At the movies: Patrick Patterson weighs in on summer films
Thunder forward Patrick Patterson is a film buff who tries to see a movie or two a week. We asked him for his take on some of the summer’s biggest films:
Spider-Man: Homecoming
“Hands down it’s the best Spider-Man they’ve made. They did a phenomenal job. I like the diversity in the cast that they added in there. Michael Keaton was phenomenal. I’m looking forward to the next one. I’d definitely recommend it for families, for older people — no matter what age, you can go see it.”
Baby Driver
“It’s great. Usually movies that involve some kind of getaway driver, in my opinion aren’t that great. Jamie Foxx is an amazing actor, but him in a movie like that, you don’t think it’s going to be that great. But they really pieced it together to make a phenomenal movie. The cast, the acting, was very convincing. The dialogue is so fluid; it has a flow throughout the movie.”
Wonder Woman
“Everyone’s talking about how she’s bringing back DC Comics and how she saved Batman v. Superman, because that was a travesty. I thought it was OK. I thought there might be a little more action, more fight sequences. It’s long. There’s a lot of storytelling about her journey, her upbringing. I understand how they’d want to introduce her and not have so much fighting, but I wish there was little bit more action. There’s a lot of talking, a lot of narrative.”
The Big Sick
“I’m not big on rom-coms or romance in general, but that had gotten so much hype and my friends and family told me about it, so I went to see it and was surprised how good it was. It’s definitely a movie a guy can go see without a woman. I’m not taking my homeboy, but it’s a movie you can sit down and see as a man with or without your girlfriend or your family. It’s a roller coaster of emotions — happiness, sadness — and they did a great job.”
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
“By far those are my favorite Marvel Universe movies. They do such a crazy job with that. Chris Pratt is hilarious. Each and every character in those movies — whether it’s the main five or the extras or additions, actors in smaller roles — they all flow perfectly. There’s action — who doesn’t love these comic books brought to life? But it’s got the right mixture of action with comedy at just the right points in time.”
War for the Planet of the Apes
“See that. It’s the last one, and it’s the best one. It shows the lead-up into the original Planet of the Apes, so you get an idea of how it all started. Woody Harrelson did an amazing job, even though he’s in it for a surprisingly short period of time. It’s amazing how they make the apes humanlike with their talking and motion and movement. The visual effects are just astonishing.”
Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets
“I thought it would be a lot better, from what I saw in the previews. I thought Valerian and Laureline had a good chemistry. I think that was the first time I saw Cara (Delevingne) in a serious role, and I thought she did a great job. It’s very vivid action, some light comedy. I’d give it maybe a 7.5 out of 10, but I thought it would be better than it was. The previews made it look out of this world.”