Joel Siegel's Top 10 Summer Movies

Aug. 30 -- This summer, Hollywood will set two records: It's the best summer ever at the box office and the worst summer ever on the screen.

So far, ticket sales from Memorial Day through last weekend stand at $2.7 billion, up 11 percent from last year and 9 percent from the same period in 1999.

That's quit impressive, considering how many movies were made for 14-year-old boys (or 40-year-olds who think they're still 14).

Still, amid all the noise and nonsense that makes summer movies what they are, some of these films are still worth seeing.

Top 10 Summer Movies

10. O — It's "O" is in Shakespeare's Othello — and as in Oscar-worthy script. The classic play is reset at a South Carolina prep school. Excellent performances from Mekhi Phifer as the Moor turned basketball star and Julia Stiles as Desi, the dean's daughter who just can't remember where she put that handkerchief.

9. The Deep End — One terrific thriller. The special effects here are a great cast and a great story. Co-written and directed by a guy named David Siegel. I know we're not related. I don't have any relatives this talented.

8. Sexy Beast — Ben Kingsley plays the anti-Ghandi in this Brit film noir. He's the meanest man in the world.

7. The Score — Edward Norton outdoes Robert De Niro and outflanks Marlon Brando. The fun they all have is contagious. You'll catch it just sitting in the audience. Brando's fat, the movie's phat.

6. Ghost World — While watching this, I kept hearing the line from Planet of the Apes when one of the chimps adopts a young girl as a human pet. "Don't keep her too long," she's told. "The last thing you want around your house is an adolescent human." Ghost World gives us so real a look at adolescence you won't laugh so hard you'll cry … you'll cry so hard you'll laugh.

5. The Anniversary Party — Shot on video, it's basically a home movie with a bunch of buddies who also happen to be some of the most talented actors in Hollywood. I suspect even they didn't think the film was this good.