School is back in session, and everyone is dreading their first graded assignment; whether it’s a test, paper or project. Over the summer, some of the biggest directorial names in Hollywood waited eagerly for their own marks from the hardest graders of them all: the movie-going public. Summer school was in session for these artists of mainstream Hollywood – let’s see how they did.

Director: Michael Bay’Transformers’Story: B-Visual Delight: ALiving up to the summer hype: AOverall: A-

Mr. Bay exceeded expectations. We were all worried when he first announced his project – he was going to be playing with toys after all. But the final result was action-packed, interesting and plain, cheesy fun. Well done.

Director: David Silverman Matt Groening: creatorStory: B+Visual Delight: ALiving up to the summer hype: B Overall: B +

After many extensions (almost a decade’s worth), this project was solid. The jokes were laugh-out-loud quality, and the animation was complex while retaining the simple drawing style the show is known for. Although to be fair, there needed to be more Apu.

Producer: Judd Apatow’Knocked Up’ + ‘Superbad’ (combined)Story: AVisual Delight: A-Living up to the summer hype: AOverall: A

Mr. Apatow is a delight to have in class. He has a real knack for knowing exactly what his audiences are looking for and delivering. His work appealed to all ages, from the elderly who enjoyed a good naughty chuckle, to the underage kid who did everything they could to sneak in to this R-rated film. If anyone deserved a gold star, check plus or smiley face, it would have to be him.

Writer and Director: Brad Bird’Ratatouille’Story: B+Visual Delight: ALiving up to the summer hype: A-Overall: B+

Mr. Bird seems to capture the child in all of us. Not the horrible temper tantrum, messy, near-demon child, but the sweet and innocent one – the one in Hallmark cards and Ann Geddes photos. It was an amazing feat to take a rat living in the sewers of Paris and incorporate him into Disney’s adorable character lineup, but somehow it was done.

Director: David Yates’Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix’Story: B+Visual Delight: ALiving up to the summer hype: B+Overall: B+

Certainly the quietest student in the room, with his name being far less-known than any of the others, Mr. Yates has nothing to be silent about. His adaptation of the largest-selling book series of all time was, by far, the best film yet. He nailed the feelings of angst-ridden teenage years wrapped up in the enchanted Harry Potter universe. We know he has already taken on the next book in the series, and we all hope he will have a magical time with it.

Published on August 29, 2007 at 12:00 pm