That was some of the chatter at a convention of movie theater owners here on Monday night following a peek at Mr. Pitt’s expensive “World War Z,” a zombie-apocalypse thriller that arrives on June 21. Mr. Pitt introduced the footage by saying that he made the movie for his sons — the oldest of whom is 11.

“I think you’re going to like this as much as my boys are going to,” he said.

Then the lights went down and zombiefied people started chewing through car windows in Center City Philadelphia. Another scene depicted agents in helicopters unsuccessfully trying to mow down the undead with machine guns. The final harrowing snippet took place inside a jumbo jet that blew apart in midflight, replete with passengers sucked out in swarms.

Strong applause followed. And then the surprised whispers started.

Paramount’s goal in showing the footage was to prove to theater owners that “World War Z,” which is not yet rated, has the potential to be a blockbuster despite much-chronicled production difficulties that drove the budget skyward; to that end, the studio undoubtedly brought the most eye-popping scenes it had.

To be fair, the finished film may play differently — calmer scenes will break up the more terrifying ones — and most local multiplexes have sound systems that are less intense than the one that rattled bones inside the Coliseum at Caesar’s Palace. Paramount also may have suffered from unfortunate timing: Attendees were watching moments of fictionalized urban panic a few hours after the Boston Marathon bomb attacks unfolded on TV.

Indeed, some bloggers invited to view similar footage last month had a different reaction. “While not particularly horrific — as the camera never focused for too long on any particular person being torn to bits by the undead — it was effectively thrilling,” CinemaBlend.com wrote on March 29. The site even complained about the lack of blood in the movie.

If Paramount is nervous about its summer tent pole playing more like a narrow horror movie, it didn’t give any evidence on Monday. “We think this is going to be one of the biggest movies this summer,” said Rob Moore, the studio’s vice chairman.

Article source: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/17/business/media/to-promote-brad-pitt-zombie-movie-paramount-plays-up-the-horrors.html?partner=rss&emc=rss