20th Century Fox and Sony Pictures have released a fun spin on the trailer for The Monuments Men by doing it in the style of a World War II newsreel. For those who are unfamiliar with the film, it’s based on a true story about soldiers and historians who have to go to Germany during World War II to rescue artistic masterpieces before they’re destroyed by the Nazis. What's really surprising about this trailer is that it provides a phone number at the end that actually works. I was expecting to get a recorded message plugging the movie, but if you call 1-866-WWII-ART you can get a real person on the line. When I called the number, I expressed my surprise to the person I spoke to, and she explained that the number is for people who believe they might have a lead on art that was stolen by the Nazis or lost during the war. There's also a website, supportthemonumentsmen.com, that has more useful information. I'm surprised and delighted that the studios put something of substance into their marketing.
Hit the jump to watch the trailer. The film stars George Clooney, Matt Damon, Cate Blanchett, Jean Dujardin, Hugh Bonneville, John Goodman, Bob Balaban, and Bill Murray. The Monuments Men opens February 7, 2014.
Based on the true story of the greatest treasure hunt in history, The Monuments Men is an action-thriller focusing on an unlikely World War II platoon, tasked by FDR with going into Germany to rescue artistic masterpieces from Nazi thieves and returning them to their rightful owners. It would be an impossible mission: with the art trapped behind enemy lines, and with the German army under orders to destroy everything as the Reich fell, how could these guys – seven museum directors, curators, and art historians, all more familiar with Michelangelo than the M-1 – possibly hope to succeed? But as the Monuments Men, as they were called, found themselves in a race against time to avoid the destruction of 1000 years of culture, they would risk their lives to protect and defend mankind’s greatest achievements.
