Well another Summer movie season is upon us, so with the usual yearly supply of sequels and reboots (pretty soon that sentence will read “yearly supply of sequels, reboots, superhero and Star Wars films”), there is some must-sees hitting the big screens. Here is the five that I am most looking forward to this Summer, along with some honorable mentions.
Mad Max: Fury Road (5/15) When I was a kid, “The Road Warrior” was on heavy rotation in the early days of cable. So I watched it a ton. I was completely taken in by the look and feel of the world created by George Miller. Plus I will admit to still enjoying aspects of “Beyond Thunderdome”, not just the Tina Turner song. The same goes for the ’79 “Mad Max”, I appreciate its place in history but for me, “The Road Warrior” is the classic. After seeing the initial teaser for “Fury Road” I was instantly pulled back into that world again and I can’t wait to see it.
Tomorrowland (5/22) The one name that pulls me into this one blindly, and it’s not George Clooney. Writer/Director Brad Bird can do no wrong in my eyes. From his early days in animation with his fantastic short “Family Dog” in the gone too soon 80’s show “Amazing Stories” an episode that thanks to Netfilx, my kids have seen several times. To his classic “The Iron Giant” in 1999 Bird cemented his place in the animated world. After the highly cinematic “The Incredibles” it was only a matter of time before he made his way into live action with “Mission: Impossible- Ghost Protocol ” the most fun installment of the series to date. It’s rated PG and is not based on a comic book, but a Disneyland theme world. I’m all in because of the last time they did that we got the two of the greatest pirate movies ever made. And then there was also”Haunted Mansion”, but let’s forget about that one as easily as Eddie Murphy did.
Jurassic World (6/12) Even though everyone hates and would like to forget the 3rd Jurassic Park film, I happen to love that one. It was the closest to the book anyone ever really got. As far as the first “Jurassic Park”, it was and still is a phenomenal film and is one of Spielberg’s best in his career. Based on all of that baggage I’m willing to give this one the benefit of the doubt. Though parts of the trailer seem silly *cough-trained-raptors-cough*, I still want to see dinosaurs reeking havoc and chasing humans around. Because, done well, something about that never gets old.
Ant-Man (7/17) It’s Marvel! Come on, do you really need any more than that? With their hot streak continuing with “The Guardians of the Galaxy” and 2nd Avengers film this studio if nothing else knows how to entertain. Though the trailer was kind of lukewarm and formulaic, my hope is that enough of Edgar Wright’s fingerprints remained on the final product to put this one at least somewhere in between ‘Guardians’ and ‘Avengers’. I’m also eager to see Paul Rudd does with a character like this. It will definitely be his time to shine as Marvel’s tiniest hero.
Mission Impossible: Rouge Nation (7/31) This is one of those rare series that just gets better with every installment. Starting with Brian De Palma’s incredible thriller visual style, to John Woo’s action sensibility, to J.J. Abrams tremendous blend of action and humor, and of course, lens-flares. All the way to the afore mentioned Brad Bird who brought the fun and adventure into the series. The only thing that worries me is the villain/villains of the film haven’t been great since the late Philip Seymour Hoffman. I also trust director Christopher McQuarrie after his last film alongside star Tom Cruise, the sorely underrated “Jack Reacher”. This one may just bring a new edge to the ever expanding missions.
Still Wanna See: Inside Out, Good Kill, Slow West, Terminator: Genisys, Poltergeist, Pixels, Southpaw, The Fantastic Four, The Man From U.N.C.L.E., Aloha, The Wolfpack, Mr. Holmes, Straight Outta Compton, American Ultra, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon II: The Green Destiny
–Robert L. Castillo
