Bracket: Best Summer Blockbusters - Round Two
It’s time for you to vote for Round 2, the Sweet 16, of the Best Summer Movie Bracket. We broke down the matchups below with our thoughts, but, as a reminder, you, the audience, get to decide the entire bracket. Our votes do not count for anything.
All movies and seeds were determined by an audience vote. We had zero input and will have no input on the actual voting each round.
1. ‘The Dark Knight’ vs. 4. ‘Saving Private Ryan’
Jeff: I took heat for not picking ‘Saving Private Ryan’ in the first round, but I am going to assume my pick of ‘The Dark Knight’ won’t be looked down upon here in round number two. This is the quintessential summer blockbuster and might be my pick in every single round.
Pick: ‘The Dark Knight’
KenJac: This is tough because I think ‘Saving Private Ryan’ is a better movie, but ‘The Dark Knight’ definitely fits better with the theme of summer blockbusters. Please forgive me Cpt. Miller.
Pick: ‘The Dark Knight’
–
3. ‘Aliens’ vs. 2. ‘Jaws’
Jeff: ‘Jaws’ just screams “summer” and should be an easy pick for everyone. Don’t get me wrong, ‘Aliens’ is a fantastic movie, but not picking ‘Jaws’ here seems just wrong.
Pick: ‘Jaws’
KenJac: I have to go ‘Jaws’ without a shred of doubt. It’s one of those movies you automatically associate with the beach, summer, and the terror of feeling your foot touch anything when swimming in the ocean.
Pick: ‘Jaws’
1. ‘Independence Day’ vs. 4. ‘The Hangover’
Jeff: I am stunned that ‘The Hangover’ was able to knock off ‘Die Hard’ in the first round. While I don’t think ‘The Hangover’ holds up well, it is still one of the better put together comedies of the previous decade. Plain and simple, it’s a better movie than ‘Independence Day’ in my eyes.
Pick: ‘The Hangover’
KenJac: Both are great movies in their respective genres, but ‘Independence Day’ is something so ingrained in blockbuster culture I’d be a fool not to pick it. Also, how the fuck did ‘The Hangover’ beat ‘Die Hard’?
Pick: ‘Independence Day’
Advertisement
–
3. Mad Max: Fury Road vs. 7. ‘Star Wars’
Jeff: This is a crazy good battle and tough for me to pick. On one hand, I am a massive ‘Star Wars’ fan and am glad it pulled the upset, but on the other hand, I just think ‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ is a better movie. I even gave it a 99/100 back in 2016. Because this is a “best” bracket, I will have to remove my bias and go with the numbers here to support my pick.
Pick: ‘Mad Max: Fury Road’
KenJac: I’m big mad about ‘Gladiator’ losing, but I understand the thought process considering how dark the movie was. I love ‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ but it has absolutely no chance here.
Pick: ‘Star Wars’
1. ‘Jurassic Park’ vs. 4. ‘Superbad’
Jeff: The number two overall seed, ‘Jurassic Park’ nearly got upset in the first round, but lives to fight another day. As I have said with all of my picks, I have to go with the better movie and that means ‘Superbad’ for me. It’s probably my favorite comedy of all time and a darkhorse pick to win this bracket.
Pick: ‘Superbad’
KenJac: Damn, what a close vote for ‘Jurassic Park’. I’m going to let it ride vs. ‘Superbad’ mostly because I associate action movies with summer blockbusters over comedies.
Pick: ‘Jurassic Park’
–
6. ‘E.T.’ vs. ‘Back to the Future’
Jeff: ‘E.T.’ making it to the second round was much deserved after getting shafted on its seeding, but this is a no-brainer pick for me in wanting ‘Back to the Future’ to advance.
Pick: ‘Back to the Future’
KenJac: I’m furious ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ didn’t beat this dumbass alien. Well, phone an ambulance you melting turd looking motherfucker, because Marty McFly is about to put you in a casket.
Pick: ‘Back to the Future’
1. ‘Empire Strikes Back’ vs. 4. Indiana Jones – Raiders of the Lost Ark
Jeff: Dynamite Harrison Ford matchup but another easy pick because ‘Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back’ is basically a perfect movie.
Pick: ‘Empire Strikes Back’
KenJac: This sucks. I love both movies to the nth degree, but objectively, ‘Empire Strikes Back’ is a better overall movie.
Pick: ‘Empire Strikes Back’
–
6. ‘Inception’ vs. 2. ‘Terminator 2′
Jeff: Hell yeah, suck shit, ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’. The creativity of ‘Inception’ alone made it an easy choice over ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’, but against ‘Terminator 2’? Now that is a much harder matchup to pick. I just can’t roll with James Cameron here based solely on ‘Avatar’. Did bias creep in here? Sure. Am I picking ‘Inception’? Yes.
Pick: ‘Inception’
KenJac: I love ‘Inception’, but it’s a pretty sad movie. I like my summer blockbusters to be a fun adventure, which is why I’m going with ‘T2′. Easily one of the best sequels ever made.
Pick: ‘Terminator 2’
–
EDIT: Marvel pulled an “overrated power conference in the NCAA Tournament” move by getting all three movies bounced in the first round.
TIME TO VOTE!
—
Per usual, make sure to follow us on Twitter, Instagram and subscribe to the Lights, Camera, Barstool podcast by clicking all of these links. We will update for Round Three voting after Round Two voting is complete.