I heard a critic the other day claiming this had been a horrible summer for movies. My first reaction was "Not! Star Trek was incredible!" Then I realized that Star Trek came out in mid-May, and was not technically a summer film. Up came out this summer and immediately became my third favorite animated film ever, after The Iron Giant and The Incredibles, just nudging aside Finding Nemo and Aladdin. One summer gem, then. I started to think back on the movies I've seen this year. There was Star Trek (twice) and Up (thrice) and ... Hmmm. I didn't see Transformers 2, but it sounds like a movie I'd have despised. I saw some VERY good movies at the beginning of the year, but they mostly came out last year; Grand Tourino and Changeling, specifically. I don't really recall what else I watched this year. Push? Not memorable. Please help jog my failing memory. What else worth noting came out in 2009 and failed to disappoint?
A short list culled from a release website:
- Star Trek, one of my favorite films ever. Loved this movie.
- Up, see Star Trek
- Taken, a really good thriller with Liam Neeson. Enjoyable.
- Gran Tourino, a very strong Eastwood flick. Not quite as good as Million Dollar Baby. Actually a 2008 film.
- Coraline, a really well done Tim Burton film. Very worth seeing.
- Push, a fairly average SciFi story with good acting. Fun, but empty.
- Watchman, better than expected. Spent too much time on senseless gore to live up to its source material.
- Paul Blart: Mall Cop, really bad but watchable. Barely.
- Inkheart, waited for DVD. Very average.
- Race to Witch Mountain, Fortunately forgettable.
- Monsters vs. Aliens, A fun romp with some great moments. C+.
- X-Men Origins: Wolverine, A very well crafted and enjoyable film that went seriously awry over the last third and ended very badly. Still, worth seeing.
- Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian, Not nearly as good as the first film, but I still enjoyed it.
So, I saw a LOT more movies than were worth remembering. None of them were truly horrid, but most slipped from my mind almost immediately. Watchmen was an exception. I thought about that movie for days. I still really want to see Moon and The Hangover. Nothing coming up that really grabs me. So, what have you been watching, and more importantly, what's coming up to get excited about?
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Oh yeah, Harry Potter. I
Oh yeah, Harry Potter. I thought the 6th Potter movie was the third best, after the second (Chamber of Secrets) and third (Azkaban), which was inarguably the best, just like the book. They skipped a lot of Harry's teen angst, which was a good idea in a movie this full of plot threads, but in the end the film had no real climax pacing-wise. Obviously it built to a specific event, which happened, but which did not come close to giving a cathartic release of built up tension. Overall the film was very enjoyable and well crafted, but it felt like what it was; the first part of a three part story.
My mother says the Soloist was excellent, as well.
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Others I thought were really good:
Angels & Demons
The Soloist
Harry Potter and the I forget what it was this time.
Others that were tolerable:
Terminator
I probably will end up seeing Bruno, but I haven't yet ..
All I can think of. I tried looking at lists of 2009 movies to refresh my memory, but it just depressed me and got me thinking I need to watch more independant films.