May 1st is soon upon us, which means its time to break down what to look forward to and what to look forward to being disappointed by in the summer movie season. There is a lot to cover this year, so lets get to it.
May 1st:
Iron Man 3- The first Marvel movie since the Avengers, and possibly the last Robert Downey Jr. Iron Man solo film. Jon Favreau steps aside for Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang director Shane Black. Ben Kingsley costars as The Mandarin. Guy Pierce and Rebecca Hall also join RDJ, Don Cheadle, and Gwyneth Paltrow.
May 10th:
The Great Gatsby- This Leonardo DiCaprio take on the classic tale was delayed from last Oscar season for unknown reasons. Director Baz Luhrman is incredibly hit or miss, if he hits (Moulin Rouge) he is great, but when he misses (Australia), the results are catastrophic. Tobey Maguire, Carey Mulligan, and Joel Edgerton costar.
May 15th:
Star Trek Into Darkness- The second part of JJ Abrams planned Star Trek trilogy (we'll see how him taking over Star Wars affects his completion of the trilogy) looks a great bit darker than the first. We get Benedict Cumberbatch as villain John Harrison, and while we don't know much about the plot, the trailers are fantastic.
May 24th:
Fast and Furious 6- The final chapter in what Vin Diesel called "the second trilogy" of the F&F films. Dwayne Johnson returns as tracker Luke Hobbs, and while he was the best thing about 5, the film as a whole was the first since the original to be classified as good.
The Hangover Part III- The final chapter (sorry, it just keeps happening) of what director Todd Phillips claims "was always a trilogy" sees the wolf pack return to Las Vegas. Considering how bad Part II was, this can only trend upwards. All the main cast members return.
Only God Forgives- Ryan Gosling reunites with his Drive director Nicholas Winding Refn for this film of which little is known. The IMDB summary indicates Ryan Gosling plays a criminal in the Bangkok underground who seeks revenge on his brothers killer. Kristin Scott Thomas costars.
May 31st:
After Earth- M. Night Shyamalan returns from a necessary hiatus to direct this Will and Jaden Smith vehicle about a father and son who crash land on a ruined Earth. While Will Smith is front and center in the marketing, it appears to be Jaden's film.
Now You See Me- A great cast (Jesse Eisenberg, Isla Fisher, Woody Harrelson, Morgan Freeman, Mark Ruffalo, and Michael Caine) star in this film about a team of magicians (Eisenberg, Fisher, Harrelson, and Dave Franco) who rob banks in the middle of the their act and give the money to the audience. The preview leaves much to be desired.
June 12th:
This is the End- A comedic take on the classic end of the world film, this one takes place at a party at James Franco's house, where the surviving members of the party (Franco, Seth Rogen, Craig Robinson, Jonah Hill, and Danny McBride) try to survive when the world outside their door ends. Also stars Rihanna, Michael Cera, Aziz Ansari, Emma Watson, and plenty of other members of young hollywood.
June 14th:
Man of Steel- Zach Snyder and Christopher Nolan's take on Superman finally arrives. Personally, I am not a huge fan of Superman, but the marketing for this film is top notch and makes me very excited for it. Hopefully DC's want for a Justice League movie doesn't get in the way of letting this film stand on its own.
June 21st:
World War Z- Another film pushed back from Oscar season last year, apparently the ending was garbage and the effects needed to be retooled, but Marc Forester has been very solid in his other films, and Brad Pitt usually makes smart decisions. Getting to be a bit much with the zombies though.
Monsters University- The long awaited follow up to the hit Pixar film.
June 28th:
White House Down- The second white house takeover movie of the last few months, this one stars Channing Tatum and Jamie Foxx as the rescuer and POTUS, respectively. Roland Emmerich directs.
The Heat- Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy team up as a buttoned up FBI agent (Bullock) and a reckless homicide detective (McCarthy) to take down a drug dealer. From Bridesmaids director Paul Feig.
July 3rd:
Despicable Me 2- The sequel to the animated hit.
Lone Ranger- Gore Verbinski re teams with his Pirates star Johnny Depp for this retooling of the Lone Ranger told from Tonto's perspective. Armie Hammer costars as the Lone Ranger.
July 12th:
Pacific Rim-Finally, Guillermo Del Toro directs a film again. This one is about giant robots created to battle a species of monster that attacks from under the sea. Sons of Anarchy's Charlie Hunham and Ron Perlman star alongside Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia's Charlie Day as well as Idris Elba.
Grown Ups 2- Apparently someone out there wanted a sequel to the Adam Sandler, Kevin James, and Chris Rock vehicle. My guess is David Spade and Rob Schneider want (need) it more than anyone.
July 19th:
R.I.P.D.- Ryan Reynolds stars as a hot shot cop killed in duty, just to find out he was recruited by an afterlife police force and paired with a Wild West lawman to bring down those who won't stay dead. From Red director Robert Schwentke. The first trailer makes the film look like Van Helsing meets Men in Black, with way too much Van Helsing.
Red 2- Ironic that the director of the first film has his next movie debut on the same day as the sequel to his first big hit? Dean Parisot takes over directing as the old crew comes out of retirement...again.
July 26th:
The Wolverine- Hugh Jackman returns as Logan for the 5th time in the most misunderstood film I can remember. It was widely reported to be a prequel to the trilogy and take place in feudal China, you know, Wolverine vs Samurais. But when the first trailer came out...well apparently its not a prequel and takes place in modern day....so its Wolverine vs the Yakuza. And to be honest, it sounded much cooler before.
August 2nd:
300: Rise of an Empire- Noam Murro takes over the directing duties from Zach Snyder in this prequel to 300. This tells the story of the rise of Xerxes' Persian empire and his domination of the sea.
2 Guns- Not a lot of information on this film, other than Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg teaming up and shooting things, lots of things.
August 7th:
Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters- This sequel to the underwhelming first film tells the continued story of Percy and his demigod friends.
August 9th:
Elysium- If you haven't seen the trailer for this film, Neil Blomkamps follow up to District 9, I suggest going and checking it out right now, because its fantastic and can't be described. Matt Damon and Jodie Foster star.
August 16th:
Kick-Ass 2- This follow up to the hit off beat super hero film follows the same group of heroes as they are hunted by Red Mist. Jim Carrey costars.
Well those are the notables. My five most anticipated are as follows:
5. Man of Steel
4. Pacific Rim
3. Iron Man 3
2. Elysium
1. Star Trek into Darkness.
-Maximus
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