As today marks the end of August, it’s safe to say that the summer movie season is over. Whether it was a good or bad time for movies – from either cinematic or financial points of view – is something that might be debated for quite some time.

What does not seem to be a subject of debate for many, however, is that summer movie season is not considered to be a good launching point for movies with Oscar potential. I am personally not so convinced of this. A pre-fall release is nominated for Best Picture about 90% of the time, and just last year “Crash” pulled off one of the biggest coups is Oscar history.

Personally, I always look forward to the “summer blockbuster season” at the cineplex. I still remember walking out of Sam Raimi’s “Spider-Man 2” in 2004 feeling, for want of a better word, “pumped.” The year prior, we were treated to Gore Verbinski’s “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl,” a film which was fun, hilarious, thrilling and visually superb. And last year I remember sitting in awe of the sheer quality of filmmaking present in Christopher Nolan’s “Batman Begins.” No film from this year’s roster of “event” movies left me feeling as exhilarated…but that doesn’t mean I don’t see Oscar in their future.