The summer movies of 2009

Written by Michael Vass

The season is upon us, and Hollywood is ready. Well they hope they are at least. Because this year the summer season of blockbusters and mega-hits has consolidated into a morass of retreads, prequels, and revisioned ideas. And the timing is perfect, since this is also a summer of layoff and economic peril.

Hollywood is not known for the chances it takes, at least not in the last decade or so. Rather than risking truly entertaining the masses (or creating unimaginative embarrassments) we will be getting more of the same. But that is not always a bad thing.

So I will list, in order of my preference from best to worst, the movies that will hit a theater near you.

Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince



The series has been solidly entertaining. It’s stayed mostly true to the books, and has kept an edge that both adults and kids can enjoy. The actors have grown in their abilities and the storyline. This may be one of the best of the series.

Angels & Demons



Dan Brown can write. There is no question about that. Ron Howard can direct slugs and make them a spectacular adventure. And Tom Hanks has become the leading actor of our generation. The combination was a phenomenal hit in their first collaboration. There is nothing less that I would expect in this second showing.

The Taking of Pelham 123

I already discussed my thoughts on this remake starring John Travolta and Denzel Washington. This should be a tour de force. Definitely a must see, from what I can tell.

The next few films start the trend of either big hits or complete failure. The stories that these films are based on are well loved and rich in history. Because of fan devotion they will either get it right and we all will love them, or they will be so bad that DVD sales won’t even help them break even.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine



As I have said before, a revisioned story, lots of action and glitz. Will it work? Iffy. The trailer has its good and bad points. As does the plot it seems. Will it be what fans have waited for? Time will tell.

Star Trek



Even more action and glitz, the word to describe this film is revisioned. Normally that spells doom for movie-goers. And if the Spock in this movie is any indication there will be an uproar of despair. But then again, it could be like Transformers and keep everyone’s eyes so busy their brain won’t notice if it is bad or good.

Terminator: Salvation



Can this work without the Governator? Will Christian Bale improve on the John Connor role? Will this revisioning live up to the story we all have come to love? There is just no way to know right now.

As for the rest of the films of the summer, well the list gets really dicey from here on.

Public Enemies

I already previewed this film. Johnny Depp is careful in picking his roles, so this should be good. The question is will anyone care about a gangster from America’s past?

Inglorious Basterds

Another film I previewed. Quentin Tarrantino means this will be a curse driven film. Brad Pitt means that it will draw women. WWII should mean that guys will want to see it. But the combination still leaves me with doubts. This may not work, at least not in any way that a fan of any of the above will enjoy.

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra

They aren’t American heroes anymore. They aren’t cartoons. And there is little hype behind the film. Either it’s been so revisioned that no one wants to talk about this film, or they did a great job of keeping expectations down. Likely this will be a failure. There really isn’t much left of what fans loved about this to see on the big screen. But the volume of explosions and slow motion Ninja fights should be distracting enough for even the least MTV loving among us.

Transformers 2

I didn’t like Shia Lebouf in the first film. I hated the first film in fact. It was stupid, filled with plot holes, and revisioned to death. This second film intends to take all those things and amp them up to the nth degree. Last time I waited to see this on DVD, this time I’ll wait for it to be on free cable.

But as always, there is a wildcard in the summer movie season. This year it may well be

District 9



Based on the above video you can tell a couple of things. Like this is clearly about Apartheid. It’s a way of telling a story about human suffering in a format that is unusal at best. It’s kind of like the movie (and television show) Alien Nation, but without the American sensibilities and imagined democracy. This may be a sleeper film. It’s not action packed, or filled with explosions. But it has a message, and it is hands-down the most original film of the summer season. Plus the director is Peter Jackson. Which means it will be visually captivating if nothing else.

Movie preview: Public Enemies

Johhny Depp is back. And he has Christian Bale along for the ride with him.

The movie Public Enemies is a romanticized re-telling of the life and exploits of John Dillenger. A bank robber that defied the federal government for years, and became a media sensation long before television had been created.



From the trailer we can see how Depp brings a charm and bit of devil may care attitude to the portrayal. Fans of his Captain Jack Sparrow will likely be interested in how he seems to be bringing Dillenger to life. Both characters have a wild spirit and live for the day mentality.

Christian Bale though is on the other side of this spectrum. Dedicated and stern. Serious and lawful. Out for justice and breaking the media’s love affair with this dangerous and at time vicious criminal.

Thus is one of my problems with the film. It looks good. It’s based on the truth. But it seems to gloss over the dark side of crime and Dillenger’s actions. It glamorizes his actions, and not the authorities that sought to reign in his rampage across the mid-west.

I don’t blame the actors for doing their jobs, and well. I love the fact that Depp is so good at what he does he can make a dubious personality look like a rock star. But if the movie does not delve into the darker aspects of Dillenger, the movie is doing a disservice to the audience.

Of course Depp is not known for taking roles of commercial quality. He goes for the artistic flair. He strives to bring out the character, flaws and all. So I expect that while the trailer is very positive and happy-go-lucky the film may well be far darker in tone. Anyone expecting to see a Pirates movie set to the 1930’s will likely be disappointed. Which I think this trailer sets them up to be.

The styling, clothing and sets appear very authentic. Obviously there is some action. But don’t be surprised as the film gets closer to release this year, if the tone of the movie gets darker.

This movie is one I will be looking for more details on.