What a summer filled with great new releases and some discovered classics! Here are a few amazing movies I watched this summer.
“Oppenheimer” (2023)
Christopher Nolan continues to show why he is one of the most unique and inspirational directors working today. Not many filmmakers can make a three-hour, R-rated, dialogue-heavy movie and turn it into a tense, edge-of-your-seat thriller. Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer is fantastic, along with Emily Blunt, Robert Downey Jr., David Krumholtz and Jason Clarke. The score from composer Ludwig Göransson (Black Panther) is incredible and I have been listening to it on repeat. “Oppenheimer” has made $778 million at the worldwide box office, and for good reason.
“Barbie” (2023)
Greta Gerwig does it again. After the success of “Lady Bird” (2017) and “Little Women” (2019), Gerwig, along with her co-writer and husband Noah Baumbach, made what could’ve been a disaster into an irresistible and rewatchable hit. “Barbie” is carried by two phenomenal performances from Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling who bring so much life and energy to the film. Some other notable performances include Simu Liu, America Ferrera and the always-hilarious Michael Cera. “Barbie” has grossed over $1.3 billion worldwide and is the highest-grossing movie of 2023.
“Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning One” (2023)
Tom Cruise, who saved the movie theater industry with “Top Gun: Maverick” (2023) is back as Ethan Hunt in the latest “Mission: Impossible” (MI) film. After the financial and critical success of the previous installment, “Fallout” (2018), Cruise and writer and director Christopher McQuarrie made a wildly entertaining action film that will have your heart pumping. Composer Lorne Balfe takes the classic MI theme and ups it to 11. However, newcomer Grace (Hayley Atwell) joining Hunt’s team steals the spotlight, hooking the audience with her electric energy and charm. “Dead Reckoning Part One” has grossed over $550 million worldwide.
“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” (2023)
Using a killer soundtrack and laugh-out-loud script, James Gunn perfectly bids farewell to the Guardians of the Galaxy (GOTG) and Marvel, for that matter, now that he is moving on to run DC. With a great emotional core riding throughout and every cast member on their A-game, it is really refreshing for the Marvel Cinematic Universe to release a film that doesn’t feel like a carbon copy of the previous movie. GOTG Vol. 3 made over $845 million at the worldwide box office.
“Cop Land” (1997)
Not everything I watched this summer was released recently. This 1997 crime drama from “Logan” (2017) director James Mangold features an all-star cast, with notable names such as Sylvester Stallone, Harvey Keitel, Ray Liotta and Robert De Niro. “Cop Land” follows an aging, partially deaf Sheriff (Stallone) from a town populated by NYC police officers. As Stallone begins investigating an incident involving other police, he discovers truths about the town that he refuses to believe. Looking back now, this is by far the best Stallone has ever been in his career. His quiet and reserved demeanor is so abnormal given the rest of his career, and it is refreshing to watch. De Niro and Keitel are also great, with special shoutouts to Janeane Garofalo and Michael Rapaport, who do a lot with small roles.
