Summer Move Round-Up

Lots of movies came out this summer. Many of them were very good. Some of the more high-profile ones were very bad. I saw a lot of them. Here are my thoughts:

X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Awful. Simply terrible. The acting was crap, the plot was fragmented, and the level of respect on hand for not only the previous movies in the series but the greater X-Men cannon was abysmal. It might have been worth the $4.50 I paid to see it if the theater had been empty enough for me to be willing to yell at the screen. D+

Star Trek
A great reboot to the series. J.J. Abrams managed to remember that Star Trek really is about the chemistry between its ensemble, and the entire cast managed to reinvent their characters in a way that stayed true to the spirit of the original cast. The action never slowed up to allow time for reflection or to introduce any deeper themes, but everything remained coherent and enjoyable throughout. B+

Up
Up was fantastic. Breezy and entertaining while still touching on universal issues of loneliness, Up may well edge out Ratatouille as my third favorite Pixar film. The animation and voice acting are spectacular, and I can't foresee the early montage of Carl and Ellie's married life not making me tear-up at least a bit any time soon. A

The Hangover
Everybody was blown away by the box office performance of The Hangover. This little raunchy, over-the-top bachelor party comedy starring no well known actors (though Zack Galifianakis and Ed Helms both have their dedicated fans) somehow managed to gross $275 million dollars. I'm not quite certain it deserved that kind of gross, it most certainly was a crazy ride. There are situations that arise in this movie that are entirely original, which is something that few comedies can say; and watching these ultimately likable guys get into so much trouble is made even better by the fact that they simply aren't very good people. In a summer dominated by action movies and family films, a male-oriented comedy was going to be a million grosser no matter what, but The Hangover had the novelty and quality to earn its legs. B

Transformers 2
A confusing mess of a movie. The tone and pacing were inconsistent, the over-arching plot made essentially no sense, and the visuals were so cluttered that I rarely knew what was going on in the supposedly spectacular action scenes. This wasn't helped by the fact that virtually none of the decepticons had the same sorts of visual or personality distinctions that the auto-bots had. I'll admit that I enjoy watching Shia LeBouf do his thing more than I ought to, but not nearly enough to enjoy this movie as a whole. D-

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince
Upon my first reading, the sixth Harry Potter book was my favorite. I enjoyed the various romantic subplots and how they contrasted with the more somber tone of life beyond the gates of Hogwarts. I liked how they fleshed out Lord Voldemort's character. Unfortunately, these are not quite the things that translate well to film, and yet Yates, Radcliffe, Gint, Watson, and company managed to make this a greatly enjoyable film. All of the major subplots were stripped down to their bare minimum, and the humor that accompanies the awkwardness of adolescence was ramped up to keep things entertaining. The addition of the Christmas action sequence half way through is understandable, but the scene didn't contribute much. I'm glad that they left out most of the ending battle, though. It may be the climax of the book, but it ultimately distracts from the rest of the ending. They kept the important aspects. Since this is the first Harry Potter movie I've seen since reading the books, I feel like I need to see it again before issuing a final verdict. I missed certain scenes from the book, but I was also more strongly disposed towards liking it than I was past movies in the series. For now, though, I'm comfortable giving it a solid B.

(500) Days of Summer
This may be my favorite movie of the summer. Up is its only serious competition. In an age where everybody is trying to hard to be "indie" and instead coming across as cloyingly manufactured, (500) Days of Summer captures the hipster essence by focusing on its characters instead of its ambiance. It's a story about love that isn't a love story so much as a look at our expectations of love and relationships. People who know me well ought to know why this resonates the way it does. My adoration for this movie doesn't just follow from my appreciation for the subtext, though. The writing, performances, and soundtrack are all just pitch-perfect. It even manages to end on a hopeful up note that, if it's contrived, is fittingly so. A+

The Hurt Locker
As intense a movie as you're ever likely to see. By focusing on bomb-squad soldiers, The Hurt Locker manages to avoid much of the direct controversy associated with the Iraq war and instead helps us to understand the psyche of men who never know which moment could be their last. The Hurt Locker manages to be unbiased in its depiction, presenting characters honestly without any attempt at evaluating them. It's not a movie I could watch with any regularity, but it's a movie I would readily recommend to anybody who can stomach the suspense. A-

Moon
I really enjoyed Moon. In an age where the sci-fi genre is universally associated with pulpy, high action space operas/fantasies, Moon is a slower, more contemplative in the original tradition. There's a great subtlety to Moon, and my friends and I were still talking about it, putting the pieces together days after we went to see it. I'm looking forward to seeing more from this first-time director. A-

Funny People
Funny People is a strange movie, and I doubt that anybody who went to see it knew what they were in for. It's a movie from an acclaimed comic director starring an acclaimed comic cast that isn't a comedy, not really. This is a drama about how funny people, people who are used to diffusing difficult situations instead of confronting them, handle their personal lives when confrontation becomes necessary. It's a well made film, but not necessarily an immediately enjoyable one. I think that it will be recognized for what it is and shown greater appreciation in the future, though. B

Ponyo
Overall, I enjoyed Ponyo even if I was disappointed by it. It was a light, fun movie that was artistically gorgeous. Still, I take certain issues with the plot, and I was annoyed by the title character as often as I found her endearing. In general, I think that a love story about children (and whether you want to admit it or not, in this case it was plainly about a romantic attraction and not platonic love) is not appropriate. I was also incredibly frustrated that Ponyo, who, in her "free spiritedness", to be polite, caused every single bit of conflict in the movie, was never held accountable for her actions. Instead, she was praised and given exactly what she wanted. Maybe I'm being overly-analytical. Maybe I'm too distracted by my love of Tina Fey (whose character, unknowingly, suffered the most at Ponyo's hands). But I can't help feeling that somebody, at least, should have been upset with this little girl come the end of the movie. In any case, it's an good enough children's movie, but not quite up to par with Totoro, Spirited Away, or the other greats of Miyazaki's oeuvre. C+

District 9
The third great sci-fi film of the summer approaches the genre in yet another way. Where Star Trek was pulp entertainment and Moon was a subtle contemplation, District 9 was a powerful allegory. With a very interesting protagonist and a fascinating alternate history, District 9 does a great job of pulling viewers in and lending weight to the action pieces. For lots of people, this was the movie of the summer. I didn't appreciate it quite that much, but I can understand what they see in it. A-

Inglourious Basterds
A Tarantino movie by just about any measure. The writing and characterizations were outstanding. The direction was unique. The plot was outlandish. It occasionally broke tone in jarring ways. It needed more editing than it got. I really liked this movie, but I think that, with a bit of work, it could have been even better. Some scenes just went on too long, and there were a few too many self-indulgent moments. B-


There were too many movies here for me to try and rank them beyond this, especially considering how long it's been since I saw most of them. As disappointing as a lot of the larger "tent pole" films of the summer were, though, I think this list is a testament to the quality of independent film making right now.