- Wesley Snipes (right) in The Art of War
As far as movies went, the summer of 2000 was a season of disappointment. The big-studio flops included, but were not limited to: Battlefield Earth, Roland Emmerich’s The Patriot, the Wesley Snipes actioner The Art of War, Coyote Ugly (Jerry Bruckheimer’s misbegotten attempt at a feminist statement), Paul Verhoeven’s Hollow Man (though, unlike any of the other movies listed here, that one has gotten better with age), and a couple of flat children’s features (Titan A.E. and The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle). I remember all of these more vividly than I probably should, since I spent the summer working at a suburban multiplex that was on its way out of business and could no longer afford to rent high-profile titles. It was a bit like working at one of those cramped little video stores you used to find in supermarkets and gas stations, except that all the movies were on celluloid.
Ben Sachs writes about moviegoing every Monday.
