BY SIENNA BUCKLEY
Over the summer, a lot of record-breaking films hit theaters. From horror to superhero, movie fans had a great selection to pick from.
The Greek mythology film The Odyssey, directed by Christopher Nolan, garnered a lot of attention. With a talented cast and the first feature film shot on IMAX cameras, The Odyssey quickly became one of the best movies of the summer. “The effects and epic scale of the story were awesome to see on the big screen,” said Alexander Mondano.
Moana dropped into theaters on July 10, bringing the live-action adaptation of the 2016 animated hit to the big screen. Starring Catherine Laga’aia and Dwayne Johnson, the film faced mixed reviews despite doing well on the opening weekend charts. “I would say the Disney version is definitely better because nothing beats Disney, but the live action version is still interesting, and the music is just as good,” said Callie Palmieri.
Supergirl, a big DC movie, did not succeed compared to DC’s previous movie that came out last summer, Superman, but many DC fans liked it. “I would recommend Supergirl, especially for DC fans. I think that movie was great, we saw more background on Krypto and how her planet came to destruction,” said Korla Amporful.
On July 31, two weeks after the release of The Odyssey, another iconic movie with Zendaya and Tom Holland landed in theaters. The critically acclaimed film Spiderman: Brand New Day has gotten an extended viewing window, with many calling it the best Spider-Man film. “The plot was really interesting, and it was hard to look away because I didn’t want to miss anything,” said Quinn Tycenski. “What made it most memorable was finding out that Sadie Sink is going to be Jean Grey in the X-Men reboot.”
Backrooms performed well in theaters, with long-time fans of the fictional internet urban legend, which follows people trapped in endless, maze-like rooms outside of reality, hyping it up. The greatly anticipated film obtained more interest and recognition with its creative memes. “I was honestly pushed by my friends and peers, but I gained interest in it through social media posts and trends,” said Karolina Parashchuk.
Masters of the Universe brought the 1980s Mattel franchise back to life with a campy throwback to the classic sword adventures starring Nicholas Galitzine and Camila Mendes. “It’s a pretty good movie to watch. I’d recommend it because it’s pretty funny, but I will admit it’s kind of corny,” said Imina Ziblim. “There were a lot of repeated attempts at jokes that were already made.”
The indie horror movie Obsession became a big box office hit. The small-budgeted film premiered at a film festival in September 2025, leading to many people loving the original concept and new faces. “Obsession is a creative concept about a man that wishes for a girl to love him. The wish backfires and she loses her bodily autonomy in the process,” said Aleina Marrero. “I recommend it for people that can handle more intense movies because it is a creative horror movie that is intriguing from beginning to end.”
With giant blockbusters and indie films, this summer gave cinephiles many reasons to keep coming back to theaters.
Posted on October 8, 2026
