The Summer Movie Awards | The Big Picture (Ep. 81)

Biggest Surprise of the SummerNetflix finds the rom-com

Set It Up 2018

The office consensus pick. Sean calls it the lightest and funniest of the bunch; Zoey Deutch and Glen Powell star, both relative unknowns.

To All the Boys I've Loved Before 2018

The other half of Netflix's rom-com run, out days earlier, minting Lana Condor and Noah Centineo overnight.

Crazy Rich Asians 2018

Its opening weekend is the theatrical leg of the same rom-com revival.

The Cloverfield Paradox 2018

The blockbuster-swing strategy Chris expected from Netflix 18 months ago, dropped after the Super Bowl.

Bright 2017

The other big-budget JJ Abrams-era bet, only from December.

Outlaw King 2018

Coming this fall: David Mackenzie's Robert the Bruce film, part of Netflix filling genres Hollywood dropped.

Hold the Dark 2018

Jeremy Saulnier's thriller, another fall release in the same slate.

Mudbound 2017

The earlier, prestige-chasing Netflix strategy: the awards play.

War Machine 2017

Same prestige era; a swing that didn't connect.

Best Performance

Tully 2018

Chris's pick for Charlize Theron: a vanity-free turn he rates near Monster, matched to Diablo Cody's dialogue.

Don't Worry, He Won't Get Far on Foot 2018

Sean's pick for Jonah Hill as an AA sponsor in Gus Van Sant's film: svelte, blond, a real transformation few people saw.

Christopher Robin 2018

Sean's shout-out to Jim Cummings, the longtime voice of Winnie the Pooh.

First Reformed 2017

Ethan Hawke, likely a nominee, in one of the best performances both hosts have seen in a while.

Best 'That Guy' Performance

Ant-Man and the Wasp 2018

Chris's pick: Michael Peña, the most delightful thing in the Marvel universe, stealing every scene as he did in the first film.

Avengers: Infinity War 2018

Sean floats two: Josh Brolin bringing pathos to Thanos, and Tom Vaughan-Lawlor as Ebony Maw, the zombie-alien twerp who wins a scene against three Oscar-nominated actors.

Best Sequel

Incredibles 2 2018

Sean's pick, now the biggest animated movie ever made and, he argues, a rare useful sequel.

Sicario: Day of the Soldado 2018

Chris's pick: darker, more violent, taking the first film's uncomfortable parts to unbearable levels. He loved it and won't recommend it to anyone.

Best Horror Moviea thin summer for scares

Hereditary 2018

Sean's pick, though he takes Ari Aster's line that it's more an adult tragedy than a horror movie until the final 20 minutes.

The First Purge 2018

Sean found it effective.

Truth or Dare 2018

Sean was not into it; Chris found it fun.

Unfriended: Dark Web 2018

Both thought it was good.

Upgrade 2018

More sci-fi than horror, a little Verhoeven.

The Ritual 2017

Chris's recommendation: a David Bruckner film with Rafe Spall, hikers meeting something in the Scandinavian woods.

Ghost Stories 2017

Chris's other pick: a Martin Freeman-led anthology about a paranormal debunker, with a touch of Ben Wheatley.

Best Indie

Three Identical Strangers 2018

Triplets separated at birth reunite by chance; the first 12 minutes are the setup and everything after is wild and upsetting. Being adapted as a fictional film.

Minding the Gap 2018

Bing Liu's Hulu doc, sometimes called Hoop Dreams for skateboarding: three Rockford kids over a decade, with Steve James producing.

Gemini 2017

Chris's pick: Aaron Katz's LA mystery with Lola Kirke and Zoe Kravitz, essentially The Long Goodbye by way of modern celebrity.

Sorry to Bother You 2018

Boots Riley's anarchic capitalism satire with Lakeith Stanfield.

Leave No Trace 2018

Debra Granik's father-daughter drama with Ben Foster, and a breakout for Thomasin McKenzie.

Best Scene

Mission: Impossible - Fallout 2018

The all-white bathroom fight: choreographed well, funny, and it introduces characters smartly. Sean has seen the film twice for it.

Sicario: Day of the Soldado 2018

Chris's pick: the border crossing shot from a child's perspective, plus the double-cross scenes. Harrowing stuff.

Eighth Grade 2018

The pool-party sequence, scored to throbbing EDM; Bo Burnham has called it among the hardest in the movie to shoot.

Biggest Missed Opportunity

The Meg 2018

Sean's pick: a Statham shark movie that should have been an easy win, made cheap. A sequel is coming anyway.

Ocean's 8 2018

Inert, unfunny, a heist that never quite comes together. Sandra Bullock is underused, and both wish Soderbergh had directed it.

Skyscraper 2018

Die Hard in a super-building, the easiest sell there is, and it doesn't work. A rough summer for the Rock alongside Rampage.

Things That Were Missing From This SummerChris's category: the movies that never showed up

Deadpool 2 2018

The one that did show up. Not a story or characters Sean cares about, but the slavish commitment to the fourth-wall bit stuck with him.

Baby Driver 2017

The kind of low-stakes, high-reward smart summer movie that gave last year something to chew on.

War for the Planet of the Apes 2017

Another 2017 entry in the 'pretty good, I'd see that again' lane that 2018 lacked.

Dunkirk 2017

No big, serious, prestige-yet-popular swing this summer.

The Dark Knight 2008

No Nolan-style event movie this time around.

Rookie of the Summerseven first-timers, all women

Mission: Impossible - Fallout 2018

Vanessa Kirby, going toe-to-toe with Tom Cruise in her first big movie.

Crazy Rich Asians 2018

Awkwafina, off the double shot of this and Ocean's 8.

Eighth Grade 2018

Elsie Fisher.

Leave No Trace 2018

Thomasin McKenzie, the real revelation of the film.

Madeline's Madeline 2018

Helena Howard in Josephine Decker's experimental film about an acting student.

Blockers 2018

Geraldine Viswanathan, who owns the movie; next up is Bad Education opposite Hugh Jackman.

To All the Boys I've Loved Before 2018

Lana Condor, in a specific, idiosyncratic Meg Ryan-style lead.

Best 'What Happened Here'

Solo: A Star Wars Story 2018

A Star Wars movie almost no one liked. Ron Howard didn't save it, the origin story shouldn't have been an origin story, and the public production drama hurt it. Still, three months on, both admit it's not bad, just not good.

Worst Movie of the Summerand the sorry state of comedy

The Happytime Murders 2018

Sean's pick, no contest. Brian Henson's dirty-puppet movie with Melissa McCarthy: good puppeteering, painfully unfunny.

Tag 2018

Cited in the comedy-is-broken conversation: funny parts, but not enough effort.

Game Night 2018

The closest thing this year to an actually-written comedy; a good script that gets hairy at the end.

Blockers 2018

The other comedy that emerged with a solid box office and real support.

Best Oscar Hopeful

Won't You Be My Neighbor? 2018

Morgan Neville's Mr. Rogers doc, more tribute than biopic. The only movie that made Sean weep in theaters this year.

Best Movie of the Summer

Mission: Impossible - Fallout 2018

The unanimous pick. Chris McQuarrie understands the spirit of a summer movie: a strong star, well-built set pieces, real tension, and a rewatchability rare for the season.

Also mentioned raised along the way

For comparison When Harry Met Sally...Jerry MaguireGet OutMonsterMad Max: Fury RoadYoung AdultAtomic BlondeCon AirThe Long GoodbyeHoop DreamsWinter's BoneThe FugitiveDie HardThere's Something About MaryThe HangoverGhostbustersPacific HeightsBaywatchI Give It a YearInto the Wild

Also mentioned Ant-ManA Quiet PlaceThe NunHalloweenRBGRampageJumanji: Welcome to the JungleFast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & ShawStar WarsBlacKkKlansmanBlack PantherPapillonSearching

Coming this fall The Front RunnerMid90sBad Education

Not films filtered out: TV, games, ads

TV SuccessionAtlantaWestworldBarryKilling EveThe CrownTrue DetectiveManiacThe Shadow Line

Comedy specials NanetteEquanimity

Podcasts The WatchThe Rewatchables

Ads Miller Lite