A Tale of Two Fathers: New 2013 Superman Movie Teasers

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The best trailers tell a brief part of the story, with enough excitement to generate a feeling of "I have got to see this" for the viewers. Teasers are even shorter than trailers, and tend to come out a year or more before the film release.

The newest version of Superman, called Man of Steel, is being released June 2013. I read an article on the entertainment site Ace Showbiz that piqued my interest.  The two teaser trailers released by Warner Bros. have done something fascinating.

They have created two teasers with exactly the same video components, but with two different narrators. One is from the viewpoint of Superman's biological father, Jor El (played and narrated by Russell Crowe), and the other is from the viewpoint of Clark Kent's earthly adopted father, Jonathan Kent (played and narrated by Kevin Costner).

Not only did the revelation of the casting excite me, but these two teasers put such an interesting spin on the Man of Steel. It left me wondering about how these two influences will be shaping the Man of Steel in the actual movie storyline.

I loved the take each father had on how he saw his "son," and the kind of man he envisions him to grow up to be. This was fantastic marketing in the part of Warner Bros.

I never thought I would love a Superman movie more than the 1980's version, (and a Superman more than Christopher Reeve), but these teasers now have me intrigued. They did the exact job a teaser or trailer is supposed to do.

Historically, some of the best product management and marketing angles have been relatively simple, and played on just ONE emotional or human angle.  I learned a big lesson from this article and from finding the videos on Youtube. We all know there is a monster big budget blockbuster behind these teasers. And yet, Warner Bros. chose a calmer, more elegant and simple approach. Yes, the trailers that show more of the effects will probably come out a bit closer to the film's release, but for now, these teasers weave a fantastic story of two fathers wanting the best for their son.

An interesting side note is that the movie itself will be released around Father's Day in 2013. So people will be thinking in these terms around that time.

"You're not just anyone. One day you're gonna have to make a choice. You have to decide what kind of man you want to grow up to be. Whoever that man is, good character or bad, it's going to change the world" (Kevin Costner as Jonathan Kent's narration).

"You will give the people an ideal to strive towards. They will race behind you, they will stumble, they will fall. But in time, they will join you in the sun. In time you will help them accomplish wonders"(Russel Crowe as Jor El's narration).

With two dads who love him this much, is it any wonder that Kal El went on to become Superman, the Man of Steel?

With Costner's Voice Over:

With Russel Crowe's Voice Over: