Mid-Summer Movie Bottom Lines

I like movies.  And while box office numbers this year imply a decrease in movie theater attendance, I find I'm still a regular movie-goer.  So here's a compilation of my summer movie bottom lines (why just bottom lines and not full reviews?  Well for one, I'm lazy.  And secondly, it's not like anyone is reading this anyway, right?)

Thor
Thor was all around okay.  Acting okay, action okay.  It just didn't quite live up to the films of its co-Avenger, Iron Man.
Kudos:  Kat Dennings and her few snarky (but highly entertaining) lines.
Monkus:  The top secret government officials were the main "bad guy" on Earth, and yet they just sort of backed off once the giant robot monster arrived.  Also, what a waste of talent with Jeremy Renner's one scene (I know it's in preparation for the upcoming Avengers movie, but still a waste).

The Hangover Part II
The same exact story as the first one, but less funny and much more ridiculous (in a bad way).
Kudos:  I guess I should be glad there are more Asians in this one (I'm all for larger Asian representation in American films)...
Monkus:  Wait Alan (Zach Galifianakis) did it again?  It's his fault again?  Seriously, couldn't someone else have fucked up? (oh sorry, I guess I should have said Spoiler Alert!)

Something Borrowed
I haven't read the book, so I don't know if this statement applies to just the movie, but the characters were fairly unlikable, and the plot was weak beyond its general premise (I honestly don't remember many specific scenes).
Kudos:  Saving grace John Krasinski.  And I appreciated the Shake Shack cameos.
Monkus:  Why does Kate Hudson continue to play these horrible characters?  Oh wait, I meant why does Kate Hudson continue to get work given her horrible performances as these characters?

Bridesmaids
Comedy gold.  This was a great movie, and not just for women as some would have initially believed.
Kudos: I love that I wasn't sitting in the theater constantly going, "These women are too attractive to be having these 'Plain Jane' ugly-girl issues" (see Something Borrowed above).
Monkus:  The only thing I can think of:  why would someone honestly mix, bake, and then decorate a single cupcake?

X-Men: First Class
For a super hero movie, this was pretty good (better than Thor and Green Lantern).  I enjoyed it even though I don't really follow the X-Men.
Kudos:  Getting talented actors to fill the roles.
Monkus:  The girl with butterfly wings who spits fire just didn't cut it for me.  I mean couldn't they find more X-ceptional (like my stupid pun?) mutants to be part of the crew?  I mean this both in the fictional sense that Dr. X and would-be Magneto couldn't recruit better mutants, and in the writing sense that the writers couldn't find a better character out of the X-Men canon.

Super 8
For the most part this was a good movie, especially considering the large number of child actors.  A nice mixture of sci-fi and emotional drama.
Kudos:  As many official reviews noted, it generates a warm feeling of nostalgia.  Plus, the score was nice.
Monkus:  A Steven Spielberg movie about an alien that just wants to go home... That sounds oddly familiar... All that's missing are the flying bikes.

Midnight in Paris
Whimsical and funny, I very much enjoyed this film, best described as Woody Allen's love letter to Paris.
Kudos:  Getting a few well-known actors to play small roles as the famous creative minds of the 1920s.  It's like an I-Spy game.
Monkus:  That opening montage was like ten minutes too long (and that accordion song in the background just became annoying after awhile).  I get what you're trying to do Mr. Allen.  You're showing us Paris over the course of the day.  It's called an "opening image", not an "opening mini-movie".

Green Lantern
Another summer super-hero movie.  This one just couldn't fully grab my attention.  I don't have a good reason why.  It was just missing something.
Kudos:  Ryan Reynolds  = eye candy (I can't believe I just wrote "eye candy")
Monkus:  All the aliens were pretty lame.  Especially the fly green lantern.  Are you trying to tell me there's some sector of the universe where flies are the most sentient beings?

Horrible Bosses
An all-star cast with some hilarious moments, but something just fell short.  I guess I never fully sympathized with the characters beyond the fact that they had sucky bosses.
Kudos:  John Francis Daley for graduating from Freaks and Geeks wimp to successful screenwriter.
Monkus:  The resolution to the Jennifer Aniston horny dentist boss story line was just weak in my opinion.

That's it for now.  More bottom lines likely at the end of the summer.

Daily Monku:  If I buy origami paper, is it unreasonable to expect the paper to actually be square?  Isn't technology developed enough to cut a square piece of paper with equal length edges?