Where did the summer go? August 20, 2010

It's rumored that some East Coast school districts are starting up next week, no post labor day schedule for them, and plaintive parents are posting Facebook pictures of their near adult children settling into dorm rooms like there's something wrong with that. But the summer movie season isn't quite over, not when you've got a picture like Piranha 3D popping up in theaters this weekend. I remember the first Piranha; a bunch of us sneaked out of class to see it in a triple bill with Alligator and The Howling. It was, believe it or not, a John Sayles marathon.

This new Piranha is getting oddly good reviews, especially for Elisabeth Shue's performance and I like Elisabeth Shue. 3D sort of annoys me, especially the glasses and the dim screen, but I might show up. Also this weekend we've got The Switch; Jennifer Aniston and Justin Bateman starring in a comedy about a sperm donor baby and his dad's reluctance to embrace adulthood, in a funny way. Apparently Bateman outshines Aniston here, and the kid (Thomas Robinson) steals the show from both of them. Then there's the second installment of Nanny McPhee, for the younger set; and Lottery Ticket, about a kid from the projects who discovers he has a winning lottery ticket on a Friday, and has to wait until Monday to cash it, avoiding all sorts of pitfalls over the course of the weekend. Finally, among big openings, there's Vampires Suck, a satire parody movie that messes around with the "Twilight" series. I like the idea of this one but I don't know if I can sit through it. In any case, everyone seems to think that The Expendables will take the weekend again, and what is drawing people to this geriatric action pic I have no idea. Maybe I'll check it out.