My Top 5 Films of the Summer

Summer has come and gone, and with it it has taken the season of blockbusters. summer is always my favorite time of the movie year, and now that we are in the dregs of September, I'd like to give a mention to the 5 best films I saw over the Summer months, May-August.

Number 5
Terminator Salvation
I am a huge fan of this franchise and to say that this lives up to the greatness that is Terminator 2 would be insane. However, it was a great deal better than Terminator 3, had a ton of great action and a decent enough story. I wasn't disappointed, as several others seemed to be.

Number 4
Star Trek
This was actually quite the pleasant surprise. I've never been a fan of the Star Trek series, but I really liked this one. I think a lot of others felt the same way and my reason for why: this version of Star Trek "borrowed" quite a bit of its plot from Star Wars: A New Hope. Not saying that is a bad thing, as I really did enjoy it, obviously.

Number 3
Inglourious Basterds
Tarantino makes a very triumphant return with this film. I am a HUGE fan of his and though this wasn't quite as good as Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs and Kill Bill, all of those films are on my top 100, so he has a lot to live up to. That is not to say Inglourious Basterds was bad by any stretch! It was a 2 and a half hour film that offered brilliant pacing and suspense and flies by. It wasn't perfect, and I'd have cut some things and included more of others, but overall, a terrific watch.

Number 2
District 9
The surprise hit of the summer was so because of how good it was. More than just an action film, this allegorical look at modern South Africa through the use of aliens from outer space was mind blowing. Great special effects and action, but make no mistake, this is a story and especially character driven film. Incredible direction and really would be the best film of most summers.

Number 1
Up
Pixar is always the go to studio for animation, and they may have pulled off their most triumphant feat with Up. No other film this year has created such an emotional response in me. It is such a touching story that can't really be described in words. The visuals are beautiful as well as moving. This will be a must own for me when the DVD is released. I didn't love Wall-E as much as most, but Pixar certainly bounced back here. This will be very tough to beat for my film of the year. Outstanding.

And real quick, I'll give you my top 3 most disappointing films of the summer:

Number 3
Funny People
Liked the first half, then it changed direction completely and draaaagggeeedd. Don't know why apatow did that, but he needs a better editor.

Number 2
The Hangover
Everyone is praising this as one of the great comedies ever. I really don't see it. I thought it was pretty stupid and had the same general plot as Dude Where's My Car, but humor is very subjective. Just disappointed me, if you enjoyed it, good for you.

Number 1
Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen
The first Transformers was soooooo good that his really, really disappointed me. The writing was lazy, the acting wasn't good, the "funny" parts were cheesy. It just wasn't what it should have been. I was there at midnight expecting greatness, I got nothing more than painfully average. The action wasn't nearly enough to cover up for the bad story and dialogue.

That's it! Short and sweet. I suggest checking out all of these films when they come out on DVD, or if they are still in theaters near you(District 9 and Inglourious Basterds might be), go see them.