Amazon Studios has released the first trailer for writer/director Woody Allen’s new film Wonder Wheel. The movie is set against the backdrop of 1950s Coney Island and tells the story of four characters whose lives intertwine: a former actress working as a waitress (Kate Winslet); her carousel operator husband (Jim Belushi); her husband's long-estranged daughter (Juno Temple) who’s now hiding from gangsters; and a handsome young lifeguard with dreams of becoming a playwright (Justin Timberlake).

What's most striking about this trailer is the cinematography by Vittorio Storaro, who shot Allen's last film Cafe Society as well as a number of other notable movies like Apocalypse Now and Last Tango in Paris. Allen had been regularly working with Darius Khondji, but his schedule appears to have been booked when Allen was making his latest films, so he turned to Storaro. The collaboration here is incredibly colorful and theatrical, and if I'm being honest, that's probably the biggest selling point for this movie for me.

As for the story, as with every Allen film it could be good or bad. The filmmaker's been more hit than miss lately (it's been a long time since Midnight in Paris), but buzz is strong on Winslet's performance so this one might make more of a splash. We'll find out soon enough.

Check out the Wonder Wheel trailer below. The film opens in theaters on December 1st.

Here’s the official synopsis for Wonder Wheel:

WONDER WHEEL tells the story of four characters whose lives intertwine amid the hustle and bustle of the Coney Island amusement park in the 1950s: Ginny (Kate Winslet),  an emotionally volatile former actress now working as a waitress in a clam house; Humpty (Jim Belushi), Ginny’s rough-hewn carousel operator husband; Mickey (Justin Timberlake), a handsome young lifeguard who dreams of becoming a playwright; and Carolina (Juno Temple), Humpty’s long-estranged daughter, who is now hiding out from gangsters at her father’s apartment. Cinematographer Vittorio Storaro captures a tale of passion, violence, and betrayal that plays out against the picturesque tableau of 1950s Coney Island.

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