2011 Summer Movie Review part III: General thoughts and lessons learned.

 This will not be a blow-by-blow of Summer 2011 but more like free association regarding the just-ended summer.  First and foremost, summer 2011 was a terrific success for two reasons.  A) Most of the movies were pretty good.  B) The most obscenely crowded summer season in recent history, one that I wondered aloud would doom the industry, did not in fact crash and burn.  Most of the movies, thanks to record overseas grosses, made at least as much as they needed to in order to break even or make a tidy profit.  Up until the very end of August, there were actually very few out-and-out flops.  The biggest whiffs of the summer are arguably Green Lantern, Cowboys and Aliens, and Conan the Barbarian.  And all three films would have been mere disappointments had they not cost so much.  Green Lantern was a $200 million picture that looked like it cost maybe $100 million.  Cowboys and Aliens was a $165 million film that looked like it cost only a bit more than True Grit ($40 million).  And Conan the Barbarian... well, I haven't seen that one yet.  But I cannot imagine why Lionsgate (or whomever funded the picture) thought there was enough of a yearning for the return of Conan to justify $90 million.  The lesson  this summer is the same one it is every summer: it's the movies, stupid, and those movies shouldn't cost more than they are worth.

2011 Summer Movie Review part II: The summer of 3D proves, in America at least, 'It's the movie (stupid)'. Overseas is a more complicated situation...

This summer was supposed to be the first real test for the mainstream viability of the 3D format in cinema.  While the format had been a fringe indulgence for horror films and animated movies, it obviously became a full-on sensation following the release of Avatar in December, 2009.  2010 saw a handful of high-profile 3D conversions, as studios hastily converted some of their big-budget tentpoles (Clash of the Titans, The Last Airbender, Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader) and/or low-budget cult pictures (Piranha 3D, My Soul to Take)  into the format under the delusion that Avatar made $2.7 billion worldwide only because it was in 3D.  But this was the supposed to be the sink-or-swim year for the 3D film.  Was it merely a passing fad, or was it here to stay?  The answer is, alas, more complicated.  First and foremost, as long as studios can spend $5-$10 million to convert a film to 3D and then charge an extra 33% or so per ticket, 3D isn't going away.  So while 3D was not the answer to studios' prayers domestically, it took the industry by storm in overseas markets, which mattered all the more this year, the first summer on record where domestic box office was all-but beside the point.  And of course, the embrace of 3D was always about more than just that $3-$5 up-charge.  It was about countering overseas piracy, and on that front, it was a HUGE success.  But when you look at the films that scored in 3D and the films that flopped in 3D, you notice something that should have been obvious.  The films that hit were always going to be big hits, while the 3D flops never stood a chance in any dimension.

2011 Summer Movie Review part I: The Moments That Mattered

We'll see if my schedule allows me to do a comprehensive 'end of summer' box office wrap-up, but since summer 2011 doesn't officially end until next weekend, I figure I've got time. For now, here is my annual rundown of the various scenes, performances, moments, and miscues that defined the summer just past. Because sometimes, discussing the 'parts' is more fun than discussing the 'whole'. I'll try to avoid divulging plot twists and the like, but consider this a SPOILER WARNING.

Best Fake-Out: Vin Deisel sacrifices himself for the team at the finale of Fast Five.
Even if you feel silly admitting that you cared about the characters in this fifth and inexplicably terrific entry in the eleven-year long racing action franchise, you cannot deny that the characters cared about each other.  What made the movie pop was the genuine sense of camaraderie and bonding that existed between our main characters, which is one of the benefits of being the fifth film in a long running franchise.  So when Deisel's Dominic Toretto separates himself from the pack during the final chase scene, apparently intent on sacrificing himself to give the rest of his friends (including his pregnant sister Mia and her boyfriend Brian) a chance at freedom and riches, I bought it.  The film had built up a genuine 'series finale' vibe, and it seemed completely appropriate that the franchise would end with Dom, the series's most prominent character, giving his life so that his sister's unborn child wouldn't have to grow up without a father.  When Toretto miraculously survived his one-man cannon-ball run, I rolled my eyes a bit.  It wasn't until a week later that I remembered that this fifth film actually took place BEFORE the third film in the series (Tokyo Drift), at the end of which Vin Deisel made a cameo appearance.  Point being, Dominic Toretto was never in danger.  But the film was so unexpectedly compelling and exciting that I completely forgot what I already knew going in.