Lee Scoggins

I have to say this has been a summer of one bad movie after the other...I think that special effects are important but not at the expense of storyline and that is the root cause of the crappy movie (not film!) fare we have seen....

Here are some big budget "tent pole" movies (with great effects) that absolutely sucked IMHO:

1. Van Helsing.
2. Day After Tomorrow.
3. Troy. (Don't get me wrong I love Wolfgang Peterson on most days but he phone this one in...from far away.)

These are $200 million movies my friends...why can't they develop a decent plotline? Are the writers on strike? Are they completely powerless?

Am I the only one who thinks this? What do you think?

Thanks for your comments.

P.S. I did enjoy Shrek 2 which had both story and sfx.

no fears alone at night she's sailing through the crowd
in her ears the phones are tight and the music's playing loud
~skateaway

JohnRice

You're just noticing this? Where have you been?

Bryan Ri

See, I'm one who was able to enjoy The Day After Tomorrow; I didn't really go in with any expectations other than seeing neat special effects and a silly storyline. I must say I enjoyed it. Nothing I'd go again to see, but a fun night a the movies at least.

Van Helsing on the otherhand, was one of the worst movies I've ever seen. It was like three 'Batman and Robins' in one movie. It gave over the top movie making new meaning to me.

I think big SPX blockbusters are a trademark of summer movies; expectations going in can have a drastic effect on whether or not you like the movie in this case. I don't really have any issues with these types of movies in the summer, they can be a great source of fun entertainment. The X Men or Spiderman movies, for example, are big summer SFX blockbusters, but the story is as much of the focus as the FX. Then there are the other films, such as the afformentioned ones, where the FX are the draw. Van Helsing really bugged me because there were some great characters in the film and great potential, but all of it went untapped.

I think I'm just repeating what you said Lee, but I think the summer movie going experience has to be met with low expectations in terms of viewing actual good storytelling.

Darren Haycock

Well, to be fair, none of those movies really looked any good to begin with. I did see Van Helsing, expecting something that was fun and similar to The Mummy. The problem is, it made The Mummy look like a rousing masterpiece in comparison. Oh well...

\"Make ready, for this is our first and final battle...\"

Malcolm R

Summer movie season is about spectacle, with each studio trying to top the other. If they don't keep upping the ante, audiences get bored.

If you want story and characterization, that's what the fall/holiday movie season is for, when everyone's going for award noms.

That's the way it's been for years. As JohnRice says, "you just noticed?"

David_Blackwell

Summer movies are about being big. It is the time of the fluffy popcorn blockbusters. Sometimes we do get some really good summer movies with big SFX and some really good movies with little effects.

ENTERLINE MEDIA (entertainment articles and DVD/Movie/TV show reviews)

Stephen_L

I know this is an old argument, but just because the summer is generally saved for effects-laden blockbusters doesn't mean the movies must be as feeble as most of this summers are. Remember Jaws, Star Wars, E.T., and Raiders of the Lost Ark were all summer flicks and while not masterpieces of plot or character are recognized as quality films with good story.

\"The old that is strong does not wither, deep roots are not reached by the frost.\"

TheLongshot

Well, hard to call this summer horrible based on three films, particularly since we are talking about the beginning of summer, where often the biggest and most effect filled films are, which is usually effect filled with empty plot.

Personally, I thought Troy was pretty entertaining, if not a great film. Van Helsing isn't nearly as bad as some have made it out to be (tho it isn't that good either.)

Meanwhile there is still:

HP: Prisoner Of Azkaban (Looks good)
Chronicles Of Riddick (May be the "summer" actioner that may entertain.)
Stepford Wives (Jury's still out.)
The Terminal (Well, it is Spielberg..)
Around The World In 80 Days (Don't know about this.)
Dodgeball: An Underdog Story (Don't know about this either.)
Spiderman 2 (Has a good chance.)
King Arthur (Could be good, could suck.)
Anchorman (Looks funny.)
I, Robot (Probably will suck.)
The Bourne Supremecy (Well, the first was pretty good...)
Catwoman (Probably will suck.)
The Village (M. Night is at least interesting.)
The Manchurian Candidate (Not sure if it translates well to now...)
Thunderbirds (Suck.)
Collateral (Mann is also always interesting.)
Aliens VS Predator (Probably will suck, but fans will like.)
Exorcist: The Beginning (Considering the history, doesn't look good.)

That makes 18 films. I'd say at least half of them will be pretty good...

Jason

My DVD Collection

Steve Felix

I agree that this is shaping up to be the worst summer for movies I can remember. Usually I'm suckered into eagerly anticipating a couple effects movies that end up dissapointing, but nothing even tempts me this time. Out of Jason's list, only The Bourne Supremacy and Collateral have me very interested. And maybe The Terminal. And I do hope the hype around Harry Potter amounts to something.

I suspect that the brilliant people who do CG would be in heaven if they got to work on better movies, though. Blame the marketing minded executives who don't think past opening weekend and therefore waste incredible talent.

"We're trying to make a movie here, not a film!"
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TheLongshot

Considering everyone who I've talked to that have seen it said it is pretty damn good, I'd say it is a slam dunk. Considering I've read the book, and it is the best of the first three, I exepect no less of this film.

Jason

My DVD Collection

Tino

Technically speaking, those are SPRING films since summer doesn't start until June 21.

And how about maybe waiting until September after you have actually seen a few of the forthcoming SUMMER films before prematurely dismissing the season as "a terrible movie summer"?

Just a suggestion.

Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus.