Saban is betting big with the highly anticipated Power Rangers reboot. The film has an estimated $105 million budget, meaning it will need to have at least moderate success at the box office to give Lionsgate a good return on their investments and make potential sequels more worthwhile. Of course, the Power Rangers franchise has a global built-in fanbase that gives it more than a good chance for worldwide success.
It remains to be seen if the new Power Rangers will deliver in terms of its story and performances, but there’s no doubt about the action and visual effects. The battle scenes and CGI featured in trailers and TV spots so far appear massive in scale and stunning in their visual details. A new set of TV spots for Dean Israelite’s reboot give a few fresh glimpses of what to expect in the Power Rangers’ climactic battle with their Zords against Rita Repulsa (Elizabeth Banks) and Goldar.
The first TV spot, titled “Time for Power” you can watch above, which showcases the five Rangers battling Rita’s henchmen in at least two different action scenes. There’s a new look at an already-teased fight scene between the Power Rangers and the Putty Patrol, including a fleeting glimpse at the Red Ranger (Dacre Montgomery) wielding his Power Sword. Another new clip titled “Unleash,” which you can watch below, offers a few fresh looks at the Dino Zords and the climactic battle between Megazord and Goldar.
The “Unleash” clip puts the spotlight on Megazord, who appears to stun Goldar with a haymaker to the face that rains gold shards down on the ground below. The Dino Zords themselves have been a major part of Power Rangers’ marketing and promotional campaign, and Saban will certainly be hoping that the new Zord toys will be a significant revenue driver. Here we get a bit more of that action, with the heroes teaming up and combine their Zord powers to become Megazord, evoking memories of the iconic Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers TV shows from the 1990s.
While there’s no doubt that these Power Rangers spots look spectacular, they won’t be as awesome to look at if they’re not wrapped in a compelling story. Nostalgia can only take the film so far; Power Rangers will need to have a powerful central story and memorable characters as well as eye-popping visual effects and fun action scenes to truly transcend generic superhero fare. Thankfully, several comments from the cast, including Bryan Cranston (who's playing mentor Zordon), suggest there's more depth to the big screen translation than some may be expecting.
Source: Lionsgate