Three Summer Films

There are three films I want to see this summer: Clerks II (July 21), Miami Vice (July 28), and World Trade Center (August 9). Despite my initial concerns about each, it turns out they all look promising.

There aren't many reviews yet, but Clerks II currently has a perfect approval rating at Rotten Tomatoes. The original Clerks is one of my favorite humor films, though I thought all of the Jay-and-Silent Bob sequels were lousy. So let's hope this "true" sequel really delivers.

Miami Vice also has a good rating, but out of only three reviews so far. I'm excited about this one. Director Michael Mann did the original TV series back in the '80s, so I don't think we have to worry about his film being faithful. The series was innovative in so many ways, not least for using original scoring for each episode -- and with a lot of hard-edged rock music. It really was the first police show to break with formula and let the bad guys win (more often than not), and, more importantly, blur the lines between bad and good.

And I've already observed the pre-critical approval for Oliver Stone's World Trade Center. No conspiracy theories, apparently; just good, non-exploitive, emotionally poignant drama.

UPDATE (7/19): Clerks II is down from 100% to 63% at Rotten Tomatoes.