I saw Gamer this evening, and I should preface anything I say about the film with this: I must have been in the mood for exactly this movie. My rating system is not an attempt to judge the relative merits of this summer's films, nor to offer sage insight into what you, the Schlock Mercenary reader will enjoy. No, this system just ranks how much fun I had at the theater. I had a lot of fun this evening. 1. Star Trek 2. Up 3. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince 4. Gamer 5. Inglourious Basterds 6. District 9 7. Terminator: Salvation 8. Angels & Demons 9. G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra ----The Threshold of Disappointment... do not cross!---- 10. Transformers: ROTF 11. Land of the Lost 12. Night at The Museum 2 13. Wolverine So there you go. A new #4. But don't take this as a recommendation of the film. Take this as a condemnation of my tastes this evening. I wanted grisly, choppily-edited action with a side of heavy-handed "author's message," and Gamer delivered it all in a greasy cardboard box. Of the summer's films (and this one counts -- it came out before Labor Day!) only three have struck me with strong, valid commentary on issues I face and principles I must choose to either eschew or embrace. Those films are Up, District 9, and Gamer. Okay, okay, FOUR films -- I'll throw in Angels & Demons. Up gave us "life is a journey." District 9 scolded us for the inhumanities we inflict once we allow ourselves to stop thinking of others as people. Angels & Demons asked us to consider Science vs. Religion. And finally, Gamer used an absurd premise to show us how horrible we can become when we are allowed to act without personal consequences. I may get to see 9 this week, and I'll throw it on the list just because the weather is still nice. (If we get September snow here though NO MOVIE REVIEW.)
