Best and Worst Summer Blockbusters of All Time

Greatest Summer Blockbusters:

Jaws - The thrills of the film stand up even after 30 years.

Empire Strikes Back - I hate to give away the ending, but Vader declaring "Luke, I am your father" is one of the greatest moments in film.

The Lion King - The first ten minutes of this Disney flick are heart-soaringly beautiful. And "Hakuna Matata" really is a great philosophy for life.

Raiders of the Lost Ark - Everything you want from a summer movie from start to finish.

Stripes - A big, dumb (and yet smart comedy) for adults.

Worst Summer Blockbusters:

Phantom Menace - George Lucas had too much time to deal with special effects and forgot that actors are what makes movies work.

Pearl Harbor - An attempt to make a "Titanic"-like epic that didn't work on any level. I wouldn't still hate it so much if they hadn't been promoting it for about a year before it came out.

Forrest Gump - I just loathe this movie.

Batman and Robin - I've raved about how bad it is before and it still belongs on every list of bad movies I'll ever do.

Twister - A movie that relies only on its special effects. It's not enough.


Of course, feel free to weigh in with your own nominations. And do say why they are the best or worst...

"Forrest Gump ? I just loathe this movie. "

You are now one of my favorite people ever! Everyone on earth loves Forest Gump, but I hate it! I get crap for this all the time, and I get told I have to watch it again. I've seen it 3 times (all the way though believe it or not) and I think that's enough. This is the only movie I ever walked out on in the theatre (I walked out on Getting Even with Dad too, but I returned after trying to sneak into Speed getting caught, so it doesn't count). Kudos to you for hating Forest Gump, you are my movie critiquing hero!

We're in the minority, Benjamin. We need to stick together.

You can increase your minority by one more!

A best/worst summer movie list with no Will Smith movies? I think he has some that belong on each list. "I, Robot" showed that he can indeed act fairly well when given a decent script, and the special effects were great but didn't seem added on to cover up faults. Just about any other Will Smith summer movie could easily wind up on the worst list, as he plays essentially the same chracter in all of them. And while I loved the subversiveness of seeing the White House blown up, "Independence Day" is simply a really bad movie.

And thank you so very much for putting "Batman & Robin" on the worst list. Here's a professed comic book geek's reasons for this unforgiveable piece of garbage:

1. Nipples. Batman has a bullet-proof costume, so why the nipples? Why???

2. Shumacher deviates from the rich history of the comic book in ways too numerous to list here. That's forgiveable when such moves serve to improve the story or movie-going experience. But he fails utterly in those departments.

3. OK, I'll list one deviation: Bane. This character in the comics is a mastermind of a plot against Batman that could have easily spawned two, perhaps three movies. But he's introduced as a bit player who is easily defeated, making it implausible for him to be a major villain later on. Maybe the new Batman will make it easier to rewrite Batman movie history and correct this problem.

nice headshot ms. curtis. wanna go to a movie?

Add me to the list of people who hated Forest Gump. It's a great sleep-aid though...I'll give it that much.

Ms. Curtis, I heard your appearance on Midday last week, in whch you asked, concerning Forrest Gump, "what is the metaphor?"

Here's your answer (at least in my opinion): Gump is an idealized conception of the United States over the baby boom era. The belief is that, if you stick to your "values" and reject the slippery slope of intellect, then everything will be okay, that all of the travails of the world (from wars to civil unrest to disease to natural disasters) will simply roll off your back and you will remain unaffected, even oblivious.

And that's why I don't like the movie.

Don't forget Roadhouse as the greatest movie ever! I'm very serious when I say it too.

please add independence day & now war of the worlds to the worst list. thanks steph!