I thought I may weigh in on the summer movies that I have seen. X2 - I thought that this was a great movie. One of the best of the summer and better than the first by far. I liked the first one but I loved this one. I cant wait until the next movie. Bad Boys 2 - I really liked this a lot and I thought it at least as good if not better than the first. Dont make another one though. Charlies Angels 2 - Good eye candy. Bad movie Matrix Reloaded - Pretty good but definitely not as good as the first. I am looking forward to Revolutions but I am also looking forward to Episode III of Star Wars when I and II so take that with a grain of salt. I am not looking forward to Revolutions like I was looking forward to Reloaded. I was somewhat let down I guess. Pirates of the Carribean - Easily my favorite movie of the summer. Johnny Depp is awesome in everything. Great story, acting, and adventure. The CG did not drive the movie, it enhanced it. T3 - It was ok. Great chase scene but did the Terminator series a disservice. Shouldnt have been made if Cameron wasnt doing it. Freddy vs. Jason - This was just about what I expected. The novelty was cool and I had good time. Ok movie. I still want to see: SWAT (somewhat) League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (somewhat) Hulk (somewhat) The Italian Job (definitely) American Wedding (definitely)
The best movie this summer was Whale Rider. The best <i>summer movie</i> was Pirates of the Carribean.
coulda fooled me with all the ****ing comercials they were showing for that pos. I wouldn't watch that trash if it came on for free on TNT. there were a lot of movies I wanted to see but never got around to. X2 rocked. Hulk was better than expected. Matrix 2 was mediocre. Bruce Allmighty sucked ass hard. 28 days was solid.
x2 - A hulk - B matrix reloaded - B pirates of the caribbean - A italian job - B bruce almighty - C i hold a special place for charlies angel's which is possibly the absolute worst movie i've ever seen. it was like a long-ass music video. i really want to see t3 and american wedding but haven't gotten around to it yet.
X2: Great movie, although I don't really remember anything about it at this point, I know I thought it was one of the better sequels I've seen. A+ Matrix Reloaded: I love this trilogy and if you're a big fan of it like I am you'll probably like it more than the average moviegoer. Some say it had too much dialogue and stupid scenes but it's all to set up the third and I can't complain about the movie at all...cept the cave rave sequence. A+ Bad Boys 2: I hadn't seen the first one for quite some time, but this movie has got to be better than it - good action and hilarious comedy. A+ Pirates of the Carribean: A lot of my friends think it's the movie of the year, I think it's one of the better ones too. Different kind of action movie - refreshing, and Johnny Depp had a stellar performance. A T3: 2 words - Kristanna Loken , OMG! A lot of people don't like it because it's not like the first that were directed by a different person (James Cameron), but I still like this movie. Doesn't have the same feel, but it was still a good action movie in my opinion. A- 2 Fast 2 Furious: The cars were tight and the women were even better, but everything else sucked, especially Paul Walker's "acting". D+ S.W.A.T.: Entertaining action movie from a different perspective than what I can remember having seen before. B American Wedding: I thought this was the funnies of the three, but I hadn't seen the others for a while. Stifler (Sean William Scott) steals the show.A Hulk: UGH!F
X2 - pretty good, will buy on DVD for sure. Hulk - I thought it was decent, not that bad. Matrix Reloaded - I really enjoyed, still trying to figure it out. T3 - Most anticipated movie of the summer, met my expectations, which is usually hard to do. Great ending and tons of action, plus it was funny. 2Fast 2Furious - not bad, met its expectations, all action, a little predictable though. Bruce Almighty - I liked it, but wasn't blown away... SWAT - maybe the best movie of the summer, blew away my expectations, 100% nonstop action. Good job Colin and Samuel L. Finding Nemo(2) - My boy loved it, I enjoyed it the second time around. #1 animated movie of all time and #1 for the Summer box office. I've really missed out this summer - Bad Boys2, Freddy vs. Jason, American Wedding, 28 days, Pirates, and the Italian Job...
Matrix: Reloaded - possibly my favorite movie of all time (either that or Jurassic Park). the highway chase scene was just friggin unbelievable. while others didn't like all the talking, i loved trying to figure it all out. definitely better than the first one to me (even saw the dvd after seeing the second one and it didn't really compare for me, maybe b/c too much of it was just setting up what the matrix was). definitely an A+. Terminator 3: was anticipating this like crazy and it met my expectations. didn't surpass them like Matrix 2 (and i was even more hyped for reloaded), but definitely a good movie. i thought trying too much humor might get annoying except i thought most of it worked. and has more **** ever been torn up than in the crane scene? A Freddy vs Jason - wow, it didn't suck and was actually quite enjoyable. i came for the novelty, but actually got some good action. acting (especially kelly rowland) won't win any oscars, but it wasn't horrible, and that's not what i watch a freddy/jason film for. A- for some reason, i can remember absolutely no other films i saw this summer right now even though i know i saw them. hmmm. and i know i saw at least one that left me unimpressed. edit: oh yeah, Bruce Almighty. loved it, funnier than i expected it to be. A really need to see Pirates and American Wedding and Open Range.
I go to a lot of movies and own alot of movies(402 DVD's) and I do not over analize the flicks. Bruce all mighty: B- It had some funny parts but way to much godly for me. Matrix 2: A- I liked it alot, it made you think alot and as a computer programmer and analyst I enjoyed it. T3: A- I thought it was going to worse than it actually was. Very good action scenes and just enough humor. SWAT: B+ I just enjoy cop shows and these were some bad AZZ swat cops and very good action scenes. Finding NEMO: A- I brought my 8 year old and actually enjoyed the cartoon. Very good graphics American Wedding 3: A- I thought it was funny than the other 3. Stifler was the show. Was very grossed out with the dog poooo scene though. 2fast2Furious: B+ I loved the racing scenes and but i went to see it for the cars and women and I loved it. X2: A+ This was favorite show of the summer even better the 1st Pirates of the Carribean: A+ This was my other favorite show of the summer. Depp was awsome and it was a very entertaining movie. Italian Job: A- This show was very good also and I loved the stuff they pulled off and I loved the Mini cooper race scenes. League of Ex. Gentlemen: B- I went to see it for the CG and characters and I enjoyed them Charlies Angles 2: B- I went for the EYE CANDY and got just want the DR. ordered yummy. That is all I could think of
Italian Job: A Charlies Angles 2: C League of Ex: B Pirates of the Carribean: B+ X2: B + Finding NEMO: A SWAT: B T3: B- Matrix 2: B The Medallion: B American Wedding: A - Hulk: B - Bad Boys 2: B
X2: Easily one of the best movies of the summer, everything was better than the the first, and just proves to other franchises out there that you can make a good movie with a large number of characters, although I would have love to see more of Colousses. A+ Matrix Reloaded: At first, I loved it, then realized that first off, its basically half of a movie (ala Kill Bill) and the simple things, like Neo kicking all of the Agent Smith's asses, the flying away at the end? WTH? But still a good movie, the car chase scene is priceless plus Monica Bellucci is HELLA HOT! B- Bruce Almighty: not too bad, was a bit predicatable, basically Carey shines in this movie, but reminded me too much of Liar, Liar, since it was the same director B- The Italian Job: Great, great movie. Loved the allstar cast and kinda has the formula of Ocean's Eleven, stellar performance from everybody. Seth Green stole the show with his comedic acts and loved the Shawn Fanning cameo. A- 2 Fast 2 Furious: the first one wasnt that great to begin with, but still a good movie. It was more of a cop movie than a urban street racing like the first one was but the beginning racing scene was good. C+ Finding Nemo: Dissapointment for me, I guess its cause everybody and there mama said to go watch it, expecting ALOT but came out to "ehh?". I thought Monsters Inc was more entertainning, but its a Pixar film, have they made bad movie yet? C Hulk: I thought it was better than everybody else thought, out of all of the superheros portrayed in movies, hell, id love to be the Hulk. Love the part where he took down a helicopter, took a missile out of it, and threw it towards the other helicopters, one smart mutant. BTW, i was one of the very few that liked the comic panel feel. B+ Legally Blonde 2 Red, White, and Blonde: Probably the worst sequel this summer. Kinda copied the first one in some cases. First one was alot better, and hope they DONT make a third one. D- T3: Without Cameron on board, but still had Arnold, this came out as the surprise sequel of the summer. Everything was there, a bit short though, but love the moral teaching at the end of the movie. A- Bad Boys 2: Had everyhing, action, comedy, never a dull moment in the movie. Best sequel in a long time, and it took EIGHT years to come out, well worth the wait. A Spy Kids 3D:Game Over: Watched this with my cousin and wanted to watch it for the 3D effect. Not too bad, havent seen the first 2 but still wasnt lost. Basically is a video game and was funny to see Sylvester Stallone play the role he did. C American Wedding: Weakest of the three, with the second one being the best, but I love the American Pie series and I cannot really complain. This is basically Stifler's movie and he did a good job taking over. Was a bit dissapointed with NO mention of the characters that were not on it, except Nadia. Plus the strippers (Nikki Schiler and Amanda Swister) are HOT AS HELL!! B- SWAT: Good action, great cast, no complaints other than it was a bit short and predictable. B Freddy vs. Jason: Eh... Good horror flick for the teenagers, a horror fan's dream, but I mainly laughed throughout the movie. What was up with the Jay from the Kevin Smith movies and Jack Black ripoffs? That kinda pissed me off. C The Medallion: Worst Jackie Chan American movie. Lee Evans was funny, but still couldnt understand the whole Claire Forlani/Jackie hookup. F Overall, I thought it was a dissapointing summer. I guess its because there were so many sequels coming out and none of the newer movies didnt have any originality. The fall season should be great looking forward to: Underworld Once Upon a Time in Mexico Scary Movie 3 The Rundown Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star Shaolin Soccer Anything Else Kill Bill Texas Chainsaw Massacre
X-2: Really good flick. I like how it humanized what could have been stock comic book characters. A- Matrix Reloaded: Everything that made the first movie so good was missing here. Surprise. Suspense. Good dialogue. The last installment better kick ass; this one did not. B- Finding Nemo: Perfect little movie. I dare any male (father or no) to not get choked up at the end. A Hollywood Homicide, 2 Fast 2 Furious, Charlie's Angels 2: Yuk. F- Pirates of the Caribbean: A lot of fun to watch, and Johnny Depp is hilarious. Who knew one of the summer's better movies would be based on a Disney theme park ride? A Seabiscuit: Or rather, Seabisquick. A decent job of filming a great book. A little heavy on the nostalgiac, wasn't-life-better-when? side from the director of Pleasantville (you won't see Gary Ross directing Boyz N The Hood part 4). B Open Range: Surprisingly good, if a little heavy on the people-are-good, you're-a-good-man, she's-a-good-woman, I-had-a-good-dog-til-the-bad-guy-shot-it side. Kevin Costner is smart enough to play a laconic cowboy (that means he don't talk too dern much, which means he can get away with being a mediocre actor). Great shootout. B Bruce Almighty: OK, he's still trying too hard, but I laughed, dammit. Couldn't help myself really. B The Hulk: A putrid, loathsome, boring, angst-ridden piece of flyblown crap. Other than that it was OK. F---
Grading summer movies By Scott Bowles, USA TODAY This was to be a summer like most in Hollywood, ruled by the schoolyard bullies. Big, violent, gun-toting franchises rolled into theaters with plans to strong-arm meeker movies and establish a new dominance by R-rated films. And to some extent, they did. The Matrix Reloaded became the most popular R-rated film ever. Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines and Bad Boys II overcame their prohibitive ratings to take in well over $100 million. But when the dust settled this summer, it was the little guys running the playground. A fish called Nemo roughed up The One called Neo. A skinny newscaster gave a muscle-bound cyborg his comeuppance. And a band of bickering, malnourished pirates showed two trash-talking cops that the sword is mightier than the 9-millimeter. For all of the surprises and upsets, summer still managed to be a modest hit. Ticket sales have reached a record $3.6 billion for summer, but rising ticket prices account for the jump. About 11 million fewer tickets were sold this summer compared with last. Still, with the final installments of the Matrix and The Lord of the Rings trilogies still on tap, the year may wind up coming closer to last year's ticket sales than anyone expected. Last summer the studio was set back on its heels after serving up such duds as The Country Bears and Bad Company. A few months later, its disastrous Treasure Planet prompted some pundits to say the kingdom had fallen. But the Mouse came roaring back this summer with unexpected hits that left even rival studios singing Disney's praises. "You have to hand it to them," says Rob Friedman, vice chairman of Paramount Studios. "Everything they've done this summer has been smart, from choosing the films to marketing them." The comeback began with Holes, a $39 million film that opened in April and kept rolling through summer until it took in twice that much. Since then, the studio has struck gold with virtually every movie, regardless of genre. Even its forays into the Western (Open Range) and campy remakes (Freaky Friday) have proved profitable. Disney has yet to open a film this summer that did not eclipse analysts' predictions, and $1 out of every $5 spent at theaters has been for a Disney film this season. "We hate to see summer end," says Disney chairman Dick Cook, whose studio crossed the $1 billion mark in ticket sales in July, three months faster than it did last year. "I'd like to say we planned for all this, but the stars were just aligned for us." There was a time when Hook was the standard by which pirate films were measured, and seafaring movies were best left to the reruns of cable TV. No more. Nemo, Pirates of the Caribbean and Whale Rider have lured audiences back to the seas. All three films opened to critical acclaim and have hooked $590 million in the USA alone. The reason? Audiences are outer-spaced-out with science fiction films, and the ocean remains a mysterious place the movies of old couldn't quite replicate. "Today, technology allows you to do any genre well if you've got a good script," says Tom Sherak, co-founder of Revolution Studios. "People said pirate films were dead, and look what happened. We even got surprise hits with a cowboy movie (Range) and a horse movie (Seabiscuit). We hit the trifecta of taboos." Studios also made some savvy decisions in this year's ocean fare. When Disney gave the green light to Pirates, studio execs decided to keep their unofficial ban on coarse language and sexual content. "But we wanted to push the envelope a little with the action," Disney chairman Dick Cook says. "And we wanted serious, acclaimed actors in the key roles." The result: The horror and special effects element drew the teens, Johnny Depp and Geoffrey Rush drew the adults, and Pirates drew $261 million and counting. The only blemish: Sinbad: The Legend of the Seven Seas. More on that later. Who wants to see a 2½-hour film about a remote New Zealand fishing village? Or a French film about a British author with writer's block and her wanton housemate? Apparently, millions of moviegoers, who helped drive this summer's small films to their most successful season in years. From Whale Rider to Swimming Pool, audiences made unexpected choices at the box office, driving those films to take in up to five times what they cost to make. Rider, for instance, did $14.5 million in the USA. While that would barely cover a special effect for The Matrix Reloaded, Rider cost only $3.5 million, producing the type of returns studios salivate over. Horror was an even bigger hit. 28 Days Later featured a no-name cast and a paltry $8 million budget. Yet it has snatched $43.6 million so far, one of the best returns on an investment this season. "The market showed real independence in what it wanted to see this summer," says Universal Studios' Marc Schmuger. "People didn't let marketers decide for them." Congress and conservative talk show hosts love to slam Hollywood for what they say is its lack of family values and moral conviction. But Tinseltown put out a spate of movies celebrating the power of faith, and the profits are making believers out of studio executives. Jim Carrey always has been box office gold when he's funny, but no one expected his religious experience in Bruce Almighty to claim $240 million. Nemo's story of a fish who summons the courage to cross an ocean, battle sharks and find his son may be the biggest box office hit of the year, let alone summer. And Seabiscuit championed the message that a healthy spirit can overcome a broken body. "These movies are so well received because they're in such dramatic contrast to what's normally been out there," says Universal Studios vice chairman Marc Schmuger. "You'll see a greater inclination to make these kinds of movies. Decision-makers will see the economic potential after this summer." Don't believe the hype: The sequel isn't dead. It was just slightly wounded. The Matrix Reloaded took in more in three weeks than the original made in its entire run. Terminator 3 and Legally Blonde 2 were perceived as disappointments, even though T3's $148 million and Blonde's $88 million put them comfortably in the black. Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over just crossed the $100 million mark. And four of the top 10 films so far this year are summer sequels. Only Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, which has taken in $98 million, and Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life, which has done $61 million, will fall millions short of their budgets. Their only hope is to make up the money in international releases and home video. "It seems this summer that we had more movies that didn't do as well as their hype," Universal's Schmuger says. "But when you break down how each film did, they actually performed pretty well." After Spider-Man set the industry on its ear with $408 million last year, studios dusted off every superhero they could find for the summer and beyond. If this season is any indication, the comic-book genre may have found its kryptonite in demanding audiences. X2: X-Men United was the lone standout. It raised hopes at the beginning of summer with an astounding $214.9 million. But that would be as high as the heroes soared. Although it took in $131.5 million, The Hulk was a critical disappointment and dropped a whopping 70% the weekend after its $62 million debut. The League of Extraordinary Gentleman took in only $64.5 million and received some of the ugliest reviews of summer. "The comic-book genre is trickier than people recognize," says Hutch Parker, president of production at 20th Century Fox, which released X-2 and League. "You have to satisfy the younger audience with the mythology of the book and still bring in the older audience that isn't as familiar. You cannot assume that simply because there's recognition of your title that it will satisfy audiences." Eddie Murphy hushed his critics with Daddy Day Care, a critically reviled film that still won audiences to the tune of $102.7 million. And Sylvester Stallone (plus those cool 3-D glasses) helped propel Spy Kids 3-D to the best debut in the franchise. But Harrison Ford couldn't get arrested in Hollywood Homicide, a $75 million misdemeanor of a film that took in $30.1 million. And Demi Moore couldn't help Charlie's Angels from its fall from grace. Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas had a cast to die for in Brad Pitt, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michelle Pfeiffer. And that's exactly what the $60 million animated film did, taking in only $26 million and convincing distributor DreamWorks that it was through with hand-drawn animation. Renee Zellweger and Ewan McGregor came off hugely successful films in Chicago and Star Wars, Episode II: Attack of the Clones. But neither star was bright enough to stop Down With Love from dropping down the charts with only $20.3 million. And lest we forget the $54 million Gigli, the Ben Affleck/Jennifer Lopez train wreck had $6.1 million dropped in its cup on the way to the video shelf. Then again, maybe forgetting isn't such a bad idea.
Just added - Bad Boys 2 - The Italian Job Both were awesome. BB2 was probably better than the first movie.
You got it. Here's to seeing good movies and ignoring the rest. Whale Rider: A+ The Man Without a Past: A Russian Ark: A Winged Migration: A Nowhere in Africa: A- Man on the Train: A- Dirty Pretty Things: B+ Matrix Reloaded: B Swimming Pool: B Capturing the Friedmans: B Stone Reader: B Spellbound: B 28 Days: B Bruce Almighty: C Seabiscuit: C-
Pirate OTC: The second best this year (behind LOTR 2). Note to self: watch every Johnny Depp movie from now on, no matter what others say. Orlando Bloom is not going to make it big. But the girl is one of the most beautiful caucasian IMO. A X2: One of those rare "sequel better than original" films. A T3: Most anticipated. But didn't quite meet my expectations. Learnt one thing though: this importance of a TOP-rated director, and by that I'm referring to James Cameroon of T2. T3 sometimes just drags on and you find your mind losing focus and drifting away. A- Matrix R: Nothing new. B+ Finding Nemo: Decent. B S.W.A.T: The first 3/4 was good. But the shooting scene gets old towards the end. B Bruce Almighty: Don't have to watch it in a cinema. Rent a tape. Only scene worth watching: Jennifer Aniston in the bathroom. B- The Hulk: Has a slow and boring start. Ang Lee is best at directing sentimental movies, and should leave the action stuff to John Woo. B- Charlie's Angels: I knew it. Should never ever watch an action movie with bimbos as leading characters. It only lasted 15 minutes for me. A blatant insult to viewers' intelligence. Luckily I didn't go to a cinema for this piece of crap. G------ Gigli: Nothing will make me watch a movie with J.Lo and her guy (whoever he is currently) in it. I only paid attention to the poster which had her but* sticking out. Going to watch: The Italian Job (in the cinema) Jason Vs. Freddy (borrow a cd from someone) Bad Boys 2 (get a CD) Not going to watch: Texas Chainsaw Massacre (i heard they spill blood everywhere, makes me wanna throw up) Leally Blonde 2 (bimbo movie) American Wedding (unless there are any scene without clothes) 2 Fast 2 Furious (male bimbo) Not sure about The Medallion. But I never trust a Hong Kong movie which emphasizes computer special effects and graphics, unless it is a comedy.
Depends on where you live and when you go. In Houston, Texas I can catch an early show for $3.75 or $4.50. The evening shows are getting close to $8, which is still cheap compared to some places like NYC.
