers. However, thanks to YouTuber Tom F., fans can catch a glimpse of just how far trailers have come in the past 30 years:
Compare that to the original Empire Strikes Back theatrical trailer from 1979:
While the fan-made "Modern" trailer isn't an exact copy of the Force Awakens teasers, it does a good job of matching the same tone. It's relatively slow-paced, it's quiet, it tries to convey parts of the story without giving it all away — simply put, the "Modern" trailer is the sort of thing you'd expect to see from a modern-day teaser.
Now, compare the "Modern" trailer with the original theatrical trailer — obviously, the fan-made trailer is far more watchable than the official teaser. They're both roughly two minutes long, and yet, the theatrical trailer feels like it drags on forever ...
Sure, trailers today aren't exactly perfect ... but they're definitely a lot better than they used to be.
For more of Tom F's work, head on over to his YouTube channel.
