Summer movie rundown

Saw a few, missed a bunch (many intentionally). Some thoughts in retrospect:

• Iron Man - surprisingly light and fun through the first two-thirds, a good super-hero date movie; Robert Downey Jr. is seriously back, part 1
  
• Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian - reasonably entertaining kids' fantasy actioner, bit of a disappointment with a slightly mean-spirited feel
  
• Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull - the title indicates a poorly focused Maguffin, which is OK, because we came to see Harrison Ford crack wise and crack his whip, with exciting chases; delivers on expectations, but one hoped it might exceed
  
• WALL-E - Pixar hits this one out of the park with charming characters, the awesome animation we expect, audacious story-telling, and a serious science fiction plot
  
• Hellboy II: the Golden Army - Benicio Del Toro brings something sort of like Hellboy meets Pan's Labyrinth, with entertaining action and some amazing setpieces -- even if just a little predictable and without the narrative majesty of Pan's
  
• Mama Mia! - oddly, I liked this better than the stage show, despite Pierce Brosnan's criminal take on "S.O.S." Meryl Streep seemed to be having fun. and its hard not to like Greek islands
  
• Batman: the Dark Knight - compelling and truly dark, perhaps the best superhero film ever, with a haunting performance by Heath Ledger
  
• Tropic Thunder - totally politically incorrect lampoon of Hollywood, utterly insensitive and often quite funny; Robert Downey Jr. is seriously back, part 2
  
• Vicky Christina Barcelona - entirely lightweight, but with a fine cast; entertaining, well-written, well-acted and attractive fluff. Javier Bardem shows his range as a sensitive romantic artist in contrast with his well-remembered cold-blooded killer in No Country for Old Men. The dialog here is pure Woody Allen, but the Spanish scenery creates a nice departure.