July: Your Movie Month In Review

July is the longest month of the year -- in days (tied), in daylight hours, in bottles of aloe used -- and this month was no different: There were a ton of movies released this July, and some of them were even pretty good. And we're pretty sure Grierson saw every single one of them. (Seriously, did he even see the sun this month?) Anyway, it's time to do our monthly look back -- check the bottom of this post for the archive -- at the films of the past month, the ones we saw, the ones we loved, the ones we missed. Welcome to the wonkishness.

Top Ten Highest Grossing Movies Released This July, As Of July 31

1. "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2," $318.5 million
2. "Captain America: The First Avenger," $116.8 million
3. "Horrible Bosses," $96.2 million
4. "Zookeeper," $68.7 million
5. "Friends With Benefits," $38.2 million
6. "The Smurfs," $36.2 million
6 (tie). "Cowboys & Aliens," $36.2 million
8. "Larry Crowne," $35.1 million
9. "Winnie the Pooh," $22.4 million
10. "Monte Carlo," $22.3 million

July 2011 Movies We Saw

Leitch
"Another Earth"
"Attack the Block"
"Captain America: The First Avenger"
"Cowboys & Aliens"
"Crazy, Stupid, Love."
"The Devil's Double"
"Friends With Benefits"
"The Future"
"Good Neighbors"
"The Guard"
"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2"
"Horrible Bosses"
"The Interrupters"
"A Little Help"
"Project Nim"
"Sarah's Key"
"The Smurfs"
"The Ward"
"Winnie the Pooh"
"Zookeeper"

Grierson
"Another Earth"
"Attack the Block"
"Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of a Tribe Called Quest"
"Captain America: The First Avenger"
"Cowboys & Aliens"
"Crazy, Stupid, Love."
"Crime After Crime"
"The Devil's Double"
"Friends With Benefits"
"The Future"
"The Guard"
"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2"
"Horrible Bosses"
"The Interrupters"
"Larry Crowne"
"Life in a Day"
"A Little Help"
"Monte Carlo"
"The Myth of the American Sleepover"
"Point Blank"
"Project Nim"
"Rapt"
"Sarah's Key"
"Septien"
"The Smurfs"
"Snow Flower and the Secret Fan"
"Tabloid"
"Terri"
"The Undefeated"
"The Ward"
"Winnie the Pooh"
"Zookeeper"

Best July 2011 Movie We Saw

Leitch: "The Future"
Grierson: "Project Nim"

Worst July 2011 Movie We Saw

Leitch: "Zookeeper"
Grierson: "Zookeeper"

Movie We Missed But Plan On Getting To

Leitch: "Tabloid"
Grierson: "The Sleeping Beauty"

What We Learned This Month

Leitch: Last month, we felt like we were the only people left (somewhat) cold by Mike Mills' "Beginners." This month, we were blown away by "The Future," a film that's far more difficult to embrace but vastly superior ... and written and directed by Mills' wife Miranda July.
Grierson: After a dreary June, July was filled with a bunch of memorable, great films. Even the movies that weren't very good were big in their own way: "Larry Crowne" tanked in spectacular fashion, and "Zookeeper" was awful in so many ways it was hard to keep track.

We have such hope for August! See you then.

PREVIOUSLY
January 2011
February 2011
March 2011
April 2011
May 2011
June 2011