2015 Summer Movie Season Awards by Matt Harrison

The summer movie season has come to an end. I think it's fair to say that with the exception of a handful of real gems, the 2015 summer movie season was a bit of a let down. However, like last year I'd thought I'd do this to look back over and reflect on the last 4 months of cinematic entertainment.


If you'd like to see the post I made for last year's summer movie season, follow this link: http://movieswithmattharrison.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/2014-summer-movie-season-awards-by-matt.html


A small disclaimer before we begin, I didn't see every single movie to come out this summer. However, I did see all of the big releases. If there was one film I regret not seeing it would be The Gift, the Joel Edgerton directed thriller which unfortunately I have not seen as of right now. I hope to see it soon. Enough delay, on with the "awards"...



Best Hero - Furiosa (Mad Max: Fury Road)

In a year of multiple superhero ensemble films, it was the badass female leads which really stood out. Charlize Theron's Furiosa was the best character in Mad Max: Fury Road, consistently overshadowing the titular character played by Tom Hardy. Furiosa is the epitome of a strong female in an action film, and was equally interesting as a human character who just wants to find her way back home. Rebecca Ferguson's Ilsa Faust of Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation would have been another worthy recipient, but she just missed out to one of the best characters put to screen in any 2015 film so far. Honourable mentions include both Vision and Ant Man.



Best Villain - Ultron (Avengers: Age of Ultron)

Villains have been slightly problematic during 2015 summer movies, with the exception of Ultron. Bursting with a unique, sarcastic personality, armed with a wicked sense of humour and being physically intimidating, Ultron made a great adversary for Earth's mightiest heroes. James Spader's motion capture and vocal performances were the driving forces in creating this iconic Marvel villain, who was also the villain this summer who had his motivations and intentions clearly given to us audience members. He's a brilliantly crafted villain who's fun to watch.



Best Action Scene - Mad Max: Fury Road (yep the whole thing)

Above is just a small peek into the crazed insanity known as Mad Max: Fury Road, a modern day action classic. It is one the craziest movies I've ever seen which immediately pulls no punches by instantly immersing you into this post apocalyptic wasteland where everyone is losing their minds. The action sequences are helmed gorgeously by George Miller who uses minimal cuts and beautiful wide tracking shots to show us the incredible practical effects and convincing stunt work done by dedicated professionals. The whole film is one giant chase scene, and all the action plays out like it does in the clip above. Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation had one of the best bike chase scenes I've ever witnessed, but it doesn't quite edge out this.



Best Comic Book Movie - Avengers: Age of Ultron

I enjoyed Ant Man for what it was, but Age of Ultron is the comic book movie I keep on wanting to revisit over and over again. As said previously, Ultron is the perfect villain for the Avenger's second outing and really challenged the team both physically and psychologically. Its a movie bursting with personality and a great sense of humour, Joss Whedon's staple. Every actor comes to play in this film and every character has a decent arc, even if one or two feel a little tacked on.  The action and visual effects are typically great, and The Vision is an awesome badass who I love... probably too much!



Best Music - Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation

This movie deserved some love, it couldn't go unrewarded considering how good it was for modern day action films. The musical score to this film is fantastic, my personal favourite of the summer, which pumped you up and got you in the moment. To be honest, the great music is only like the 6th or 7th best thing about Rogue Nation, but it's still pretty badass.



Best Animation - Inside Out

No competition what so ever. Inside Out was the best animated film of the summer, and the best to come out in many years.



Biggest Surprise - Straight Outta Compton

Out of all the films I saw this summer, I did not expect Straight Outta Compton to be the biggest surprise of the season. It's a fascinating biopic about young rap artist's rise to fame, their enormous influence within the music industry as well as the conflict which caused the group NWA to divide and go their separate ways. The performances for the characters Dr Dre, Eazy-E and Ice Cube were all really good, as was Paul Giamatti in a supporting role which I don't think is getting enough praise.



Biggest Disappointment - Jurassic World

It's not a popular opinion, but I seriously dislike Jurassic World. While I really enjoy the first film and appreciate its contribution to cinema, it's not one of my all time favourites. I didn't go into Jurassic World and hate on it because I was comparing it to the original, I hated on it because on a basic level it completely sucks. Generic child characters, mediocre acting, a tonally unbalanced screenplay void of logic and common sense and a "military" subplot forcefully trying to be relevant were the major problems I had with it. In a lot of parts, it was simply unentertaining. The CGI wasn't even as good as it was in its 1993 predecessor! Not even Chris Pratt could save this abomination.



Best Trailer - Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice Comic Con Trailer

It's my most anticipated film of next year, and I really enjoyed this trailer. Please check it out if you haven't done so already.



Most Anticipated Fall Movie - Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens

It's a new Star Wars movie, do I really need to tell you why I'm excited to see this? Come on.



Worst Movie - Fantastic Four

When a director publically apologises for a movie which is set to be released in a mere matter of days, your movie is going to suck. Inevitably, Fant4stic sucked and it sucked hard. I'm honestly baffled at how in 2015 we're still getting superhero movies as bad as Batman & Robin. The actors had no chemistry, the characters had no personality, it's boring as all hell, Doctor Doom is completely butchered and looks worse than a Power Rangers villain plus his motivations don't make any sense. The editing is all over the place, there's no joy or fun to be had and it's a movie where absolutely nothing happens. It feels like a set up to another film... big mistake Fox. Big mistake.



Best Movie - Inside Out

It's my favourite movie of 2015 so far, not just the summer. The animation is typically bright, vivid and gorgeous, but this film has such a relatable and impactful emotional core that it made me cry on both occasions I saw it. The characters are all really funny and entertaining to watch, Lewis Black's Anger being my personal favourite. It's not just emotionally investing, it's also incredibly smart and immersive as a result. It's a kid's movie that I think adults and teens will relate to a lot more. It's such a magnificent film which you should seek out immediately.



It has been a bit of a disappointing summer overall, but the films that were good were all really good. Here's hoping the next 4 months of movies deliver us some breathtaking entertainment. After all it is Oscar season, so the movies have got to start getting better, right?

Thanks for reading,
Matt