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Mr. Movie

Hollywood film critic and historian Leonard Maltin dishes on all-time favorites and the summer movies coming to a South Bay theater near you.

Most anticipated summer movies:

Woody Allen’s To Rome With Love, which I hope is a worthy follow-up to Midnight in Paris; Seth MacFarlane’s Ted, with Mark Wahlberg and Mila Kunis; the new Pixar feature Brave; and Wes Anderson’s Moonrise Kingdom. Naturally, I’m curious about Men in Black 3, the reboot of Spider-Man, Prometheus, and the other blockbuster-type movies, but I’ve been burned too many times to get my excitement up just yet.

 

Favorite summer movie of all time:

To me, Jaws will always be the ultimate summer movie. I’m old enough to have seen it the first time around, and it made an indelible impact on me. I also made an indelible impact on my wife’s elbow, from grabbing it so often during the screening.

Popcorn or candy?

When I was a kid, the only way I would eat movie popcorn was if it was drenched in butter (and they used real butter back then). Nowadays, I’m always watching my weight, but I do love popcorn, and if I’m being naughty, I eat Raisinets.

Favorite stars of today:

Meryl Streep makes any movie worth seeing; her performance was the only real reason to see The Iron Lady. I feel the same way about Woody Harrelson, Helena Bonham Carter, Patricia Clarkson, Paul Giamatti, James McAvoy, Matt Damon, Emily Watson, and many others.

Action star of tomorrow:

I keep waiting for the action star of tomorrow to show up. 

I guess Jason Statham will do for now.

All time favorite movie stars:

Humphrey Bogart. Or Charlie Chaplin. Or a couple dozen others.

Actor or actress on the verge of exploding:

There are so many terrific young actors and actresses; I don’t know who’s going to explode, but I think Mia Wasikowska, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Carey Mulligan, Chris Evans, Elizabeth Olsen, Michael Shannon, Jessica Chastain and Andrew Garfield are all going to have long careers. The challenge for them is finding parts that are worthy of their talent.

Last movie you saw where you laughed out loud?

The Five-Year Engagement with Jason Segel and Emily Blunt.

Last time you cried?

When I realized I’d have to see Transformers: Dark of the Moon.