Post by Walker, Texas Ranger on Jun 3, 2009 13:09:56 GMT -5
Editor’s note: We asked our film reviewer Phillip Johnston to select his top picks for summer movies. Here’s what he said:
5. Julie and Julia. Meryl Streep stars as Julia Child…and it’s not even Oscar season! Julie & Julia is the new comedy from writer/director Nora Ephron (Sleepless in Seattle, When Harry Met Sally), a story about chef extraordinaire Julia Child and New York office worker Julie Powell’s attempt to live her life vicariously through the famous chef’s memoir My Life in France. Starring Amy Adams as Julie, Ephron’s new film looks like 90 minutes with two charming actresses having the time of their lives.
4. Away We Go. Jon Krasinski (aka Jim Halpert from NBC’s The Office) gets his first notable big-screen role this summer in Sam Mendes’ Away We Go. Although director Mendes (American Beauty, Revolutionary Road) seems to be playing with that self-conscious indie-film aesthetic here, it’s reassuring to see that this story of an expectant couple traveling around the US to find the perfect place to start their family has been written by none other than Dave Eggers, author of A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius.
3. 500 Days of Summer. Joseph Gordon stars as Tom, a puppy-dog-faced twenty-something slogging the days away in a greeting-card company cubicle. He’s almost falling asleep at a company meeting one morning when he sees her: Summer (Zooey Deschanel), the new girl—an improbably cute young woman with bewitching blue eyes that flash with more mystery than sex appeal. He’s immediately in love, but Summer turns out to be a lot more complicated than he originally thought.
After gathering a huge following at film festivals across the nation, director Mark Webb’s 500 Days of Summer finally gets a theatrical release this July. With an irresistible soundtrack and a blunt, observant, and highly unconventional screenplay, 500 Days of Summer deserves to be a box-office hit.
2. The Brothers Bloom. If you haven’t seen director Rian Johnson’s first film Brick, a brilliant modern film noir starring teenagers, then you should, asap. If you have, then the web site for The Brothers Bloom should tell you all you need to know: “A con man love story by the people who made Brick, starring Adrien Brody, Rachel Weisz, Mark Ruffalo, Rinko Kikuchi, Robbie Coltrane, Maximilian Schell, a one-legged cat and one drunk camel.” Need I say more?
1. Up. Disney/Pixar’s Up, the tale of a balloon salesman named Carl Frederickson who ties thousands of helium balloons to his humble home to finally achieve the dreams of his late wife, is a grand animated adventure aimed squarely at adults but with humor that kids of all ages will appreciate. It’s the kind of movie audiences crave; a stirring emotional experience and a grand ride, helmed by folks who know how to tell a story better than most live-action filmmakers working today.
chattanoogapulse.com/film/film-feature/top-five-summer-screen-picks/
