Autumn is literally right around the corner and in some areas it’s already started to cool down. It feels wonderful outside right now, a balmy 70 degrees, but with the advent of autumn comes the fall release of the summer movies to DVD. Now’s as good a time as any to review what was great about the summer of 2007 at the movies!
Summer Fun
The following top ten movies are compiled not by sales or record breaking figures but by one attribute and one attribute alone: how much fun were they?
10. Spiderman 3 – Peter Parker won our hearts in the first installment as we witnessed his transformation into Spiderman and felt his devastation at losing his friend Harry Osborne. The second movie sealed the deal with his love-from-afar passion for MJ and how he confronted his own guilt in the death of his Uncle. Unfortunately, the third one just seemed to spend way too much time on the non-human aspects of Peter. It doesn’t mean the movie wasn’t fun, but it was a bit of a letdown. It still deserves an honorable mention though.
9. Surf’s Up – This movie was pure fun. It starts off like a reality show featuring famous penguin surfers and you follow the experiences of the young Cody Maverick as he wants to make good on his lifelong dream. It’s a great movie about perseverance and chasing your dreams while at the same time remembering what’s important.
8. Pirates of the Caribbean – I could say it features Johnny Depp, nuff said. But I won’t. The third Pirates of the Caribbean delivered where I felt the second lacked. It was a great capper to the trilogy and this series is already a family favorite here.
7. Becoming Jane – Who can’t love Anne Hathaway? While Becoming Jane may not be based on reality, but rather is a romanticized version of the life of Jane Austen, I thought it was a wonderful movie designed to indulge fans of her books and might even earn a few more fans.
6. Live Free, Die Hard – Bruce is back and he’s hilarious. When I first heard they were making this movie, I couldn’t begin to imagine what they were going to do. What they did was just plain fun. This movie has a message, sure, but who cares? This is a popcorn fun movie that pays you back for more than a decade or two of enjoying the irreverence of John McClane.
5. Ocean’s 13 – So much better than the second movie and much closer to the first in tone and atmosphere. I actually missed Julia Roberts not being in it, I wanted to know more about Danny and Tess, but that’s okay. The film was fun and who wouldn’t want to enjoy Matt Damon, George Clooney and Brad Pitt on one screen together?
4. Ratatouille – My kiddo loved this movie, I think the rat scenes still kind of creep me out, but I gotta give Disney credit – the animation was brilliantly done and it’s a sweet, if sappy tale.
3. Harry Potter & The Order of the Phoenix – The first Harry Potter movie I’ve liked since the first one I love the books and having the movie followed up by Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows was a great two for one deal in my book.
2. Stardust – Absolutely brilliant. I loved it from the first moment of the movie to the end. What a beautifully done fairy tale and yes, it was different from the book, but I don’t care. This movie was wonderful fun and will quickly become a family classic here.
1. Transformers – This is my top pick for best movie of the summer. We went back to the theater and saw it three times, that’s how good it was. The movie hit every note. There was something in it for everyone from the kids to the adults and just kept on delivering. It’s high on our list of must own movies this fall!
Honorable Mentions:
- Evan Almighty
- Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer
- Meet the Robinsons
Come back later to see our previews for upcoming movies this fall, what’s new on DVD and what to look forward to on fall television.