Summer of Cinema

I think I can count on one hand the number of times I went to the movie theater last year. Actually, I think I can count on one hand how many times I’ve been the theater for 2006 and 2007 combined. But I think this year might be different, because I am already anticipating several, mostly superhero inspired, the first of which my husband I saw this weekend.

Iron Man
This was my husband’s pick. He’s the comic book fan, and I am merely a tagalong who didn’t even know Iron Man existed before he started telling me he wanted to see this film. I didn’t expect to have an opinion of it one way or the other, but I really liked it. It was funny, interesting and educational -- for example, I learned that Jeff Bridges looks an awful lot like Jesse Ventura if he shaves his head and grows some fur on his jowls. It was a little slow to get going, but once it picked up, it was soaring. I thought Robert Downey Jr. was awesome in the title role, which surprised me, too, because I have don’t think I’ve ever seen him in a starring role before; therefore, any opinions I had of him had come from his unflattering appearances in news. But I was impressed. There were a couple of plot points I took mild issue with, but I can’t give details without spoiling, so I’ll just say that they were very, very minor sticking points for me.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
I want to see this mostly because I have really liked all of the other Indiana Jones films. But I don’t have too high of hopes for it. I don’t know why I expect to be disappointed. All of the other films were fun and thrilling. Maybe it’s because as I’ve gotten older, I’ve become less and less thrilled by films in which the hero has all of the answers. Maybe its because I fear Harrison Ford’s role will be little more than torch-passer to Shia LaBeouf. (Although I did see a trailer before “Iron Man” that seemed to indicate that Harrison Ford is still the star of this film. Whew!) Or maybe its because Harrison Ford is now older than Sean Connery was when he played his dad, relegated to the sidecar of Indy’s motorcycle. I’m really hoping for a pleasant surprise.

The Dark Knight
“Batman Begins” was one of those pleasant surprises (with the exception of Katie Holmes ... I don’t know if it was her acting or the character itself, but I was not sorry to see she is absent from “The Dark Knight”). I liked the fact that the story brought Batman a little more into the real world, giving him down-to-earth reasons for who he was and why he was. (I think that’s part of why I liked “Iron Man,” too.) My husband, the Batman authority in our house, still prefers Tim Burton’s 1989 “Batman,” which I list as my second favorite to this one, but he enjoyed “Begins,” too. So, I have every intention of making opening weekend on “The Dark Knight.”

The Incredible Hulk
This is also my husband’s pick. I enjoyed watching the TV show when I was a kid (although, when I’ve caught it on TV since, I’ve wondered why), but I was not even remotely impressed with Ang Lee’s 2003 “Hulk.” Hubby liked it, though, so I’m sure that it appealed to quite a few comic book fans, but I thought it was long and slow, and I thought that the effect of the comic book panels was distracting. Before “Iron Man,” though, I did see a preview that makes me a little more curious this version.

Hancock
I know very little about this, except that it seems like another superhero film and that Will Smith is in it. And Will Smith has always been one of my favorite entertainers, despite his “Willenniam” phase. There are few actors that I go to the theater just because they’re in a movie. Tom Hanks is one. Will Smith is another. There might be others, but right now, that’s all I can think of.

The Happening
This is another movie that I am going to see mostly because of who is a part of it: M. Night Shyamalan. I’ve liked everything by Shyamalan so far, with the exception of “Lady in the Water.” I didn’t hate it, but it didn’t wow me, either. But just because he’s had more hits than misses with me, I’m very eager to see this one.