I’ve seen twenty-five movies in the theater this summer, and most of them were good. I’m not sure if that means I’m highly selective (in picking movies) or not selective enough (in reviewing them) (though given my track record for seeing the positive in everything, probably the latter).
Tomorrow X-Men: First Class comes out on video, giving me the opportunity to watch it again. So today, before I’ve had the chance to see any of these films more than once, I thought I’d do a quick wrap-up of the summer.
Originally I was going to title this blog entry, “Summer 2011: The Good, The Bad, and the Mediocre.” But once I started arranging the movies and found 16 out of 25 features flooding “The Good” category, I knew my scheme required some retooling.
Here’s the problem. It’s easy to identify a bad movie. Identifying what makes one good film any better than another is a much trickier task. After all, every movie has its own strengths and weaknesses, and some films counterbalance glaring weaknesses with glowing strengths.
So without going back over the reviews I’ve written, I’m going to take a few minutes to review each movie in my mind. I’ve seen them all once. Based on what stuck with me, here are the positives and negatives that left their mark in my memory.
The Exceptional
As far as I’m concerned, any of these films could be somebody’s very respectable choice for “best of the summer.”
Super 8:
This movie remains my favorite of the summer because of its wonderful, engrossing execution. You can’t take your eyes off the screen. Even though the ending is slightly rushed, you leave the theater satisfied because you’ve just gotten another look at those kids making a monster movie, and in this movie, the kids matter a lot more than the monster.
Crazy, Stupid, Love:
The ending made the movie for me. It leaves you with such a positive feeling. The story is satisfying on so many levels, something that’s not apparent until it’s over. Is the movie perfect? No. Super 8 has a soft ending (that it tries to distract you from), and this film has a somewhat contrived opening act (that you watch patiently because you like the actors). This movie seems to send the message that even though life isn’t like a fairy tale, happy endings are still possible. In fact, real life is better than any idealized fantasy, precisely because it isn’t perfect or predictable.
Attack the Block:
An ideal complement for Super 8 (in that both movies seem involved in a conversation with E.T.) this movie delivers likeable characters, interesting conflict, genuine thrills, almost non-stop action, a message that has more to do with humanity than extra-terrestrials, and some incredibly creepy-looking aliens. Plus, the concerns of kids trying to survive in a sketchy London neighborhood seem highly relevant in light of all the real-life rioting in England this summer.
The Help:
The acting in The Help is stellar with Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer leading a strong cast of actors portraying arrestingly human characters. The story is also very satisfying. From a historian’s point of view, The Help may get a lot wrong. But as a feature film, it does so much right. It’s a crowd pleaser with heart, much meatier and more grounded than most women’s fiction adapted for the big screen.
X-Men: First Class:
This movie sent my brain into overload. The plot wasn’t confusing at all. But there was so much to think about from start to finish. In many ways, First Class is a much better Civil Rights movie than The Help because in it you see the full complexity and difficulty of the problems people face. The film raises questions that don’t have easy answers, largely because they’re the kind of questions that elicit wildly emotional responses. The cast is also fantastic, especially Michael Fassbender as Magneto and Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique.
Midnight in Paris:
How can I praise this movie without spoiling it? Midnight in Paris isn’t for everyone, but it should appeal to writers, romantics, and lovers of Paris (of which there are many and for good reason). I went into this movie knowing nothing about the plot and found myself very pleasantly surprised. The concept is whimsically winning, the pacing is good, the humor is great, and the performances are wonderful.
Bridesmaids:
Bridesmaids is a little too long, but it’s definitely a unique film in that it showcases the talents of comediennes and manages to entertain theater-goers of both genders. Kristen Wiig has tremendous talent as does Melissa McCarthy. And I have to say, after comparing her performances in this, X-Men: First Class, and Get Him to the Greek, Rose Byrne is an amazingly versatile actress.
Cowboys and Aliens:
I keep changing my mind about how to rate/rank this movie. Honestly, I thought it ended up being one of the more memorable of the summer simply because it was different from everything else in theaters. Again, I’ll praise the execution. Though I didn’t leave the theater feeling my mind had been blown, I found the movie completely engrossing from scene one. The cowboys were such a fascinating lot that I wouldn’t have cared if we never saw an alien (though that scenario would have put an intriguing spin on the title).
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (3D):
I didn’t realize until just now that this is the only film in the “exceptional” category released in 3D. Actually, I think the final installment in the Potter franchise is a bit overrated, and I almost busted it down to “good.” Still, it’s probably one of the best of the Harry Potter movies. (I’d say it ties with Prisoner of Azkaban for the top spot.) The movie is almost non-stop action, but I think it succeeds because of the relatively few pauses for contemplation. “The Prince’s Tale,” was my favorite chapter of the book, and it was also what made me love the movie. Alan Rickman has been outstanding as Snape from film one, and this movie gives the character the kind of resolution he deserves.
The Good
I liked all of these movies, too, and I’d say that they’re, perhaps, the most rewatchable films of the summer. It’s quite possible that somebody would call one of these “the best of the summer,” too. I’d be skeptical of that claim but open to persuasion.
Thor:
This is the movie I’m most excited to see again on DVD, not that I think it’s the objectively the best. Thor is incredibly predictable, and the action scenes look choppy and seem designed to accommodate a relatively modest budget. But the scenes on earth are just so funny and have so much energy, and the film does boast some magnificent performances, most notably from Stellan Skarsgard and Tom Hiddleston.
Rise of the Planet of the Apes:
When I first saw this movie, I might have placed it in the “excellent” category, but now I don’t know. How often do I reflect back on this film? Never. Of course, maybe that’s just because I found the movie so sad because young Caesar reminded me so much of my two-year-old daughter. For a movie with an August release date and “Planet of the Apes” in the title, it was definitely excellent. But in general, I think it’s really more in the neighborhood of good. Like all good science fiction, Apes was heart-breaking and dismal. I did love the emotionally evocative performances by John Lithgow and Andy Serkis, though.
Kung Fu Panda 2:
This was definitely the best children’s movie of the summer, but for my money, the March release Rango is still the finest animated feature this year. Kung Fu Panda 2 had so much heart. James Hong’s Mr. Ping made me laugh and cry, and Lord Shen (chillingly voiced by Gary Oldman) was one menacing albino peacock. Still, the plot felt extremely contrived, even forced at moments.
Winnie the Pooh:
I can’t wait until I can buy the DVD for my daughter. By the end, Pooh had the whole family laughing out loud. I thought I would die of asphyxiation while all the animals were trapped in the pit. The humor built and built. The beginning of the movie seemed a little rough, though. Pooh never really clicked until the Backson song (which was incredibly catchy and entertaining).
Friends with Benefits:
I loved this movie, but it’s not going to win any Academy Awards. Since first watching Easy A, I’ve been a Will Gluck fan. Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis are compelling leads, really easy to watch, and Patricia Clarkson is hilarious and sad as Jamie’s unstable mother. But what really stands out about this movie is the wonderfully touching performance by Richard Jenkins as Dylan’s dad. I plan to own the DVD.
The Debt:
Though it definitely comes across as a prestige picture, I doubt this movie will win any Academy Awards either, despite extremely strong performances by Jesper Christensen, Jessica Chastain, and Helen Mirren. The Debt is a gripping thriller, but the sequences set in the 1960s are so much more effective than those in 1997, and in the end, everything fizzles when it ought to pop.
Captain America: The First Avenger (3D):
So much better than I expected it to be, Captain America had likeable characters, strong performances—especially by the Jonses in the cast—a fairly witty script, and a decent story. The ending felt a little anticlimactic, and it dragged just a bit in places, but this is another one I’ll be glad to watch again on DVD.
The Mediocre
If one of these films was your pick for “best film of the summer,” you need to go to the movies more.
Fright Night (3D):
After watching the original Fright Night on DVD the other night, I appreciate the remake so much more. All of the characters in the remake are so likeable and realistic. (I wanted to kill just about everybody in the 1985 “classic.”) Of course, the movie isn’t scary. It’s also not particularly funny. And the cast seems unlikely to captivate teenage audiences. But I do think this will be very, very rewatchable on DVD.
The Smurfs:
The blue moon was so beautiful. I’ve heard other critics complain about crude and stupid jokes.(And of course, there was a lot of blue humor.) But when I think back on this movie, honestly all I can remember is Sophia Vergara in an evening gown staring up at the beautiful blue moon. Oh, yes, and there was also a colorful scene in the toy store. The movie wasn’t terribly clever or original. But it was pleasant, like watching brightly colored candy dance across the screen.
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (3D):
The last half of On Stranger Tides is thoroughly captivating, at times, even magical. It made me feel like a young child again, totally lost in the movie, wondering what would happen to the pirates and the mermaid. Unfortunately, you have to sit through the first half first.
Cars 2:
I’m not sure that Cars 2 was as bad as its detractors may tell you, but it’s certainly nowhere near as good as its makers will tell you. I really wanted to like this movie, but I found it too busy and complicated for my two-year-old, too slow and juvenile for me. It was colorful, though, and everything that happened in Japan looked beautiful.
The Bad
From my point of view, these movies were so easy to hate that somebody out there probably considers them great. But it’s not me.
Conan the Barbarian (3D):
This movie was totally stupid but once the over-the-top villains showed up, it became highly watchable.
Green Lantern (3D):
This was the most sickening movie of the summer. Several high quality independent dramas probably could have been filmed using this movie’s advertising budget alone. All of the potential for an excellent summer blockbuster was in place, but if somebody told me someone’s five-year-old son had written the script the night before they started filming, I would believe it.
Transformers: Dark of the Moon (3D):
And now we come to the painful movies, movies you would have to pay me a substantial amount of money to watch again. Both my husband and my stepson truly, genuinely enjoyed Dark of the Moon, so I can’t call it a total failure. But I found the last hour in particular so visually over-stimulating and narratively underwhelming that I almost went into a coma just because that seemed like a better option than watching another minute of the movie.
Spy Kids: All the Time of the World (4D) (Aroma-scope):
I voluntarily saw the first Spy Kids movie as an adult without children on my birthday, and I liked it. And I have an eight-year-old stepson and two-year-old daughter who both really wanted to see this movie. So I gave it every chance. Trust me. It was terrible. It stunk. (In every way. The entire Aroma-scope card smelled like cough drops, and after I scratched it, so did my popcorn for the rest of the (seemingly endless) movie.)
Another Earth:
This was definitely the worst movie I saw all summer. Part of what made it so horrible is that it had such tremendous potential. There was true treasure buried in this movie. But the film was so thoroughly unpleasant, almost painful to watch. Even the most tragic, tortured story can be enjoyable to experience, cathartic, but this was poorly paced and sloppily concluded. It had some great elements, but as a whole, it was just bad. About half an hour in, I started wanting to win the contest to visit Earth 2 myself just to find out if the me in that world had chosen more wisely at the box office.