The striking feature of old movies is that how much they reveal in the teasers/trailers, yet draw the audience into theatres. In contrast, Indian movies especially Telugu and Hindi movies focus so much on antics that they do not give any idea as to what the movie is all about.
Master Filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock takes this concept of luring the audience to the next level. Even when he made big budget movies like ‘North By Northwest’ he made sure that the theatrical trailer is more about the story idea and less about the spectacle. (One could relate this to any business pitch)
One gets to understand more about a master, through another master. In the making features of ‘Strangers on a Train’ there is an excellent video of M.Night Shyamalan decoding theplot and character in a few scenes from the movie. Example, in the scenes where Bruno follows Mirriam to kill her (plot), we get to know more about her (character), in the process. So it is not just action, but something more. He also talks about how easily he sets up long dialogue situations, like the initial meeting of Guy and Bruno in the train.
Related Links
Alfred Hitchcock’s MacGuffin Technique
Strangers on a Train trailer
North by Northwest trailer
Strangers on a Train: An Appreciation by M. Night Shyamalan
Nailing Your Pitch Deck (hint: It should feel like a movie trailer)