I saw the full Jean Shorts last night at the Landlocked Film Festival here in Iowa City. This section makes fun of MTV in a very very good way. If you can ever see the full collection, I reccomend it.

Looking forward todays screenings of Cave Women on Mars and A Pond Hockey.

I’m not going to see the Mummy on the big screen so my streak is over. I did end up skipping two of the movies on my initial list those being The Happening after everyone told me it was the worse piece of cinema in years, and Hancock, which I decided to just wait and rent. But I still did see 11 movies this summer on the big screen and here they are from my least favorite to my favorite. All in all it was a very fun summer

11: Speed Racer. Easily the biggest dissapointment of the summer. Despite some whizbang special effects this is essentialy a really dumb kids movie. And after the success of another kids movie on my list, thats just inexcusable.

10: Incredible Hulk. Better than the first Hulk. Really great 1st hour in Brazil. And then we see the Hulk and you realize some CGI still isn’t there.

9: Wanted. Nothing like the comic. Pretty Stupid, but if you go in looking for a dumb popcorn summer movie( which we haven’t had many of lately) then you can’t go wrong with Angelina Jolie and a gun.

8: Indiana Jones. It was fun seeing old Indy on the screen but some choices like the George in the Jungle sequence are just bad. I enjoyed more than most, but Im fine if we never see Indy five.

7: Get Smart. Steve Carrell could easily be the next Leslie Nielsen.

6: Prince Caspian. Yeah this biggest surprise of the summer. Where I yawned after Lion Witch Wardrobe, this movie actually has pacing that is exciting. But can we just replace the entire cast for future installments?

5: X-files 2. You know what. It’s ok. to have a television episode on the big screen. Just don’t release it a week after Dark Knight. I really enjoyed the mystery slow feel of this return to Mulder and Skully. Too bad the box office will probably make it their last.

4: Hellboy 2. Oh Guillmero De Toro. You make the most awesome monsters. What Eye candy. can’t wait to watch this in High Definition.

3: Iron Man. Who knew that Tony Stark would be the hero of 2008? Awesome movie although I could do without the Iron Monger villian.

2: The Dark Knight. Near Perfection. Few instances in the script that made me cringe, but otherwise the best Batman movie ever. Sorry Tim Burton. It’s true.

1: Wall-E. True I went in wanting to like this movie. I like Pixar. But if you had asked me this spring how much, I could have easily put it down in the bottom half of this list. This movie is magic. The kind you forget movies can make. It’s smart, it’s fun and its just a pure spectacle the entire time it’s on the screen. An amazing triumph and may be my reason to upgrade to blu ray.

Wanted was insanely stupid. Yet somehow it was still mildly entertaining. The thing that bugs me about it is how good Angelina Jolie is without much to work with. Morgan Freeman’s talent also seems wasted but oh well. It is a summer movie. And in this summer of heavy hitters like The Dark Knight it just doesn’t pass the test. If your looking for mindless fun, Wanted is your film. And if you miss the popcorn nonsense of years past, then Wanted is that film. I enjoyed it, but it sits near the bottom of my list this summer.

So The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe for me while good was what I would consdier passable as a film. The presentation just seemed off. Luckily the staging of Prince Caspian was tight and the filming was so well done I find it hard to believe it was the same director at the helm. A very good movie. So far summer is 2 for 3 with Speed Racer being the only real dissapointment.

I remember summers where I have been excited for films, but usually they are in July. But never has the opening film of summer got the buzz that Iron Man has. I can recall one summer seeing The Scorpion King (Yeah I know awful) because it was the first action movie of the year. But this year we have a contender (if you believe the reviews) not a preteder leading out of the gate. And it follows with a great kids movie in Speed Racer and then Indy two weeks later. I do not think I could be more ready to watch movies. And just anticipate what’s next on the plate. And eat popcorn. And once it gets warm here, escape into the air condition fortress of the megaplex. And watch as something I hoped to be great becomes a dud, and something I wasn’t sure of become the best thing Ive ever seen. These things happen in the course of the summer. Some movies sneak up on you. I had no plans to see Knocked Up last year. It doesn’t really fit the summer mold. And yet it was one of the most enjoyable films of the year. All I know is that 530 on this Friday afternoon, Im going to sit back and let Jon Favreau prove to me that Marvel still has the movie magic.