Vote!! What was your favorite film of Summer 2007?

Check out our nifty new survey tool on the left and log your vote for the best film of Summer 2007! If you have selected "Other?", please post a comment here with your pick. If your selection has enough support, we'll add it to the survey (unless, of course, your selection is Hostel II, in which case I will promptly delete your comment - yes P, I'm talking to you).

John Harvard... Master Chief?

I have to hand it to the nerds at MIT for pulling off this amusing "hack" (MIT language for "prank"). At moments like these I'm glad that those kids don't have lives.

Now, the real question of interest to pb&movies is when will the Halo trilogy be adapted for the big screen? Maybe in 2009 according to IMDb.

3:10 to Yawn

I had high hopes for the pairing of Christian Bale and Russell Crowe in the remake of western 3:10 to Yuma, and it delivered... boredom. I saw Yuma as the front end of a double feature, my first in a long time (sidenote: If you've never tried the unofficial double feature, you really need to. P - a future post topic!?). Unfortunately for Yuma, I saw Shoot 'Em Up as the second flick. Immediately after the first movie ended, I had a mixed reaction. The acting had been fine, the action exciting but unoriginal, but I really didn't have any visceral engagement with the characters or the finale. Of course, after being on the edge of my seat laughing and cheering throughout Shoot 'Em Up, my real issues with Yuma came out. 3:10 to Yuma is slow for no reason, and since it is slow, I expect a lot deeper, more engaging characters.

I blame the screenwriting, which didn't give us enough depth with Crowe's outlaw, Ben Wade, to really understand any of the choices he makes towards the end of the film. The writing is unfortunate, because both actors, Bale and Crowe, are on their game, bringing an intesity to these somewhat lifeless western caricatures. But the intensity seems out of place with no emotional weight to back it up. As for the pace, there are a number of unnecessary scenes and drawn out shots that accomplish nothing other than to put the audience to sleep. When I compare 3:10 to Yuma with Open Range, my favorite western of the new millenium but also a slow moving film, I find the characters, action and emotional weight of the latter to be significantly more original and engaging. So, skip 3;10 to Yuma and instead drop whatever you're doing and go see Shoot 'Em Up right now!.

3:10 to Yuma - 1.5 PB Jars

Drop whatever you're doing and go see Shoot 'Em Up right now!

Damn this movie kicked ass! You need to get up right now and go see it, especially since its days at the multiplex are numbered. Imagine all the best parts of all your favorite mindless stylized action flicks packed end-to-end for 80 adrenaline pumping minutes and you've got the idea behind Shoot 'Em Up. You know what you're in for during the first two minutes of the movie when Clive Owen's character, Mr. Smith, kills some bad dude with a carrot... that's right A CARROT. This badass Bugs Bunny in a trench coat then goes on an oil-slick rampage that makes The Transporter look lethargically paced. The premise is absurd. Mr. Smith is a grumpy bum waiting for a bus when he decides to play good Samaritan to a a pregnant lady being chased by a guy with a gun. The guy with a gun is just one of many guys with guns, lead by Paul Giamatti's uberassassin, who seem intent on killing this lady and her baby. Turns out Mr. Smith is some former black ops superfighter who knows a thing or two about kicking ass, and mayhem ensues... for 80 minutes. The incredibly hot Monica Bellucci shows up as a hooker with a maternal instinct, but all you really need to know about her character is that she makes a shoot-out-while-having-sex possible. Again, completely absurd. Owen and Giamatti play their characters to over-the-top perfection, taking this film from excess for the sake of excess into the realm of satire. Every action scene, which is pretty much the entire movie, has repeat "holy sh-t" moments where you don't know whether to laugh, scream or applaud the stuntmen. In sum, go see this movie, go see it now, you'll be glad you did.

Shoot 'Em Up - 3 PB Jars

I'm back!

i know you all have been dripping with anticipation, just waiting for me to post again, so here goes:

Thoughts on Best Football Movies - Varsity Blues and Jerry Maguire have to be on the list, hands down. Since I've never seen Necessary Roughness or Little Giants (which I can't imagine is good), I'm knocking those off. For the most part I agree with the rest of P's choices. Friday Night Lights was highly overrated and works much better as a tv show than it did as a feature film. The entire topic does beg the question - why so many fewer good football movies than baseball movies? Even the best football flicks (AGS, Program) pale in comparison to the best baseball films (The Natural, Bull Durham, Field of Dreams, Sandlot, The Rookie, Major League, the list goes on). I'd argue that baseball translates far better onto celluloid because there is a natural folklore element to the sport that facilitates more engaging storytelling. Football, while exciting to watch on tv, has much less personality and as a result is more difficult to craft characters and story around.

Best Place to See a Movie - Alamo Drafthouse, Austin Texas. If you haven't had the pleasure of taking in a movie in a theatre where you can order food and drink, you need to give it a try. I caught The Simpsons Movie at the Alamo Drafthouse during one of my recent trips to Austin. The theatre has every other row removed to make room for a small table on which to sit your food and bucket(s) of beer. For the Simpsons showing, the Drafthouse had a special menu including Duff beer, a Krusty Double Burger Meal, a Ribwich, a Donut Casserole, and more. The entire experience was amazing. There is no better way to watch the Simpsons than with a Duff in your hand. I'd only give The Simpsons Movie itself a 1.5 PB Jar rating, but after a couple buckets of Duff at the Drafthouse it was an easy 3.

For some additional insight into the Alamo Drafthouse, rent Hot Fuzz on dvd and check out their US Tour documentary for the screening in Austin. In fact, rent Hot Fuzz anyway because it is hilarious. While I don't think the hotly anticipated follow-up to Shaun of the Dead could possibly have lived up to my unfairly high expectations, it put forth a valiant effort and any shortcomings were more than made up for by the non-stop blood, guts and laughs of the film's final 20 minutes.

Best Movie of the Summer (so far) - It is a tough call between Ratatouille (3 PB Jars) and the Bourne Ultimatum (3 PB Jars), with Superbad (3 PB Jars) and Knocked Up (2.5 PB Jars) close behind. A full summer round-up is called for next week, once Fall is officially upon us. I had high hopes for Shoot 'em Up and 3:10 to Yuma, but based on preliminary reviews (NYT called Shoot 'em Up a "worthless piece of garbage") I'm doubtful that these will crack my top films of the summer.

So, that's about it. See you all again in another 2 months.

Reader Feedback Poll #2

"Welcome to foot, balls!"

What better way to celebrate the kickoff of football season than a Top 5 list to generate some reader feedback...

ALL-TIME TOP 5 FOOTBALL FILMS

5. Little Giants - I'd put it a notch below The Sandlot, but Giants definitely succeeds at entertaining viewers of all ages. Rick Moranis and Ed O'Neill deserve props.

4. Rudy - Classic.

3. Necessary Roughness - Not a perfect movie, but it does a good job of blending on-the-field action with off-the-field antics. Scott Bakula, Rob Schneider, Kathy Ireland, and Sinbad - talk about your dream-team lineup.

2. Any Given Sunday - Could easily have been #1 on my list, but it did run a little long and get a little ridiculous at times. Jamie Foxx warms up for future Oscar-nominated roles as the phenom QB "Steamin'" Willie Beamen. (My only question: Why didn't he throw more passes to TO?) The slo-mo rain storm scene rocked.

1. The Program - I've heard that college football players consider this the most realistic football movie ever made. I'm not sure if they're talking about the part when the star QB starts a bar fight, or when the juiced-up lineman smashes his head through a car window. In any case, this movie is the perfect combo of football and extracurricular action, with spot-on performances by James Caan, Omar Epps, Kristy Swanson, and Halle Berry.

Second String: The Waterboy, Friday Night Lights, Remember the Titans, School Ties, Varsity Blues

Cut during Training Camp: Air Bud 2: Golden Receiver, Angels in the Endzone [in truth, I haven't seen either of these movies]

Surprised that Jerry Maguire didn't make the cut? Pissed off because I didn't include The Replacements? Please share your thoughts below...