School is out, summer is here, and we all know what that means...
RUN FOR YOUR LIVES! IT'S THE ATTACK OF THE CHEESY SUMMER MOVIES!
-insert scary music here-
All right, I will admit to exaggerating. I will also admit that the movies that I want to see this summer are mostly full of Cheese Whiz, as my dad would say; topping my must-see list is Toy Story 3. Hey, no shame in being a Pixar lover, right? Oh, but that's just the tip of the iceberg. Letters to Juliet, The Last Airbender, Eclipse...hold the phone...when did I revert to the age of twelve?
Okay, so maybe I'm not as much of an underground, backstreets, can't-stand-anything-made-by-20th Century Fox indie film geek as I should be. But I'll tell you, these silly summer movies DO have cinematic value...yes, even Eclipse, the Holy Grail of God-awful teen movies, has entertainment value if nothing else. Not to mention casting (Jackson Rathbone ftw!) and cinematography tricks that I am DYING to try out once I get back to Interlochen.
Now, let's be totally honest - half the country will rush into theaters on June 30th to see Eclipse, whether you're a Twilight fan or not. And yes, if you know me, you will know that I think the Twilight franchise is junk--but it's FUN junk, and you know what, there's nothing wrong with indulging in a little fun junk every now and then. The best part is when "fun" and "junk" collide: SparkNotes' "Blogging Twilight" is hilarious, and it reminds us all of how "junky" Twilight really is.
But enough about Eclipse. Here is the list of "real" movies, Netflix-accessed as well as theater-accessed, that I'm excited to see this summer--and why I'm not embarrassed about any of them.
The Last Airbender
Uh-oh...I smell another Avatar on our hands! No, really. After seeing the trailer for this one (while seeing Shrek Forever After...please see title of blog post), I have to admit that it looks like 70% visual effects, 30% long and complex story...and, this is the reason why I am so psyched to see it, 100% good casting. Here is what I know about this film in advance: Zip. Okay, not zip, but pretty close. I know that it is based off a TV series, that it is a remake of a movie that was based on that TV series, and that there was some kind of casting controversy over Jackson Rathbone and Nicola Peltz. That's about it. I know nothing about the plot. All I know is that it has some of my favorite actors--and, from what I've seen, damn good visual effects--and that is essentially the only reason I'm seeing it.
Toy Story 3
I am an official Pixar Geek. I almost cried when Pete Docter won an Oscar. I own the first two Toy Story movies and make a little production of watching them. And yes, I was ready to kill someone when the whole Disney-makes-unofficial-DTV-sequels-to-Pixar-films thing happened back when Disney and Pixar were at odds. But thank God that never happened (the DTV sequels thing, not the me killing someone thing, although I'm proud to say the second thing never happened either), and so we have the brilliant TOY STORY 3!!!!!!!! (yes, it DOES deserve those exclamation points) ready for theatres. And you know what? I'm not going to lie, this is my most-anticipated summer movie. I just can't believe it took them ELEVEN FREAKIN' YEARS to come out with this film!
Letters to Juliet
Everyone needs to see at least one good romantic comedy every season. And besides, it has Vanessa Redgrave and Amanda Seyfried! How the hell do you pass that up? (And NO, Dad, I am NOT just going to see this because it had a Taylor Swift song in the preview.)
Eclipse
New director? Check. Vampire army battle? Check. Chance to gush over Taylor Lautner? Check. Jackson Rathbone taking a more active role than in New Moon? Check. All that's missing is a few girl pals to go and see this with so my dad doesn't have to suffer through another two hours of "No, I love you more!" Oh Kimmy, where aaaare youuuu... ;)
The Cake Eaters (Netflix)
Yep, another Kristen Stewart movie (stop laughing at me, Dan!). But I have more reason than that to want to check out this one. It was directed by Mart Stuart Masterson, one of my all-time favorite actresses, and it's the first time she's directed a film. I swear, if I'd heard about this when it first got into theaters, I would've been at every showing. EARLY.
Big Stan
Another oldie (if 2007 can be considered "old" for a movie), also containing Jackson Rathbone. I have it on good authority that this movie is hilarious, but in such a stupid way that you are more likely to groan in exasperation than laugh. However, it co-stars Jackson as a hippie, so I'm not too worried about its watchability. If this guy can make a Stephanie Meyer vampire into a deep, emotionally driven character, he can work wonders on a prison comedy.
Alice in Wonderland (The Tim Burton version)
One of the many movies that I MEANT to see, but never did. Like The Last Airbender and Big Stan, I am mainly seeing this one for the casting--any film with Alan Rickman, Crispin Glover, Timothy Spall, Anne Hathaway, Helena Bonham Carter, and Michael Sheen MUST have some merit. Now, I don't quite approve of Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter, but hey, you never know until you see it, right? Besides, it's a Tim Burton film, so you KNOW that if nothing else, it will be visually pleasing.
With that, I have to take off the Movie Geek Hat and put on the Dishwasher Hat. More blogging as I actually SEE these movies...on that note, expect a post on Shrek Forever After in the near future.
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