Weekly Top 5: Top 5 Summer Blockbusters

New top five, topic idea courtesy of p-spiddy. Summer Blockbusters. You guys know what to do. Here's a wiki page on blockbusters for those who might not be sure what applies here. All other questions about eligibility can be directed at spiddy!

I'm going to go with what I saw in theaters on their initial release.

1. Star Wars: Ep 1 TPM - I was barely old enough to remember Empire and Return of the Jedi, so this was an event for not just me but my entire peer group. The line to buy tickets for the midnight release was crazy long the morning the tickets went on sale. I must have went to see it half a dozen times. Yes, I am aware it's not a good movie.

2. Jurassic Park - This is a given, right?

3. Terminator 2 - This too?

4. X-Men - I waited a week to see this at an a.m. weekday matinee because I didn't want anybody around to ruin the experience.

5. Forrest Gump - And that's all I have to say about that.

I know my list is a little generic, but I actually did put some thought into what was the epitome of "summer blockbuster" and not what I liked the most. And all of these I saw in theaters multiple times. There are some serious omissions like Saving Private Ryan and Ghostbusters but I figure whoever else participates can pick up my slack.

Do they have to be movies I saw when they were summer blockbusters? Or can I pick ones that I might have missed?

I chose to do what I saw in theaters to narrow down my list. If you want to do an all-time list, as long as they were summer blockbusters, go for it. You don't have to have seen them in the theaters. Like I said, I just wanted to narrow my list down since there are so many.

Now I sit. Think. And feel thirsty.

1. Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back- Seriously, what else could it be?
2. Ghostbusters- Even though I love both these movies about the same, Star Wars got the edge for being Star Wars. Still, it's one of the most fun movies ever made.
3. The Dark Knight- God damn I remember how big this movie was. And it didn't disappoint. I knew it would be good, but not that good.
4. Spiderman 2- The original was a lot of a bigger deal when I was a kid, and I loved it, but this one was just so much better A lot of people seem to hate the Raimi Spiderman movies now.

5. Forrest Gump- I don't care how far in it is, what kind of mood I'm in, or what time of the day it's on, I see this movie while flipping through channels, that's what I'm watching.

I'll make a list for the ones I saw:

1. The Matrix.

A great example of a sleeper hit. This came out near the end of my senior year in high school and I was talking to friends about it. Our computer lab finally had internet access (back when that was a big thing) and when I was done with course work, I'd visit the official website. I remember the first notice of this was a small mention in Entertainment Weekly's summer movie preview issue (back when I subscribed) and it just sounded intriguing. And I fucking loved Bound (still do) so I prepared to love this. And I did, so I saw it 3 times.

2. Face/Off

The summer of 1997 was a big year for me, movie wise. Some great stuff was on the way (especially in the 2nd half of the year) but this summer was notable for the first time that I started sneaking in to R-rated films at the local multiplex. I wouldn't turn 17 until September and here I am at the start of June, sneaking into stuff like Con-Air, Air Force One and Spawn without being carded (I wouldn't be carded until November, when Starship Troopers came out). Also, by that point, I was becoming aware of John Woo, particuarly his Hong Kong films. I woke up one morning at 6 a.m. to record Hard-Boiled on Cinemax and it became heavy rotation for me. I'd record the trailer on E!'s Coming Attractions show (dear god, I'm old) and watch it over and over. Again, fucking pumped for this and again, I saw it 3 times. It has moments of self-indulgence, it's overlong and it takes a leap of faith for its sci-fi elements but it was brilliantly acted and directed and just amazing to look at. It would never be this good for Woo in the U.S. film industry again.

3. Jurassic Park

I was close to turning 13 when this came out so I was on the verge of abandoning childhood stuff but I still loved dinosaurs and I also enjoyed Spielberg movies, so there was no way this could fail. And it's hard to think of it now but those effects were astonishing back then. The first scene with the brontosaur and that swelling John Williams theme was just jaw-dropping. Again, you had to ignore goofy setup of how dinosaurs are made but it wasn't too long before the film became a non-stop thrill ride that you didn't care anymore. The initial T-rex attack was terrifying and impressive in how it sustained the level of tension (putting kids in jeopardy was a ballsy move) but the mixture of animatronic and CGI f/x held up and I believed I was seeing dinosaurs. It also made me a fan of Michael Crichton and I read more books as a result.

4. Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade

Looking back, were it not for its few recycled elements of Raiders (Nazis, now more incompetent), it's poor taste in the treatment of Marcus Brody and a weak villian, I'd rank this higher than Temple of Doom (yes, I prefer that). Thing is, the father/son dynamic is so strong and how the Grail ties into the narrative works so well but the strengths tower over the weaknesses. Back in the late 80s, a IJ fan like me kept wondering if there'd be another film and the timespan between this and TOD was only 4-5 years, but the clock was ticking. So, seeing that behind-the-scenes trailer made me crazy with glee. I saw this with my entire family (and another family that were neighbors) and I was in heaven. I also found out I wasn't much of a gorehound when Julian Glover's face melted and rotted (I ran crying out of seats where my brother and his friend were and into the seat where my mom was).

And that last shot was perfection. The series should've ended here.

5. Batman (1989)

If you ever seen An Evening With Kevin Smith, at one point he talks about his feelings about Tim Burton's first stab at the Dark Knight and points out the aggressive marketing campaign ("people were carving the fucking Bat Signal into their foreheads") and he's not joking. I'd see a 15 tv spot every commercial break in the months leading to release, without fail. Posters everywhere, toys everywhere. You couldn't fucking escape it. It's treatment of Batman was new as well and not the campy tone of the tv series; if you weren't reading the comics and only knew the tv show, that's all you knew/felt about Batman. This changed everything. It's a landmark for the comic book movie genre as much as the first Superman film was.  

The movie itself? I loved it back then. I wasn't aware of Joe Chill back then so having the Joker kill Wayne's parents didn't make me go nuts (Alfred bringing Vicki Vale into the Batcave felt weird, though). I never felt Kim Basinger and Michael Keaton had much chemistry and Robert Wuhl is annoying as always.

However, there's Danny Elfman's score, the crazy production design, that awesome Batmobile design, Keaton's performance and the great decision to not make this a origin story (something that never happens these days). Nicholson is fun to watch but I kept seeing the actor's persona rather than someone disappearing into the character (making Heath Ledger's take all the more impressive). It still works.

Batman was indeed huge. Like you said, it was everywhere. I was REALLY into comics at the time so parts of it annoyed me (Keaton hanging upside down. Really?) but on the whole it was everything my 10 year old self could hope for. I even got the Batmobile toy for christmas. That toy was so slick, but I was a little jealous of my friend who had the Batwing.

Also, LOL, you invoked Coming Attractions!

1. Jaws - This was the movie I was hinting at above. Wasn't alive when it released, but boy do I wish I would have been. First real blockbuster as well. Glad the movie did so well, or else we might not have some of the Spielberg classics like we have today, such as....

2. Jurassic Park - What a delight of a movie. Fun enough for the kids, but scary enough for all. The dinosaurs still look awesome in my opinion. Raptors are one of the scariest/cleverest villains ever!

3. Spider-Man 2 - In my opinion, this is the best super hero movie ever made. It's been a long time since I've seen it, and just typing about it makes me wish I had blu-ray versions of these movies.

4. The Dark Knight - The hype around Heath Ledger's death really made this a must see movie. Would be the greatest super hero movie in my opinion if there was more Joker and less Dent. Is it just me, or did Batman just get his ass kicked for 3 films?

5. Serenity - I had just finished watching all of the Firefly episodes, just in time for the movie that was in theatre. The only movie I have ever been to by myself. It was me, and like two other nerdy old men in that theatre. Joss Whedon never disappoints me. Never.

Spiderman trilogy Blu-Ray is $20 shipped from Amazon UK.

The whole Batman getting his ass kicked is manufactured tension. I loved Batman Begins for it though. Heath Ledger owned the Joker in Dark Knight, but other than that I was not impressed. And that last one was just...lame?

Also, TOTALLY knew you were invoking Jaws

The third one was rather lame. I don't know why, but it just felt off.

Jaws is awesome, and demands a summer viewing always.

I too have to go with ones I saw in theaters:

1. The Matrix
2. Casino Royale (did this come out in summer? if not...pffft)
3. Jurassic Park
4. The Avengers
5. The Dark Knight