The Not So Hot Top Ten Of 2010
The summer is officially over and so the summer of 2010 movie numbers are finally in. While the Summer movie offering was way under par from what we have come to expect in recent years, we still recording one of the largest money making Summer’s when it comes to movies in 2010. There are plenty of reasons why this was able to occur and yet it occurred for all the wrong reasons. It was 3D movies that seemingly resurrected the summer movies from a horrible and painful death all together. It seems that flash and loud noises still seemingly win 9 times out of 10 over movies with an interesting story or substance. That being said a few movies that made this years top ten were very notable and worth the money spent on them. However the dismal results were a result of lazy filmmakers trying to do what they can to cash in on fads, rather then take a chance on interesting story lines.
Why Did This Fail?
There were movies that came out this summer that managed to fail when it came to money making at the box office. Most notably would have to be the Michael Cera movie “Scott Pilgram vs The World”. The movie had a unique and interesting premise, plus the movie itself was by far one of the more unique movies that have been released in 2010. Why exactly did the movie fail, well first of all the movie aims to please comic books fans and movie geeks like myself more then it attempts to serve as a mainstream movie. When you market a movie to a core audience then chances are you are likely to flop a little. I would not say like others that Michael Cera is not capable of opening a major summer blockbuster; I would say it was just not the right movie for the general public. The general public were more concerned with watching Stallone still attempt to become an actor.
There were also some indie films which hardly saw too much attention at all. I have yet to see some of them but I took the time the other day to watch the Ben Stiller movie “Greenburg”. Ben Stiller to this date is one actor that I almost can not stand to watch any movie that he is a part of. With that being said I actually really enjoyed watching “Greenburg”. In fact the role portrayed by Stiller in this movie reminded me that once and a while actors like Stiller can surprise and pick up a worth while role for themselves. Stiller in Greenburg reminded me a lot of when Adam Sandler took on roles in movies such as “Punch Drunk Love” and “Spanglish”. That being said movies with any form of substance never seem to hold their head above water in a market crowded by simple minded movies.
A Rundown Of What Made Money In 2010
Well you are likely wondering to yourself which movies did land some large numbers and you may also wonder if you have not already seen them if they are worth your time and money to see them when they make their way to DVD and Blu-Ray. This list here is as follows:
10. Salt $113.3 Million – The movie stars Angelina Jolie and managed to garner some mixed reviews from critics and movie fans alike. I have heard some great things and also been told some bad things about this particular movie. I have not yet taken the time to watch this movie and I would have to admit that it is not on my list of movies that I am dying to see. I will take the time to watch this one in time, but as of yet I am unable to report on whether or not this is worth the time.
9.The Last Airbender $130.6 Million – The latest from director M. Night Shymalan was reviewed as one of the worst movies of 2010 summer season. I have enjoyed and defended the directing ability of M. Night Shymalan now for years, but yet I stayed clear of this movie simply because the reviews kept me from spending the excess amount on this particular movie. I will get around to seeing this eventually, but for what it is worth I have been told this is not a movie that is worth your time to even bother with.
8.Grown Ups $159.4 Million – Adam Sandler made his return to the comedy big screen this summer with a movie that contained absolutely no laughs at all. In fact the only thing that was remotely funny about Grown Ups was that someone green lighted what will go down in my humble opinion as one of the worst comedies I have ever had to suffer through. The talent in this movie you would think could draw at least a laugh or two, and yet I found myself disgusted and frustrated as I watched this movie. Sandler needs to have someone tell him that tasteless jokes and slapstick comedy do not always make for a good movie.
7.The Karate Kid $175.9 Million – As the remake fad continues in Hollywood we found ourselves positioned with having to accept Will Smith’s very annoying son as the lead role in a movie that I truly do not understand the purpose for remaking. The original Karate Kid was fun, comical, and worth the time. The new Karate Kid while not nearly as bad as I would have expected still did not manage to do anything to make me really enjoy it. I will give many props to Jackie Chan for his role in the movie which is what I feel saved this particular movie from total and utter failure. I want for Will and Jada Smith to tell young Jayden that acting like a 10 year old version of your fathers Fresh Prince character will not make audiences enjoy your acting ability at all.
6.Despicable Me $236.3 Million – Well here is a movie that I wish I could say that I got around to seeing as I have heard so many great things about it. This movie not only managed to get some fantastic critical acclaim, but again it proved that well thought out cartoons tend to be more entertaining then the majority of live action movies that crawl their way to the big screen these days. Despicable Me will be at the top of my list of movies yet to see this year.
5.Shrek Forever After $238.1 Million – Now here is the perfect example of when and how cartoon movies do not work. Shrek Forever After is by far the worst of the Shrek movies, and that is a sad title to hold seen as past the first Shrek movie they really did not have a leg to stand on. When will Mike Myers learn that people eventually will get sick of your boring repeat characters. Yes Mike you can be a funny man, but now e do not need anymore Shrek movies, or Austin Powers movies, or Wayne’s World movies, or well I hope to god that he never makes a follow up to the Love Guru. Mike Myers it is time to find yourself an all new role to take on and quick. Shrek Forever After plumits what was once a unique film into the realm of “WHAT WERE THEY THINKING”
4.Inception $270.5 Million – It goes without saying that when you mix Christopher Nolan and say anyone with acting talent then you are bound for greatness. Inception was in my opinion the best movie of the summer and at this point is the best movie of 2010. Leonardo Dicaprio is a lead man that draws a crowd, and well simply put he is worth the money spent. Leo has come a long way since his debut on the big screen, but he continues to deliver magnificent roles that we continue to love to watch. Inception was brilliant on so many levels and if you still are having trouble figuring out what was going on in the movie then please refer to another post of mine
Christopher Nolan Think Therefor He Is…Brilliant! which I had posted over at
Rankography Movies.
3.The Twilight Saga: Eclipse $298.0 Million – Sadly enough I have seen all the movies in this series. My girlfriend Shaunna enjoys watching these movies and so together we have seen all three of them. While the third installment of this horrible series was probably the best of the three, it really does not say too much. The Twilight series is about as interesting as slow drying paint on the walls. The acting is terrible, the directing is equally as bad, and the scripts well I almost wonder if they actually had scripts or whether they just allowed these actors to ramble on their psycho-babble. Eclipse does not deserve to have ever made its way in to a top ten list of any sorts, unless it is the top ten list of movie sequels that are bad and yet still outshine the other dribble in their series of movies. The Twilight Saga needs to be introduced to Garlic, Holy Water, and a Stake To The Heart so that we can finally put this melodramatic teen franchise of glittery Vampire to rest once and for all.
2.Iron Man 2 $312.1 Million – A movie that was not quite as good as the original but yet managed to keep itself just interesting enough to hold its own. I was impressed by the direction of the movie which chose once again not to go down the same road as many Superhero sequels and make an attempt to contain more story then what would be expected from a movie such as this. Iron Man 2 also held its own with a cast that makes it worth the while, plus Robert Downey Jr. is pretty much box office gold at the moment.
1.Toy Story 3 $405.7 Million – If it were not for Inception I would consider Toy Story 3 to be the best movie of 2010 so far. The third installment of the series from Pixar Animation was a strong entry and amazed audiences worldwide. The team at Pixar should be proud of their continued ability to produce superior movies. It is not often that a film company does everything right for this many years. Hopefully the trend of originality and unique movie making continues for Pixar over the year.
The Future of Movies In 2010
Now that the summer is officially over it is time to start looking to the dramatic and Oscar worth movies to start making their way to the big screen soon. Hopefully for the sake of movie geeks like myself the best of 2010 is yet to come. This time last year I could name you a list of ten movies from 2009 that I enjoyed and would recommend, this year I am having trouble even outing together a top 5 list.
It will be a year to forget when it comes to movies unless something comes along soon to save us from this horrible dry spell. I am anxiously awaiting the fall/winter season to see if we can still yet get a list of movies that is worth our time and money.
In a movie season that was dry and boring I could only imagine that even a documentary about my mindless rants would come across as a more award winning feature this year. Ladies and gentlemen then Academy goes to “Good Job Rob!”
Rob Munson (MDotMovieMan) is the author of his new website Good Job Rob which can be found at robmunson.blogspot.com. If you like what you read please comment, if you don't like what you read also comment because Rob always wants to get as much feedback as possible.
Growing up, October was always Shock-tober - a time when the whole family gathered around to watch classic (and not-so-classic) Horror films. Instead of blogging about the best Horror movies of all time that we all know - Halloween, The Exorcist, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Shining, Psycho, Nightmare on Elm Street, The Omen, Friday the 13th, etc. - I thought I would cover five 'modern'/post 2000 Horror films worth checking out.
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