As this year’s summer movie season winds down, which movies will we still be talking about 10 or 20 years from now? I’m talking about the big studio summer blockbusters. I wouldn’t bet many, if any, will be remembered.
If there were to be contenders, “Furiosa” had its fair share of admirers. So did, to a lesser extent “Longlegs,” which turned out to be overhyped by brilliant marketing. Maybe “Inside Out 2” will be streamed by kids and parents alike. Otherwise, it’s been a mediocre summer movie season for quality blockbusters, and one, it needs to be mentioned, hampered by last year’s strikes.
This all leads me to Chris Nashawaty’s “The Future Was Now: Madmen, Mavericks, and the Epic Sci-Fi Summer of 1982,” a new book that makes the case for 1982 as the single greatest summer movie season ever.
Nashawaty concentrates on eight landmark films that opened 42 years ago, over the course of a single summer movie season: “Conan the Barbarian”, “The Road Warrior,” “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,” “Poltergeist,” “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan,” “Blade Runner,” “The Thing” and “Tron.”
It should be noted that the book does not focus on four additional key titles from the summer of ‘82: “Diner,” “An Officer and a Gentleman,” “Fast Times at Ridgemont High,” and “Porky’s”
So, does any other summer movie season compare? Nowadays, between May and June, the biggest summer movies tend to be franchise-oriented; superheroes, IP, animation, reboots, sequels, etc. Compare it to the, say, 1998 which was the summer of “Saving Private Ryan,” “The Truman Show,” “There’s Something About Mary,” “Out of Sight,” “Bullworth,” “The Negotiator.” All originals.
I’ve dusted off the archives, gone down into a deep rabbit hole, and after much reflection, have come to the conclusion that, contrary to popular belief, 1982’s title as greatest ever might have some serious competition in the form of 1999 …
“The Sixth Sense”, “The Matrix,” “The Blair Witch Project”, “Eyes Wide Shut”, “The Iron Giant,” “Election,” “Bowfinger,” “South Park: Bigger Longer Uncut,” “Dick,” “Summer of Sam,” “American Pie,” “The Mummy.”
Now it’s your turn. Is Nashawaty correct? Did 1982 have the most iconic batch of summer movie titles?
The ‘Smile’ franchise has a new director. David Bruckner, who made “The Night House” and the 2022 “Hellraiser” reboot, has been hired to direct “Smile 3” for Paramount.