The end of the spring semester is upon us, which means summer break is that much closer. No matter how gorgeous it may be outside, we must pay attention to the blockbusters coming out this season. Here are some movies you should look out for to kick off the summer right and end it with a bang:
“Neighbors” — May 9 — Director Nicholas Stoller (“Forgetting Sarah Marshall,” “Get Him to the Greek”) teams up with actor Seth Rogen in this comedy about a family with a newborn child experiencing difficulties with the fraternity that has moved in next door. There’s nothing like ending the school year and welcoming summer with a movie about college.
“Godzilla” — May 16 — Starring Bryan Cranston, Elizabeth Olsen, and Aaron Taylor-Johnson, the legendary Godzilla returns in this film, which is meant to be a reboot of the franchise. With this film, the filmmakers have decided to make Godzilla a horrifying monster, like in the original Toho films, as opposed to the cheesy hero it has morphed into in recent years.
“X-Men: Days of Future Past” — May 23 — In this sequel to “X-Men: First Class,” the X-Men from the original trilogy join forces with their younger selves to save their future. With only Adam Sandler’s new film “Blended” to contend with, grabbing the number one spot in the box office should be easy.
“Maleficent” — May 30 — Angelina Jolie stars as the eponymous villain from “Sleeping Beauty” in this new film that puts a different spin on the fairy tale. Elle Fanning costars as Princess Aurora.
“A Million Ways to Die in the West” — May 30 — Seth MacFarlane goes behind the lens once again after the success of his directorial debut “Ted” to tell the story of a cowardly sheep farmer, played by MacFarlane, contending with the dangers of the Old West. Knowing MacFarlane’s previous work, he will probably find a way to throw in “Airplane!” and vague 80s references.
“Edge of Tomorrow” — June 6 — Starring Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt, this new science fiction film depicts two soldiers, Cruise and Blunt, teaming up to defeat an invading alien race. Cruise keeps returning to the same ill-fated battle through a time-loop. The film is based on the Japanese light novel “All You Need is Kill,” and will no doubt draw comparisons to “Groundhog Day.”
“22 Jump Street” — June 13 — Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill get back together in this sequel to the popular “21 Jump Street.” This time, the characters find themselves in college investigating a crime syndicate within a fraternity.
“How to Train Your Dragon 2” — June 13 — A sequel to the 2010 Academy Award-nominated film comes to theaters this summer. Who will win the weekend, dragons or college parties?
“Jersey Boys” — June 20 — Clint Eastwood directs this adaptation of the popular Tony Award-winning musical. John Lloyd Young, Erich Bergen, Vincent Piazza and Michael Lomenda play the members of The Four Seasons.
“Transformers: Age of Extinction” — June 27 — Michael Bay directs and Mark Wahlberg stars in the fourth film of the “Transformers” film franchise. Cue the repetitive robot-on-robot violence.
“Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” — July 11 — In this sequel to “Rise of the Planet of the Apes,” the apes, led by Caesar, are threatened by a band of human survivors, and both sides must fight to determine the superior species. I will be looking for another marvelous performance from Andy Serkis as Caesar.
“Jupiter Ascending” – July 18 – Starring Mila Kunis, Channing Tatum, Eddie Redmayne and Sean Bean, this first film in a planned science fiction franchise tells the story of a janitor, played by Kunis, who learns she is galactic royalty and gets thrust into a war to save Earth. This may be the first film, but I call Bean’s character dying like a champ.
“The Purge: Anarchy” — July 18 — In this quickly made and released sequel to “The Purge,” the film will depict how the “purge” is conducted on the Los Angeles streets rather than in someone’s home.
“Hercules” — July 25 — The second film to come out this year about the famous Greek demigod, this particular film is based on the graphic novel “Hercules: The Thracian Wars.” At the very least, we can hope that Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson is a more entertaining Hercules than Kellan Lutz.
“Sex Tape” — July 25 — In this upcoming comedy, Jason Segel and Cameron Diaz star as a married couple trying to spice up their relationship by filming a sex tape. When the footage leaks, they struggle to get it back.
“Guardians of the Galaxy” — August 1 — After being absent from opening weekends for a little over two months this summer, Marvel returns with a bang with “Guardians of the Galaxy,” depicting a group of intergalactic misfits who must save the galaxy from the powers of a mysterious orb and those who covet it.
“Lucy” — August 8 — In this new action film from Luc Besson (screenwriter of both “Taken” films), Scarlett Johansson stars as Lucy, a woman who is forced by the mob to work as a drug mule and has a package of drugs implanted in her body. When the package ruptures and the drug leaks into her system, she acquires superhuman abilities.
“Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” — August 8 — Produced by Nickelodeon and Michael Bay’s production company Platinum Dunes, the film stars the famous four Ninjitsu-trained turtles, returning to the big screen to fight against evil.
“The Expendables 3” — August 15 — “The Expendables” return once again to cause more destruction with a band of action movie legends. This time around, they find themselves caught in a battle within, as Expendables co-founder Conrad Stonebanks aims to destroy the group.
“The Giver” — August 15 — Based on the 1993 novel of the same name, 16-year-old Jonas uncovers the truth about his society’s past: how his forefathers gave up humanity for the sake of a stable society. Jeff Bridges, Brenton Thwaites and Meryl Streep all star in this film.
“Sin City: A Dame to Kill For” — August 22 — Closing out the summer is Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez’s long-awaited sequel to their 2005 film “Sin City.” Interestingly, the plot will primarily cover the second book in Miller’s graphic novel series, but Miller wrote two original stories just for the film.
