This past week and weekend has graced us with several films that have left many little choice but to brave the sweltering heat and make their way to the movies. From outrageously sexy Channing Tatum in Magic Mike doing on-screen what most of us would pass out in the middle of off-screen (because let’s face it, we couldn’t handle that kind of godlike-manly-perfection in the flesh), to the seemingly new and improved Spiderman featuring our beloved Emma Stone, there is a lot to see and it all looks fun, interesting, and worth the price of admission. But what to see?

What….to….see….?

Although I obviously endorse all things Channing Tatum (since Step Up I’ll have you know) and enjoy Marvel films immensely, I decided to change it up a bit with my pick this time and went with the widely advertised Savages. Savages is basically about two Southern California men who develop and sell the best weed in the world, share a girlfriend, and get mixed up with a brutal cartel in Mexico that wants in on their skills and trade—badly. When the guys refuse this proposed partnership, Salma Hayek (the Mexican cartel leader) retaliates by abducting the woman both these men share.

This film’s understanding of the drug trade and of what it means to be in the business of illegal drug activity was refreshing. Without giving anything away, I appreciated the message Savages sent about what it can really take to remain at the top of an illegal trade and what a person can be forced to become to protect themselves from the competition. Just because one side wants to play fair doesn’t mean the other side will. Sometimes even the most good of good can lose their soul when walking on the wrong side of the tracks— certain professions make it downright impossible not to get savage.

Despite my appreciation of this message, I’m extremely disappointed I saw this movie instead of any number of other blockbusters out right now. Although  the acting of some like Salma Hayek, Benicio Del Toro, and Aaron Johnson was exceptional, others like Blake Lively made the film difficult to watch and almost impossible to stay engaged. Her lethargic and slurred narration throughout the film, holes in the plot, and the director’s terrible decision with the ending has left me with zero interest in ever seeing it again.

This, was not the film to see. I chose wrong =(.