1. Iron Man
Last weekend was literally the first time J.G. and I had been out to the movies in months, since we'd been busy with the wedding and the honeymoon at all, so we decided to catch up on the first big blockbuster of the summer while it's still in theaters. This pretty much matched by expectations without exceeding them, but they were pretty high considering all the raves, so I was happy. Downey was fantastic, and I hope they can come up with a sequel that works nearly as well. Gwyneth Paltrow and Terrence Howard are just about the last 2 actors on earth that I'd want to see in a popcorn movie, but Paltrow, who I usually can't stand, was fairly charming, even if Howard was exactly as wooden and uncomfortable as I thought he'd be.

2. Casino Royale
Another one that was universally praised that I thought pretty much lived up to the hype. Found it a bit too dry at first, but they managed to really suck me in. Also, great Bond girls in this one.

3. The Holiday
The idea of Kate Winslet opposite Jack Black in a romantic comedy was strangely really appealing to me, but I also had zero interest in Cameron Diaz opposite Jude Law in same. So even though they did a decent job of not making this feel like 2 different movies, or a distinct A story and B story, I still found myself engaged when the actors I liked were onscreen, and bored out of my mind when the ones I didn't like were on, which made this terribly long movie feel even longer.

4. Natural Disasters: Forces of Nature
I almost forgot about this, but a few months ago we went to the Maryland Science Center with some friends (and man, is it a lot smaller than I remember it seeming as a kid), and saw this on the IMAX screen. Incredible footage of the tyranny of nature on a balls-out huge screen, narrated by Kevin Bacon: a totally worthwhile way to spend an hour.

This entry was posted on Friday, July 04, 2008 at 4:29 PM. You can skip to the end and leave a response.