Return of Attack of the Summer Movies!

Here's the second installment of my personal reviews of some of the summer's biggest hit movies. Remember, these are simply my opinions. If you disagree, please comment and let me know. But I strongly encourage you to go out and judge them for yourself. So here we go:


Terminator Salvation

As sci-fi movies go, this was not a good one. It's my experience that when you try to re-invent a successful franchise by putting in, say, actual actors, you ruin the schlock factor. I don't think there are many out there who would argue with me about Arnie's lack of acting ability (or governing ability, but that's a different post), so when you put an actor like Christian Bale in the role of John Connor, you're asking for trouble. The guy actually tries to make a decent movie with this.

Without spoiling anything (is this even possible with a Terminator movie?), this movie is more the story of John Connor and the resistance than it is of the fearsome Austrian-accented cybernetic killing machine. Granted, there are plenty of killer machines in this flick, and they are ultra cool. The special effects alone are amazing, but they can't support a paper-thin story line or underdeveloped characters. In truth, Bale is the only reason to even rent this movie (unless you're an avid sci-fi fan who just HAS to see every movie that's ever released - note: if you are one of those types, you should check out Jean-Claude Van Damme's forgettable (!) Cyborg).

While Bale holds the film together as best he can, it should be noted that Sam Worthington delivers a fairly convincing performance as Marcus, the cyborg-that-doesn't-know-he's-a-cyborg. And if you're worried that I just spoiled the movie for you, fear not. For one thing, the director McG (yeah, that's the name he's going with) has already done that, and for another thing, you pretty much figure Marcus out in the first ten minutes. Still, it's an interesting attempt at a plot twist, but it doesn't really work.

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian

This movie is the sequel to the movie of the same (almost) title from 2006. We love these movies in my family, so we were very excited to see this one when it came out. The danger with most sequels however, is that they just can't deliver as well as the original. This is one of those rare exceptions that is as good, if not better than the original.

Start with an exceptional cast, playing off-beat, classic characters. Ben Stiller's slightly hapless, slightly bumbling, but good-hearted Larry Daley is the glue that holds the entire cast together. His comic delivery is at its best in this movie. I much prefer this Ben Stiller to the one in say, Dodgeball. When Ben plays it close to real, he is so much more enjoyable. Add notables (and Stiller accessories) such as Owen Wilson and Steve Coogan (a knock-out on-screen duo if ever there was one - I'd go see The Adventures of Jeddediah and Octavius if they ever made it!); Christopher Guest as Ivan the Terrible (mis-translated apparently from "Ivan the Awesome"); Hank Azarea as Kahmunra (as well as other voices in the movie); and the inimitable Robin Williams who reprises his role as Teddy Roosevelt, and you've got a great flick.

There are a number of other great, albeit brief performances in this film, but I have to say, I really enjoyed Amy Adams as Amelia Earhart. Her outfit notwithstanding (I'm now a big fan of early 1900's flight pants), she does an excellent job in bringing this notable aviatrix to the screen. I wasn't a fan of The Notebook, but I like this actress (side note: I am looking forward to seeing her in Julia and Julia this month).

The story for the original Night at the Museum was that every night, all the exhibits in the museum come to life, thanks to the magic Tablet of Akhmunra. In this installment, many of the exhibits are shipped to the Smithsonian Institute for permanent storage. Somehow (Dexter!) the Tablet ends up going with them, and helps to bring to life Kahmunra, Akhmunra's older brother (and not a nice guy). Larry Daley must travel to Washington D.C. to save his friends and return the Tablet before Something Bad Happens. I'll leave you to discover the rest for yourself. This is a fun story, but sadly, doesn't leave itself open for more installments of this wonderful series. So go see this or rent it when it comes out. And if you haven't seen the first one, don't be a dum-dum...

Imagine That

The Onion, one of my favorite publications, announed this as the Eddie Murphy film with only one Eddie. That's a pretty fair approximation of this particular vehicle. Imagine That is an attempt at a touching tale of transformation - you know the story: dad is busy; kid wants dad to pay more attention; kid does something that gets dad's attention, but for the wrong reasons; dad spends time with kid and realizes "the true meaning of life". It's an oldie, but it can still tug at your heart-strings.

Murphy delivers a toned-down performance (compared to many of his recent movies), and actually manages to come through as the dad who learns the lessons of life. There's still plenty of classic Eddie moments to keep you laughing, but mostly, it's nice to see Eddie Murphy attempting a semi-serious role. While he won't be winning any awards for his performance (it's a little thin), this was an enjoyable movie. It's definitely worth renting for a family movie night.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

If it weren't for the fairly impressive special effects, this movie would be a waste of film. As it is, it comes close to being one of the worst sequels of all time, if not one of the worst movies ever made (with the exception of Transylvania 65000). Once again capitalizing on Gen X-ers love of nostalgia and the toys of their youth, Michael Bay et al deliver a thouroughly unenjoyable film.

What made the first Transformers movie exciting was actually seeing some of our favorite toys in all their CGI glory. In truth, this movie could not have been made until now - the technology just wasn't there. But all that gets a little old, about ten minutes into the first movie. As with Terminator Salvation, you can't float a movie with spectacular special effects when it's story and acting have more holes than...well, than something with a lot of holes. A lot of big holes.

Message to Hollywood: Just because we loved these toys when we were young does not mean you should make movies about them. Please stop all plans for making a Thundercats movie. Do not consider scripts for He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (yes, I know you already made that one one in the 80's). Leave well enough alone, please, for the love of all that's holy.

Next up, I'll be reviewing Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Ice Age 3, G-Force, and G.I. Joe