Movies
I've seen a lot of movies this summer. Here's a quick rundown:
Green Lantern - The story - brash, cocky, irresponsible hotshot pilot Hal Jordan learns to conquer his fears of success and deal with his daddy issues - is one big cliche. Hector Hammond had the potential to be more interesting, but his character was underdeveloped, and so we only get hints of his personality and motivations before we end up with the cliche of the bitter nerd who never got the girl because the hero was already in the way. The girl in question - Blake Lively - gives a flat performance (she's also gorgeous, and just as good at flying a plane as she is in making business deals, which also something of a cliche). The pacing feels wrong, and there isn't enough action or heroics, and mostly, it just isn't that much fun. If you're a comic-book fan, wait for Netflix. If you're not, wait for cable.
Super 8 - J J Abrams knows that the trick to monster movies is to slowly reveal the monster - a brief flash of movement, a glimpse, a quick shot of a limb - and let your imagination do the rest. He also knows how to build tension in a scene, and he understands that in order for for a monster movie to work, you have to care about the characters, which means that they have to actually have personalities. The movie itself is a coming of age story by way of the X-Files (and Jaws), and I really enjoyed it, even though the ending goes for the big emotional and visual finish and instead comes off as ham-fisted and schmaltzy.
X-Men: First Class - This movie manages to avoid the common pitfall of superhero origin movies, in which too much time is spent on how the protagonist becomes a superhero, and not enough on him or her actually being a superhero. Maybe that's because the story isn't about how these characters got their superpowers, but about how they became a team. It also manages to avoid the common pitfall of prequels: you know how things will end up, so it's harder to create any tension. Maybe that's because the cold war setting puts an interesting twist on things, making this more of an secret-history story rather than a superhero film. Whatever the case, this was one of the better movies I've seen this summer.
The Hangover Part 2 - Based on the reviews, I was worried this was going to suck. It didn't, although it doesn't live up to the original. It's basically a re-hashing of the first film, and while it does have some very funny moments, it feels like a re-hash, with a lot of recycled jokes. You get the sense that the filmmakers figured that since the first was so successful, they should just give the audience more of the same. While that does provide some laughs, it takes away the surprise, and the film doesn't have the same zing as a result.
Bridesmaids - I saw several reviews calling this a female version of The Hangover. It isn't. While it has some great funny scenes and jokes, it never captures the edge or the energy of that film, nor is it as consistently funny. In fact, at times it's downright depressing, and it goes on maybe a bit too long. Overall, it was ok, but not great.
Pirates of the Carribbean: On Stranger Tides - I only went to see this because I read the book that it was "suggested by," and I was curious to see if the movie was at all like it. It wasn't. Other than the shared elements of Blackbeard, magic, and the fountain of youth, the two have nothing in common with each other. While it isn't terrible, you get the feeling that everyone is just going through the motions. It's got all the set-pieces that should be fun, but they end up just feeling kind of ho-hum.
Thor - Surprisingly good. This could easily have been another Green Lantern, but Chris Helmsworth does a good job with the role, playing it straight but not sonorous. Yes, most of the characters are underdeveloped, and Natalie Portman is underused. Yes, the scenes in Asgard, which are very cgi-heavy, never really felt real to me. And yes, the story tends to be trope-heavy and predictable. But despite all that, there's enough humor and action, and I cared enough about the characters, that this ended up being a fun film.
Green Lantern - The story - brash, cocky, irresponsible hotshot pilot Hal Jordan learns to conquer his fears of success and deal with his daddy issues - is one big cliche. Hector Hammond had the potential to be more interesting, but his character was underdeveloped, and so we only get hints of his personality and motivations before we end up with the cliche of the bitter nerd who never got the girl because the hero was already in the way. The girl in question - Blake Lively - gives a flat performance (she's also gorgeous, and just as good at flying a plane as she is in making business deals, which also something of a cliche). The pacing feels wrong, and there isn't enough action or heroics, and mostly, it just isn't that much fun. If you're a comic-book fan, wait for Netflix. If you're not, wait for cable.
Super 8 - J J Abrams knows that the trick to monster movies is to slowly reveal the monster - a brief flash of movement, a glimpse, a quick shot of a limb - and let your imagination do the rest. He also knows how to build tension in a scene, and he understands that in order for for a monster movie to work, you have to care about the characters, which means that they have to actually have personalities. The movie itself is a coming of age story by way of the X-Files (and Jaws), and I really enjoyed it, even though the ending goes for the big emotional and visual finish and instead comes off as ham-fisted and schmaltzy.
X-Men: First Class - This movie manages to avoid the common pitfall of superhero origin movies, in which too much time is spent on how the protagonist becomes a superhero, and not enough on him or her actually being a superhero. Maybe that's because the story isn't about how these characters got their superpowers, but about how they became a team. It also manages to avoid the common pitfall of prequels: you know how things will end up, so it's harder to create any tension. Maybe that's because the cold war setting puts an interesting twist on things, making this more of an secret-history story rather than a superhero film. Whatever the case, this was one of the better movies I've seen this summer.
The Hangover Part 2 - Based on the reviews, I was worried this was going to suck. It didn't, although it doesn't live up to the original. It's basically a re-hashing of the first film, and while it does have some very funny moments, it feels like a re-hash, with a lot of recycled jokes. You get the sense that the filmmakers figured that since the first was so successful, they should just give the audience more of the same. While that does provide some laughs, it takes away the surprise, and the film doesn't have the same zing as a result.
Bridesmaids - I saw several reviews calling this a female version of The Hangover. It isn't. While it has some great funny scenes and jokes, it never captures the edge or the energy of that film, nor is it as consistently funny. In fact, at times it's downright depressing, and it goes on maybe a bit too long. Overall, it was ok, but not great.
Pirates of the Carribbean: On Stranger Tides - I only went to see this because I read the book that it was "suggested by," and I was curious to see if the movie was at all like it. It wasn't. Other than the shared elements of Blackbeard, magic, and the fountain of youth, the two have nothing in common with each other. While it isn't terrible, you get the feeling that everyone is just going through the motions. It's got all the set-pieces that should be fun, but they end up just feeling kind of ho-hum.
Thor - Surprisingly good. This could easily have been another Green Lantern, but Chris Helmsworth does a good job with the role, playing it straight but not sonorous. Yes, most of the characters are underdeveloped, and Natalie Portman is underused. Yes, the scenes in Asgard, which are very cgi-heavy, never really felt real to me. And yes, the story tends to be trope-heavy and predictable. But despite all that, there's enough humor and action, and I cared enough about the characters, that this ended up being a fun film.