Summer 2012 at the Cinema

An article I wrote for the student newspaper...

A time for the big blockbusters, summer at the cinema often brings many highs and lows.  From many highly anticipated comic book films to some slated Hollywood re-makes, we take a look back at what summer 2012 had to offer at the movies.

As Selina Kyle warned, a storm did come over us this summer as The Dark Knight Rises thundered through the box office and blew other films aside, including Marvel’s Avengers Assemble, but also left devastation in the wake of a savage act. The power of Christopher Nolan’s beloved Dark Knight trilogy, now hailed as this generation’s Godfather, however, kept cinema goers faith in cinema as he delivered an epic conclusion to the iconic franchise. With an electrifying cast including new additions Tom Hardy as the villainous mastermind Bane, and Anne Hathaway as the sultry Selina Kyle along with Bale’s best performance yet, The Dark Knight Rises was the film event of the season.

Not only was it the summer of the superhero, it was also the time for reboots and ticking both boxes was The Amazing Spider-Man. With the idea of making a fourth film in the Sam Raimi franchise scrapped by Marvel, Marc Webb took up the challenge and successfully put a new spin on the classic comic with Brit Andrew Garfield (who have both recently confirmed a sequel) being the perfect casting for a cooler, more confident Peter Parker. Sci-fi flick, Dredd, also opened to positive reviews and was particularly praised for its masterful visuals and gritty nature compared to Stallone’s 80s adaptation of the comic strip. The Bourne Legacy divided audiences as Jeremy Renner’s portrayal of a new assassin failed to reach the impact of the beloved Damon/Greengrass trilogy but it was the Total Recall re-make that acted as the summer’s loser, disappointing both the public and critics alike.

Ted was the comedy of the season as Family Guy creator Seth McFarlane brought his first feature film to the big screen, overshadowing The Watch, rom-com The Five Year Engagement and American Pie: Reunion, though the latter was still a popular choice. Pixar’s new animation, Brave, may have not have thrilled audiences as much as its previous ventures but still made a position in the summer’s top 10 along with family favourite, Ice Age 4: Continental Drift.

Though the summer of cinema may be over, autumn has even more to bring with the likes of Looper, On The Road and Great Expectations.

Ted

Director: Seth McFarlane
Writer: Seth McFarlane
Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Mila Kunis, Seth McFarlane

An impromptu trip to the cinema last week saw me watching, and being extremely entertained by, this summer's biggest comedy, Ted.

The first feature film from Family Guy creator, Seth McFarlane, was thankfully not as close to his brash and in-your-face TV show as expected. A few moments were slightly tedious such as a five minute fight between Wahlberg and his talking teddy bear, reminiscent of that ridiculous chicken fight in the show (my brothers continue to find that hilarious) , as well as the party with Sam “Flash Gordon" Jones. As a British teenager, this character meant nothing to me and seemed to please the film-makers more than an international audience.

Many gags were great though: jokes about pop culture (“...whether you're Frankie Muniz, Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber or a talking teddy bear, eventually nobody gives a shit"), amusing lines from the narrator (Patrick Stewart) a few shock laughs about 9/11 showed McFarlane was the writer but this film was more silly than offensive.

Mark Wahlberg was an impressive comedic lead, a highlight being the reeling off of white-trash American girl names (“Wait; was it any of those names with a “Lynn" after it?"). As a reasonably frequent viewer of Family Guy, I found the voice of Peter Griffin to be a little too present in Ted's speech. Though they made a joke about it, I would have preferred it if McFarlane had created a new voice for this character.

Though not a flawless comedy, I hadn't laughed that much in the cinema since The Hangover or Bridesmaids and compared to the trailers for other upcoming American comedies including “The Watch" and “That's My Boy", this definitely seems the best of the bunch.

7/10