2006 Summer Movies

On Friday and Saturday I covered this year’s major season finales. I didn't cover all the finales, but I definitely enjoyed those of Scrubs, Supernatural, My Name is Earl, and How I Met Your Mother. I would give each of those 4 or 5 out of 5 ratings, award Scrubs the Best Line award with “get out of here you old queens!”, be wondering if NBC will continue to treat Scrubs horribly, never showing reruns and waiting until January, and wonder if the father and the car will survive Supernatural's cliffhanger. No, I don't watch House or The Office despite multiple recommendations from friends; there's only so many hours in the week, and content my brain can absorb. I'll probably have something to say about The Sopranos when that wraps up season 6 next weekend, but for now the television season is basically over. With the conclusion of so much small screen entertainment, it's natural that my eyes would turn to the big screen. Both Xtine and TheWriteJerry have listed their must-see movies, and while J-No used a fan-made fake X3 poster, I was still inspired to list the movies I'd like to see in theaters.

Despite early bad reviews and worrisome rumors and suspicions about the plot, X-men: The Last Stand is going to be a must-see. I never miss comic book movies, especially since the genre become more legitimate a few years ago. Good or bad, I have to see this trilogy through to the end and I have heard good things about Kelsey Grammar as Beast. Of course, finding time to see it has proven challenging. It opened this weekend, but I usually avoid the crowds for big movies on opening day and catch a matinee. Yesterday I had other plans in the morning and played at an Italian feast for four hours in the evening, and in a few hours today I'll be playing in a parade. Tomorrow I have two parades, so it looks like I may have to wait until next weekend when I'm less busy. I work on weekends more in the Summer than any other part of the year. I just hope no one spoils X3 for me in the meantime.

The more I see of Superman Returns, the more enthusiastic I get. Check out the trailer over at Scott's. I definitely agree with his assessment of that last shot; the man doesn't even blink, and why would he? The departure of Brian Singer from the X-men series led to my initial concerns about X3, but I have faith he'll do a good job here. While the initial still photos left me underwhelmed, most of the recent trailers have encouraged me. I can't wait to see what Kevin Spacey does with the role of Lex Luthor. Superman returns on June 30th, and I'm hoping it will be as good as Batman Begins.

A Scanner Darkly opens July 7th, and while I'm sorry to say I've been remiss in reading the novel, I am attracted to the use of Rotoscoping. I've had the privilege of seeing the comic book adaptation through my job recently, and while I can't obviously divulge any details, I can say it looks amazing. I think I'd be disappointed if I saw this on anything smaller than a movie screen, preferably in a stadium theater.

July 7th offers a conflict, as Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest opens that weekend as well. I loved the first movie that introduced me to the wonders of Keira Knightley, and she became a selling point for me for films such as The Hole, The Jacket, and Domino, all of which I highly recommend. It goes almost without saying that Johnny Depp is great as Captain Jack Sparrow, and I'm glad he's reprising the role. I may wait for the DVD, but I'm definitely considering seeing this in theaters. If I do decide to wait, perhaps I'll pick up a copy of Kingdom Hearts II to tide me over.

I might see Miami Vice in theaters as well. I've already seen Mission Impossible III. The Summer movies are already rolling out, and the way a year flies I suspect the holiday movie season will arrive before we know it.