The trailer demonstrates very clearly that this Alex Cross inhabits a different world than the version of the character played previously by Morgan Freeman in Kiss the Girls and Along Came a Spider.  This newer, younger Doctor Cross comes into contact with explosions more frequently, resolutely saws the barrel off a shotgun, and goes head to head/fist to fist with a nutjob who uses scuba gear to infiltrate a building for reasons unknown.  The more straightforward action-based approach to a familiar property was to be expected though, as Summit Entertainment is clearly aiming to start a bankable franchise, and to do so, the studio hired Rob Cohen, the director behind The Fast and the Furious, xXx, and Stealth.

The trailer you see below made its official debut at Amazon.

That tagline, "Don't Ever Cross Alex Cross" is indicative of what doesn't quite work here.  Maybe it's just the trailer, but it feels self-conscious about being a thriller and an action movie.  With Perry's family-based appeal, the trailer goes out of its way to establish that Cross's motivation is protecting his loved ones from this ungodly force of destruction.  Cohen has wisely surrounded his lead actor with actors who aren't strangers to this sort of fare, from Giancarlo Esposito to Rachel Nichols, Edward Burns, and Jean Reno.

The first stills from Alex Cross arrived a month ago, and you can check them out by clicking right here.  The first poster, meanwhile, just debuted at Moviefone, so take a look below to while away the days between now and October 26th.