Recapping the Big Screen Summer Picks: 2019 Edition

Photo from ScreenRant.

During the past few months people have been at the edge of their seats during the action scenes of “Spider Man: Far from Home” while they also had their heart strings tugged at during “Toy Story 4.” The movie world has, for sure, taken audiences on a rollercoaster of emotions this summer. If you were too busy spending your time at the beach, here are a few summer releases that shouldn’t go unseen. 

‘Spiderman: Far From Home’ (Released July 2)

The bar was set high for Tom Holland and Zendaya in “Spiderman: Far From Home” after “Avengers: Endgame” was released back in April. The movie follows Peter Parker (Holland) across the country on a school trip only for mayhem to break loose and for secret and true feelings to be revealed. While many people saw this movie multiple times in theaters many thought it was better as a stand-alone film and said that it fell far from the high point where “Endgame” left the Marvel fandom.

‘Booksmart’ (Released May 24)

Through the art of comedy, this film had me laughing my butt off while indulging into the realities of approaching graduation. While the film is focused on two best friends who decide to break out of their shells right before high school graduation, Director Olivia Wilde excels at making the movie authentic with the film’s eccentric characters and exaggerated but accurate events. The intentional awkward dialogue was completely a spot with high schooler’s conversations. After all, high school is a series of awkward moments between you, your friends, your peers and your crushes.

‘Toy Story 4’ (Released June 21) 

I’ll be the first to say that I thought introducing a spork as a toy was unbelievably stupid on the creators end, however, somehow this spork, Forky (Tony Hale) fit right in with Woody (Tom Hanks), Buzz (Tim Allen) and the rest of the gang that many of us grew up with. While everyone thought “Toy Story 3” would be and should be the end, “Toy Story 4” happened to be a pleasant surprise. Andy is out of the picture but the film continued to follow old friends, with a few new ones, on another adventure. Contrary to popular belief, this film is by far the most emotional out of the entire series and gave us the ending that perhaps we needed rather than wanted. 

‘The Farewell’ (Released nationwide August 2)

“The Farewell” is based on a true story or as the film said “based on an actual lie.” It’s about a family that decides to not tell the grandmother that she is dying and is expected to only have a short time left to live. They plan a wedding to discreetly bring the family together to spend time with the grandmother in anticipation it’ll be the final time they see her. The film has many emotionally challenging characters. One of them being Billi (Awkwafina), the grandmother’s granddaughter. It really hits hard as “The Farewell” visualizes the pain and sentiments that family members go through as they watch a relative continue to get sick. However, the film also explores the beautiful moments that are often hidden in these situations as well. 


Other notable mentions include “Rocketman,” “ Blinded by the Light,” “The Art of Racing in the Rain,” “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” and “Good Boys.”