SUMMER 2011 MOVIE RECAP

Can you believe summer is just about over?? I can't. All those months of anticipating the glut of superheros, sequels, and boy wizards have come to an end. Seeing as how all of the major releases of the summer have come and gone, I decided it was about time to give a recap of the summer.

On the whole, I'd say it was stronger than I expected it to be. There were also a lot of surprises, both good and bad. There were movies I wouldn't have expected to be as good as they were (RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, CRAZY STUPID LOVE), as well as movies I was expecting to love that ended up falling short (HANGOVER PART II, COWBOYS & ALIENS). Fortunately, I reviewed 15 movies over the past three months, a number lending itself perfectly to a well-rounded countdown. I will tell you the grades I gave each film and a short recap of what I thought of them. So here we go, from the worst to the best:

THE BOTTOM FIVE

15. THE HANGOVER PART II - 2/10

Easily the biggest disappointment of the summer season. This "film" was an insult to anyone who loved the first Hangover, anyone who paid money to see the second one, and basically anyone who ever saw a movie ever. There was nothing in the least to set this "sequel" apart from the original, other than more violence, more character assassination, and less laughter. It turned a story of grown men gleefully acting like children into a story of grown men stashing dead bodies, getting shot, losing fingers, and maliciously poisoning teenagers. I have never been more sorry to spend money on a film, and if I hadn't been reviewing it, I probably would've walked out.

14. THOR - 4/10

I know I'm in the minority on this one, but I was decidedly underwhelmed by this film. Chris Hemsworth felt like nothing more than a walking six pack, lacking the gravitas or charisma of an interesting hero. His "romance" with Natalie Portman was laughable, and their chemistry was basically nonexistent. Lots of people praised Kenneth Branagh for lending his Shakespearean experience to this film, but to me that was the biggest problem. This story is already about a man who's literally a god -- the film needed a director who would bring it down to earth and make the characters relatable, not someone who would make an already epic story even more epic. I never felt connected to the characters. There were things I liked -- the art direction in Asgard was stunning, Idris Elba was awesome, and some of the action scenes were fun. But nothing about the film was memorable. In the age of IRON MAN and THE DARK KNIGHT, I've come to expect more from superhero movies, and this one didn't deliver. In my opinion.

13. COWBOYS & ALIENS - 5/10

I had high hopes for this movie, with Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, Jon Favreau, and Steven Spielberg all attached. Unfortunately, it was completely average. A few exciting action set pieces and a cool creature design just couldn't make up for a plodding pace, uninteresting flashbacks, and a ridiculous plot twist involving the lovely but robotic Olivia Wilde. Similar to "let's put snakes on a plane!" -- building a whole movie off a catchy concept like "let's put aliens in the wild west!" doesn't actually yield stellar results.

12. GREEN LANTERN - 6/10

I know that most people preferred Thor to Green Lantern, so I'm again in the minority. But in my opinion, Green Lantern had lots of things that Thor lacked -- namely, a charismatic leading man, an interesting villain, and heart. Ryan Reynolds is far more relatable than the stud-muffin-blandness of Chris Hemsworth. Peter Skarsgaard delivered a genuinely unhinged performance that was a delight to watch. And the theme of overcoming fear, while cliche, was at least better than the message in Thor -- "don't be a cocky ass." Thor was empty action. Green Lantern, while not superb, tried to be more than that. I think what this film suffered from mostly was that it was the first entry in a franchise about a superhero very few people are familiar with. It therefore had to spend a lot of time explaining things and setting things up -- I'll be interested to see what a sequel can do without all that exposition getting in the way.

11. TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON - 6/10

Going in with very low expectations thanks to Revenge Of The Fallen, this third installment in the franchise was surprisingly not terrible. It dispensed with all the things that made the second film horrifically bad and amped up the action (which is all anyone goes to see a Transformers movie for, right?). Unfortunately, Michael Bay still seems to think that he needs to give equal time to his shallow human characters, when all the audience really wants to watch are the characters we love -- Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, and the other robots. Fortunately, this film delivered some of the most spectacular action of recent memory, specifically in the battle for Chicago, which takes up the entire last third of the film. This was summer blockbuster at its splashiest, loudest, and most adrenaline-pumping.

THE MIDDLE FIVE

10. PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES - 7/10

This fourth installment, like the third Transformers, got rid of everything that was bogging the franchise down; namely Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley, hopelessly tangled plot threads, bumbling sidekicks and the slapstick humor that had overtaken the franchise. On Stranger Tides felt almost like a reboot, featuring the same lead character, but having very little else in common with the previous installments. If the writers continue to create self-contained adventures that don't rely on the previous films to make sense, then Jack Sparrow could become the James Bond of the high seas -- a new villain, a new goal, a new story every time --thus keeping the series fresh and avoiding the sequelitis that plagued Dead Man's Chest and At World's End.

9. FINAL DESTINATION 5 - 7/10

Not an Oscar-worthy film by any means, but incredibly effective, especially for the fifth film in a horror franchise. After the okay third entry and the horrible fourth entry, it was exhilarating to see this franchise return to form with a film that matches, and maybe even exceeds, the original. The suspense is masterful, the deaths are creative, and the actors actually manage to make you not want their characters to die (for the most part). Just like Pirates, it was great to see this film return to the serious tone of the original, foregoing the campy humor that ruined the previous installment. This is a must-see for fans of the horror genre (especially in blood-spattering 3D).

8. CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER - 7/10

Comparing this film to others from the Avengers universe, Captain America is still not as good as Iron Man, but thankfully better than Thor. Chris Evans is surprisingly charismatic and believable, the retro atmosphere of WWII was pitch-perfect, and Hayley Atwell was finally a supporting female character in a superhero movie that wasn't infuriatingly ridiculous. My only big problem with the film was that Captain America is not the most interesting superhero -- he's too incorruptible to provide conflict or layers (much like Superman). This is the fault of the source material, however, so I didn't hold it against the film.

7. RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES - 8/10

Andy Serkis does it again. This incredible physical actor delivers a stirring, believable, layered performance as Caesar the ape, digitally rendered through motion-capture technology. We never even see the actor's true face, but Caesar remains the most emotional, relatable and complex character in the film. In fact, this film's biggest weakness is that none of the human characters are anywhere near as interesting as any of the digital apes. Maurice the circus orangutang, Buck the massive gorilla, Koba the vengeful chimp -- these all felt like well-rounded characters, easily overshadowing the two-dimensional performances by James Franco, Freida Pinto, Brian Cox and Tom Felton. John Lithgow delivers the only compelling human performance as a man succumbing to the effects of Alzheimer's.

6. THE HELP - 8/10

This will certainly be remembered as Viola Davis' movie, but the truth is that practically every single actor in this film delivers a pitch-perfect performance. Octavia Spencer and Sissy Spacek are hilarious, Jessica Chastain is obliviously vulnerable, Allison Janney is believably conflicted, Emma Stone is bright and lovely, and Bryce Dallas Howard delivers one of the best portrayals of a horrific racist ever put to screen (not an easy job). This film will make you laugh hysterically, gasp in disbelief, and weep like a child. And it goes without saying that Viola Davis gives the most heartfelt, emotionally rich performance of her career.

THE TOP FIVE

5. X-MEN: FIRST CLASS - 8/10

Easily the best superhero movie of the summer. Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy delivered the most fully believable, complex and layered superpowered performances -- far above Chris Hemsworth, Ryan Reynolds, or even Chris Evans. The retro atmosphere was stellar, the action was exciting, the acting was great (apart from January Jones, natch) and the decision to place the climax in the midst of the Cuban Missile Crisis lent the whole film a sense of real-world urgency. A magnificent return to form for the franchise after the noisy Last Stand and messy Wolverine.

4. CRAZY STUPID LOVE 9/10

This film was, for me, the biggest surprise of the summer. Everything else in the top five I expected to be great. I didn't even have Crazy Stupid Love on my must-see list. But after hearing the advance buzz, I decided to give it a shot. And boy, am I glad I did. This is what all romantic comedies should be: funny, meaningful, complex, full of honest portrayals of very real people. Nothing is neat or pat -- these people make crazy decisions, do stupid things, but somehow you still root for them. This film isn't afraid to show that sometimes love can be messy, but is still optimistic enough to hope that it will ultimately bring out the best in us.

3. SUPER 8 9/10

There is so very little magic left in movies these days. We know pretty much everything about a movie before we've even seen it -- through set reports, leaked footage, tweets from extras, advanced screenings...you name it. JJ Abrams remains one of the last standing masters of mystery. Those who had seen trailers knew it was about a group of kids who lives are changed when a monster of some sort invades their small town. Most people who simply saw the enigmatic words SUPER 8 on posters didn't even know that much. That alone was an impressive feat -- add the fact that the movie was actually great and it's even more impressive. The ensemble of children in this film is the most believable (and not-annoying) cast of young actors assembled in recent memory. They lend a tangible sense of wonder, fear, excitement, and emotion to an exhilarating tale of an ordinary town bombarded with extraordinary events.

2. BRIDESMAIDS - 9/10

Kristen Wiig leads an amazing cast of hysterical women in a movie that is in turns gut-bustingly funny, depressing, and always heartfelt. Yes, these women get their chance to behave badly, much like the boy-men in The Hangover, but at the center of these ridiculous exploits is an incredible amount of heart. This movie actually has something to say about women and friendship and how relationships change over time and what we do when those changes start to occur in spite of out best efforts to keep things the same. Every one of these women felt real no matter how over-the-top their actions became. I can't wait to watch Kristen Wiig's Hollywood career develop. I can only hope the rest of her work will match her first effort.

1. HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 2 - 10/10

I recently saw this movie for the second time and can safely say it was just as incredible upon repeated viewing. This really was the perfect ending to the most epic franchise ever filmed. They saved the best for last, in every aspect -- the best acting, the best adaptation, the best effects, the best score. Of course, die hard fans of the books will always find some alterations to nitpick, but in my opinion, this was a master example of adaptation. The decision to split the last book into two films really paid off, as there was careful attention paid to almost every detail (sure, Dumbledore's past was largely excised, but you can't have everything). As someone who grew up with Harry (I was the same age as Harry when the first book came out), there was no more satisfying experience than waiting in line outside the theater for four hours, surrounded by people who love the series as much as me, and finally getting to watch the culmination of a decade-long saga. And then for the film to top even my incredibly high expectations was just the icing on top of the cake. My audience cheered, applauded, and sobbed. It was one of the most cathartic and emotional experiences of my filmgoing career, and remains undoubtedly my favorite film of the summer.

And there you have it!

In a summer full of superheros, sequels, prequels, and adaptations, 3 of my top 5 were entirely original works. Only one superhero movie ended up breaking into the top five. The most anticipated comedy was the most disappointing movie. Crazy Stupid Love was a sane and smart look at real relationships. Cowboys and aliens don't make a very interesting combination. Digital apes are better actors than real humans. These are just some of the many surprises for me that happened over the past three months, which is what made the season so much fun. Who wants predictable?

So now it's your turn -- what movies did I miss that you would put in your top 5? What in my list do you disagree with? (I know, I know, everyone loved Thor.) What do you agree with? What surprised you? Were you generally pleased or disappointed with the movies this summer? Let's talk about it!