let's go to the movies, let's go see the staaaaars...

after a rather disappointing experience on my last movie, i was feeling pretty low about the whole industry. but after a summer chock-full of new releases, and one amazing film that i saw last night, my faith has been restored. here are my favorite movies of the summer:

- action blockbuster: "the bourne ultimatum." in a season of bombastic but mediocre three-quels, the bourne series showed that big-budget films don't have to be ridiculous. the bourne films are exciting but somewhat believable, and they don't rely on visual effects to impress the audience. bourne doesn't need superpowers or high-tech gadgets. just give him a pen (or a magazine, or a towel), and he can kick anyone's ass.

- musical: "once." i already praised this before. i did love "hairspray," but this movie gets points for doing a musical in a new way.

- romantic comedy: "knocked up." cute but not sappy. crude but not gross.

- foreign film: "black book." this dutch WWII film has been out for a while, but i saw it during the summer, so i'm counting it. i don't usually like war movies, but this one balanced the violence with a compelling story. it was like "shining through," which is one of my mom's favorite movies, but this one didn't include melanie griffith. bonus points for that!

- teen comedy: "superbad." this seemed like it would be a movie in the same vein as "american pie," but i could actually watch this one. it captured the awkwardness and vulgarity of adolescence in a funny, not distasteful, way. and i'm a sucker for any movie that uses music from the 70s.

- documentary: "king of kong." this is the movie i saw last night, and it was aMAZing! it's about two donkey kong masters, and their battle to hold the world record for highest score. the gamers that are interviewed are so intense and the things that come out of their mouths are so ridiculous, that it's hard to believe that it's all unscripted. and i suppose that's what documentaries are all about, to show the public that there are facets of reality that are even more interesting/incredible than any scripted story.


i've been to the movies A LOT this summer, but it looks like i'm going to be slowing down, especially since i got a job today. i'll be animating for another documentary in the style of "the kid stays in the picture," and this one should last me until i go to minnesota in october to help ross with his movie.