The round of 32 for the "Best Films of the Summer Box Office, 2002" tournament has arrived. Plus, a look at a few favorites from that summer.
Normally, when embarking on one of these "Best Films of the Summer Box Office" tournaments, there is a recall of when and where I first saw the movie. Or, at the very least, I can say I've heard of 80-85 percent of the 64 films in any given tournament.
That's not quite the case for the films from the summer box office of 2002.
As a person who tends to watch movies more than once (though that has fallen by the wayside in recent years, as I've relied less on cable television), I can safely say I've only seen a handful of these summer films from 2002 more than once.
Attack of the Clones is on that list, mostly because no matter the quality of a Star Wars film, I will usually always watch it if it's on and I happen upon it. The same can be said with most Adam Sandler comedies, including the zany Mr. Deeds.
About a Boy with Hugh Grant and Minority Report are two others from that summer that I've seen multiple times. Both are quality films, and About a Boy is one of my favorite films released in the last 20 years, if not of all-time.
The Good Girl with Jennifer Aniston was also a favorite from that summer. As much as an impact it had on me upon that first viewing, I don't believe I've watched it in the nearly 20 years since its release.
First-round voting on the top films from the 2002 summer box office also held something new, with hardly any lower seeds advancing. (Save for the May region, where special circumstances changed the course of this region. Read more below.) Not only that, match-ups were rarely close, with even a few films snagging the elusive victory with 100 percent of the vote.
See the round of 32 match-ups here:
May region
Regretfully, I made an error that was so kindly pointed out to me by a Twitter user. Two films, Catch Me If You Can and Die Another Day, were actually both holiday releases that year. When putting together and finding the films, for some reason, I saw these listed for May. Even as I doubted this was true, I believed my memory had failed me and so I went ahead with their inclusion. More proof that I could use an editor.
That being said, I went ahead and moved their first-round opponents, seeds 13 and 14, ahead in the bracket.
There were two other lower seeds advancing in this region, with 11th-seed Undercover Brother and 9th-seed About a Boy both moving on.
- 1) Spider-Man
- 9) About a Boy
- 5) The Sum of All Fears
- 13) The Importance of Being Earnest
- 11) Undercover Brother
- 14) Deuces Wild
- 7) Insomnia
- 2) Star Wars: Attack of the Clones
June region
The June region was much more traditional, with the top seeds all advancing. Four of the films moved on with 90 percent of the vote or higher, including a 96 percent tally for Minority Report.
Bad Company, the 8-seed and pairing of Chris Rock with Anthony Hopkins, was in the closest match of the region, winning 56.7 - 43.3 over Hey Arnold! The Movie.
- 1) Scooby Doo
- 8) Bad Company
- 5) The Bourne Identity
- 4) Mr. Deeds
- 6) Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood
- 3) Minority Report
- 7) Windtalkers
- 2) Lilo & Stitch
July region
Voting went mostly for the top seeds in the July region, too. That is, until love for David Arquette (or spiders) showed up, propelling 10-seed Eight-Legged Freaks into the round of 32.
Seeds 2 and 3, Men in Black II and Road to Perdition, each snagged victories with 100 percent of the vote. And it was another close one in the 8 vs 9 match-up, with the 8-seed Halloween: Resurrection eking one out over Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course, 51.5 - 48.5.
1) Austin Powers in Goldmember
8) Halloween: Resurrection
5) Like Mike
4) Stuart Little 2
6) Reign of Fire
3) Road to Perdition
10) Eight-Legged Freaks
2) Men in Black II
August region
A couple of lower seeds found their way to the round of 32. Serving Sara, the 9-seed, slid by with 57 percent of the vote. 10-seed The Good Girl had a much easier time, advancing with 81 percent.
Three films in this region crossed the 90 percent mark, with Signs notching 96 percent, Blue Crush at 95, and One Hour Photo securing 93.
- 1) Signs
- 9) Serving Sara
- 5) The Master of Disguise
- 4) Blue Crush
- 6) One Hour Photo
- 3) Spy Kids 2
- 10) The Good Girl
- 2) XXX
Voting takes place on Twitter (@jasonrh_78) and will continue a winner is crowned. Thanks for voting and playing along!
Summer box office of 2002: The bracket
Photo credit: rawpixel
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