Look, I intended to write about many many movies this spring and (now) summer, but things just didn't go that way. I will be writing about Under the Skin and Noah as promised, but not right now. Why? Well first off, they aren't summer films. Secondly, the former is so good (and strange) and the latter is so off the charts weird (and at times good) that they deserve their own posts. So keep watching for them. Also not included in this batch is Muppets Most Wanted, because there's little to write about it save for it being a very light, mostly forgettable, but still enjoyable adventure with the old familiar Muppets.
Today is for the first batch of summer movies. Of course, one movie (The Amazing Spider-Man 2) will not be in this group, as it garnered its own post. I won't waste any more non precious space on that movie. Instead, I'll talk about the other movies that came out in May and June. Come the end of August/early September I'll do part two. Now on to the movies.
Neighbors
Yet another movie that proves that comedy and trailers don't always mix so well (especially non red band trailers for 'R' rated movies). All of the trailers I saw for this movie made me think it was going to be absolutely terrible, but it actually turned out to be pretty funny. Seth Rogen, Rose Byrne, and yes even Zac Efron do a great job as the young thirtysomething parents and the frat president, respectively. I'm not going to lie that it's weird being at the age where the characters in my age group are the "adults" in this the feud. Still, if this is indicative of people my age reaching that plateau, I'm willing to live with it.
Verdict: Strongly Recommend
Godzilla
If we were judging the movie by the scenes involving Godzilla, Bryan Cranston, and the paratrooper scene, this would probably be the best movie of the bunch. Alas, there is much more than that, which tends to drag the movie down. There are so many great actors (including Cranston, but at least he does something when he's on screen) in this film, but they don't seem to do much. Unfortunately the one that does a lot of things, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, makes Sam Worthington look as kinetic of an actor as Sam Rockwell. But damn, those scenes with Godzilla. Gareth Edwards definitely knows how to frame the big guy, and his introduction (and near introduction before it) is impressive. By the time of the aforementioned paratrooper scene and both times Godzilla does that thing he always does you could have a dozen Aaron Taylor-Johnsons and it wouldn't put a dint in the positives for this film. I can't wait for the sequel where Godzilla faces off with this fearsome beast.
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| Photo by Erin |
Verdict: Partial Strong Recommendation
Million Dollar Arm
This movie wins my award for biggest surprise of the summer so far. That doesn't mean it's a great movie, but it was certainly better than I expected. Sure, it leans too far on the typical "Disney" sports movie cliches at times, but there's enough of an edge to the events and Jon Hamm's performance that keeps it from dissolving into too much fluff. The actors playing the prospects chosen during the Indian reality contest "Million Dollar Arm", Suraj Sharma and Madhur Mittal, are quite good at portraying young people stuck halfway across the world from home doing something they've never done before. Oh, and Alan Arkin plays a grouchy old man. I know, such a stretch for him.
Verdict: See it when comes to cable or streaming.
X-Men: Days of Future Past
This movie was a lot of fun to watch, even if the second time through I didn't enjoy it quite as much. At times it feels kind of empty and ephemeral, and the end is the biggest piece of fan service I've seen since the epilogue of Harry Potter: The Deathly Hallows, Part Two. However, those complaints can be put aside by the strong performances from both the cast in the past (who are the more recent cast), and the reliable members from the original cast. If you liked X-Men: First-Class or hated X-Men: The Last Stand, then you'll really like this film. The effects are quite well done, especially the showpiece scene involving Quicksilver saving the day. Guaranteed no awkward lines about frying toads with lightning.
Verdict: Must see if you are fan of Marvel, X-Men, or that scene in Futurama's "Three Hundred Big Ones" where Fry saves the day with his hundredth cup of coffee.
A Million Ways to Die in the West
I wanted to really like this film. Despite some of the dreck that's been attached to Seth MacFarlane's name (bad Family Guy, Dads, Hosting the Oscars), he's also done some truly inspired things (Good Family Guy, Roger and Stan Smith's voices on American Dad, matching the Reading Rainbow funding). The cast he put together is a pretty great cast, even if you wanted to do a straight up full blown western. And there were a few good ideas and laughs to be found. But unfortunately, not enough for me to really enjoy the film. A lot of the jokes just tended to fall flat, and some were disproportionately infuriating (DRINK AND RIDE! DRINK AND RIDE! DRINK AND HORSE MAKES NO GOTDANG SENSE! ARGGHGHGGHGBARBGALHGETEHLETET___phfffffftttt).
/clears throat
OK, I'm back. The cast does what it can with the weak material, and MacFarlane does a pretty good job in his first leading role in a film (that didn't involve voicing a talking bear), but it just wasn't enough to carry the film.
Verdict: Eh, I suppose it's worth watching if it's on cable on a lazy weekend afternoon.
Edge of Tomorrow
It's been a rough set of years for summer blockbuster type movies that aren't franchises or remakes. Last year, the entertaining, effectively original (in characters and story, if not concept) Pacific Rim had disappointing box office numbers compared to the glut of franchise pictures released around it. Unfortunately that appears to be a trend, as Edge of Tomorrow has also had relatively weak box office numbers*. Perhaps it's in part the title, which is incredibly bland (if adequately descriptive of the film). Were it known by it's original title, All you Need is Kill, perhaps more people would have tried it, although that title makes no damn sense. The best title for it would probably be Groundhog Day, but with Aliens. Watching this a second time, I was amazed at how well the story fits together, as Tom Cruise resets every time he dies, going from a paper soldier to a finely-tuned alien killer. Bill Paxton seems to have really enjoyed his role as a Master Sergeant leading a squad of super soldiers into a futuristic version of D-Day. And Emily Blount is so very good as Sergeant Rita Vrataski, the "Angel of Verdun", a highly skilled super soldier who knows what Cruise is going through. Because of its repetition with slight variations, the movie feels like a video game (in a good way). In fact, I'm sure there will be times that video game enthusiasts watching this will want to throw their controllers down in disgust, if out of habit. It's surprisingly funny at times, looks wonderful, and all in all is a very fun ride. It's currently my favorite of the summer, and only Grand Budapest Hotel and perhaps Under the Skin are ahead of it for the year. If it is still playing in your area, please go see it. We need more movies of this type.
Verdict: Strongly Recommend
22 Jump Street
It's been a pretty good year for Phil Lord and Christopher Miller. First The Lego Movie was a big hit and a great movie, taking what could have been a soulless cash grab and making something worth watching out of it. Their second movie of the year, 22 Jump Street, is also a big hit, and it's also a pretty funny movie. Of course, it helps that meta humor/inside baseball kind of crap is a favorite of mine, and that can be found throughout the movie. However, it wouldn't work without the clear chemistry Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill have as a team of cops posing as college students to stop a drug ring. I've never actually seen the first movie, but it isn't a prerequisite, as they recap the first one right at the top of the film. Like too many "action comedies", it becomes a bit less fun as it wraps up, in large part because it has to actually finish up the "action" part. Certainly this is a franchise where the law of diminishing returns will hit with a vengeance. But I'm sure that can be saved for 23 Jump Street: Incredibly Blatant Cash Grab.
Verdict: Strongly Recommend, unless you hate meta humor.
How to Train Your Dragon 2
As that picture shows, there are dragons to be found in this movie, including giant ones with ice breath. As the picture also shows, this is a beautiful film. Whether flying through the clouds, or frolicking in the meadows with baby dragons, this film just looks fantastic. In addition, the voice work is as good as the first, with the same cast of characters returning from the first, with the addition of Cate Blanchett, Kit Harrington**, and Djimon Hounsou. And like the first, it has a heart and sense of adventure that feels closer to the best of Pixar's work than the more irreverent style of Shrek and some of the other Dreamworks Animation franchises. There were some generally affecting moments in the film, none of which I will spoil for you. Of course, Toothless looks an awful lot like a dear departed family cat, so I can't say that this fact doesn't influence my thoughts on the film.
If there is one somewhat big problem I have with the movie, it would have to Valka, the character voiced by Cate Blanchett. Not that she isn't an interesting character, or that she isn't well played. She is very interesting, Blanchett and the animators do a great job of bringing her to life, and it's always great to have strong female characters in a movie. However, as Tasha Robinson's piece about the "Trinity Problem" states, she doesn't really do much, particularly once Hiccup's father Stoick shows up. She's barely involved in taking action or doing much of anything once the movie rounds towards home. It's a bit frustrating, particularly considering how great of a character she is.
With that being said, it's still a movie about dragons and the people who train them. The dragons are pretty damn cool, and sometimes that's all that matters, right?
Verdict: Strongly Recommend, with a reservation
*Both movies numbers overseas have been much kinder, which seems to say that you don't have to just throw a bunch of explosions up without a coherent story to get the Russians or Chinese into theaters. Even if that seems to work for Michael Bay.
**Obligatory "You know nothing, Jon Snow" goes here.
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