Agreed, Temis, on both points. I had literally next to no knowledge of Abe Lincoln, VH, until that first trailer caught my eye. I was like......well, that's certainly different.
Point is, it caught my attention. There's a
terrific shot of a young Lincoln's eyes, close up, as he stares upward before the female vamp goes on attack in the first trailer that made me ask, "Who is that? His eyes are striking. They grab your attention."
John Carter's trailer seemed like another multi million dollar SFX fest with a non charismatic, male model lead. Attractive but highly bland lead. No soul to it.
Yeah, Depp is doing the usual schtick. I agree 100 percent. Sad thing is, he'd have made a great, brooding Barnabas had they gone that way.