We got the first image of Gerard Butler in Machine Gun Preacher last month, and now a great first trailer and poster for the film have been released, courtesy of Collider and IMP Awards respectively.
The film tells the true story of Sam Childers, who was once a drug-dealing biker that found God and went to Sudan to build an orphanage for hundreds of children forced into becoming soldiers.
As you can imagine, it’s a moving story, and the film looks to have been done really well if this first trailer is anything to go by. By now, we’re pretty familiar with Butler’s action abilities, leading Zack Snyder’s 300 as he did, and it’s great to see that he’s getting roles that allow him to show off his other dramatic talents too, because he’s a brilliant actor that can do just about anything (his dancing scenes with Tom Hardy and Thandie Newton in RocknRolla were beyond amazing).
I like the fact that Childers is an American, and Scottish-born Butlerstill got the part. There were plenty of American actors that would have been great in this, but they must have known how good Butler would be in a role like this, and his accent seems pretty convincing in the trailer.
The images of hundreds of people, many scared children, sleeping outside are pretty moving to watch, especially when you know that it’s based on a true story. The film is the feature debut of writer Jason Keller, who’s been hired to co-write Tarsem Singh’s as-yet-untitled Snow White film, and it certainly looks to be an impressive debut.
It’s interesting that both the trailer and poster are promoting director Marc Forster’s credits on Monster’s Ball and The Kite Runner, over something like Quantum of Solace, which would suggest that the film’s dramatic side will be front and centre over the action sequences, which is good to hear for a story like this.
Machine Gun Preacher, which also stars Michelle Monaghan and Michael Shannon, will be playing at the Toronto International Film Festival next month, and will be released here in the UK on 18th November. The images in the trailer, coupled with the use of the song Revival by Soulsaver, literally send tingles down my spine, and you know you’ve hit upon something good when that happens. Without further ado, here are the first trailer and poster for the film. Let us know what you think below. As usual with the poster, click to enlarge.
[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=paPj_qDPDuY’]
