slimer8489

Summer of '42 was a great movie. I loved its funny and relatable characters, terrific characters, relatable story, excellent score, and the overall artsy nature of the film. It truly is a terrific film.

Now when I heard that there was a sequel to the film, I was a bit skeptical. I immediately thought it would be bad, especially after reading that the film abandons the artsy-ness of the first film and goes for a more straightforward story. But I thought to myself, "It can't be ALL that bad. I mean, we still have the same likable characters." Plus, they're in college, so I assumed that we'd get to see the typical young adult antics displayed in most college films.

I was kind of right.

Yes, it does suck how this film is more simple and straightforward instead of being poetic like the predecessor. But it's not like they had nothing to work with. I mean, this movie is set during World War II. They could have thrown in some social commentary about war, and how it affects young adults and their overall views on it, but nope. But that isn't to say that the film is a total wreck. It makes up for it by reuniting us with the same three friends who haven't changed a bit. Oscy is still a smart-ass, Hermie is still the one who stays true to himself, and Benji is still the same. So, that's good.

But one thing you might be asking yourself when watching this is whatever happened to Dorothy, the girl from the last movie that left a major impact on Hermie's life, in both Summer of '42 and in real-life. I mean, this movie had the same writer, Herman Raucher. I think it should have been at least mentioned, or maybe Hermie is in a deep depression and the new girl that he meets in this film pulls him out of it. Speaking of which, the romance in this movie isn't quite on par with the last movie. I don't see much chemistry between them. And I think that a deep soul like Hermie should have higher standards for women.

Overall, this movie was actually alright, but again, it could have been much better. I wouldn't mind watching this again. It has the same great characters who put on great performances, and it actually has some comedy to it. But because it could have been much more better, I give it a measly 5 stars.

First off, let me start out by saying that this movie is highly underrated. Sure, it's been on TCM time and time again and some people have seen it, but it's not world renowned like other coming-of-age classics like Stand by Me.

For starters, the characters are great. They're all relatable and I'm sure you can think back to a time in your life when you had a group of friends like these. I was a mix between Hermie and Oscy, both well-maintained and sarcastic at times. The actors who portray them put on great performances, too. It was also a great move to have relatively unknown actors play the parts, though I don't know if this was intentional.

Second, it has a very relatable plot. Everybody has had a Summer of '42 in their life, the summer that really changes them, the one that makes them go from childhood to adulthood thanks to a certain event or person, one that really shapes them to the person they are today.

Third, it's quite funny. I mean, the Oscy character really pumps out some funny sarcastic lines, and the rubbers scene alone is worth the price of admission.

Lastly, the main theme is excellent. It sounds so ambient, yet beautiful at the same time. I love how mysterious it is, too; how it plays only when we see Jennifer O'Neill's character, who throughout most of the movie, we know little about. And the fact that Jennifer herself isn't that well-known adds to the mystery.

If there's one thing I could complain about, it's the home media for this. The DVD itself is lacking in special features. Personally, I think this movie needs to be on Criterion. Yeah, get Herman Raucher in there with the guys who played the three boys and anyone else who's still alive from the movie and have a commentary and maybe some interviews. That'd be cool.

All in all, Summer of '42 is in my opinion, one of the best coming of age movies ever. It has great characters, great performances, a great script, and a great score. It's an overall great movie. Check it out.

Disclaimer: I have never seen a single Saw movie, but that doesn't mean I can't enjoy a film just because I haven't seen the others. So, let's begin.

My buddy dragged me to this one. I've been hearing nothing but praise about the Saw movies. Going in, I thought it was about some evil puppet named Jigsaw who went around pulling vicious pranks on people. I was completely wrong. Apparently, the real Jigsaw is some old dude who reminds people about just how much of pieces of crap they can be. Wow, what an ass. I'll give the filmmakers credit, these traps are pretty interesting, but that doesn't save the film from sucking.

There were no likable characters and I couldn't get into the story. Actually, the only character I liked was Carly, played by Brittany Allen, but only because she was hot.

I walked out of the movie feeling a bit confused, probably because I didn't see the others. But if they're anything like this, I don't want to.