How pumped are you for summer movies! It’s the season when art finally kicks commerce to the curb. OK, I’m kidding. That happens mostly in fall. Summer loves to cram every theater with prequels, sequels and reboots that force original ideas to die of loneliness. But wait. There is primo escapism to be found in summer (think back to “Top Gun: Maverick” and the creative pow of Barbenheimer). It’s good stuff like that I’ll be chasing in this preview.
You could say the season sprung early with April’s “Sinners,” sure to be minting money and awards buzz right into year’s end. And cheers for “Thunderbolts,” which proved that Marvel epics aren’t dead with a new batch of avengers powered by the great Florence Pugh. And shoutout to comedy king Jack Black for making “A Minecraft Movie” the year’s box-office king.
It’s not really calendar summer till June 20, but in Hollywood the season busted out on May 23 with Tom Cruise roaring back for the eighth and (say it isn’t so) final time as daredevil spy master Ethan Hunt in the “Mission: Impossible” franchise he started shopping in 1996.
Expect Tom Terrific to face tough competition from the live-action version of the animated "Lilo & Stitch." Hey, good things often come in pairs. And there's a real hunger out there for family fun. Early reports suggest we may have a new Barbenheimer. Anyone for Lilo Impossible?
Also heating up on the runway are Formula One racer Brad Pitt in “F1,” Ana de Armas as a female John Wick in “Ballerina,” a dinosaur attack in “Jurassic World: Rebirth,” a zombie apocalypse in “28 Years Later,” a refresh on “The Fantastic Four” led by the ever-sizzling Pedro Pascal, and, oh yeah, newcomer David Corenswet reinventing Superman.
Comedy gets a workout from Adam Sandler in “Happy Gilmore 2,” Liam Neeson rebooting “The Naked Gun,” and Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan switching mom-and-daughter roles again in “Freakier Friday.” There’s awards talk for “The Life of Chuck,” a Stephen King adaptation with Tom (Loki) Hiddleston, Spike Lee’s gangster epic “Highest 2 Lowest” starring Denzel Washington, Ari Aster’s modern western “Eddington” with Joaquin Phoenix and Emma Stone, and Sundance sensation “Sorry Baby,” from first-time writer-director-star Eva Victor. She’s on fire.
As always, count on summer to spring surprises no one sees coming. Let Hollywood focus on cashing in. Our goal is to dig out the jewels from the junk. Here's my list of the 25 movies striving to do just that. Holler if you’re thinking I’m nuts. Let the games begin.
May 23
'Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning'
He’ll be 63 in July. But you’d never know it looking at Tom Cruise ram through the action obstacle course of “Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning.” It’s the eighth and reportedly last time Cruise will portray daredevil Ethan Hunt, the secret agent taking on his ultimate nemesis, a malevolent form of artificial intelligence known as Entity. Written and directed by Cruise cohort Christopher McQuarrie as a sequel to 2023’s “Dead Reckoning Part One,” this farewell chapter unites the old gang, including Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg and Hayley Atwell, to make sure the series goes out with a thunderous bang you can hear in every multiplex. We’re counting on it.
'Lilo and Stitch'
This live-action take on the 2002 animated classic stars Maia Kealoha as Lilo Pelekai, the lonely, rebellious and orphaned six-year-old Hawaiian girl who lives for hula and surfing until she fixates on Stitch (voiced by the original film’s director Chris Sanders), a blue-skinned, koala-like alien who just might be engineered as—say what!— a weapon of mass destruction. Their wild interaction has her classmates wondering who’s the real weirdie. Presales have this one tracking ahead of the blockbusting "Minecraft Movie." Expect fireworks.
May 30
'The Phoenician Scheme'
Wes Anderson movies don’t look like anyone else’s and the filmmaker’s distinctive visual style is much in evidence in this spy comedy thriller starring Benicio del Toro as Zsa-zsa Korda, a tycoon who declares that his only child, a nun played by Kate Winslet’s lookalike daughter Mia Threapleton, will inherit his vast estate. That decision sets off that a whirlwind of espionage involving Michael Cera and such Wes regulars as Tom Hanks, Bryan Cranston, Scarlett Johansson, Riz Ahmed, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Bill Murray as God. For some audiences, our Texas boy’s films are too precious and mannered. I can’t get enough of them. You?
'Karate Kid: Legends'
You’ll have to get your bearings for this one, which takes place three years after the TV series “Cobra Kai.” Stay with me. “Legends” is the sixth film in the ”Karate Kid” series derived from the 1984 original starring Ralph Macchio as the young student Daniel LaRusso and the 2010 reboot featuring Jackie Chan as Mr. Han, the martial arts master modeled on Pat Morita’s Mr. Miyagi from the original. Here Daniel and Mr. Han join forces in Manhattan (don’t ask) to instruct the new kid (Ben Wang) in the art of tournament winning. Two guesses how it turns out. But even viewers who don’t know karate from kung fu will recognize Chan, 71, as the GOAT.
June 6
Ballerina: From the World of John Wick'
How’s this for a movie title that explains it all for you. Except Wick takes a backseat to a ballerina assassin played by Cuban/Spanish actress Ana de Armas, an Oscar nominee as Marilyn Monroe in 2022’s “Blonde. ” Set between the events of 2019’s “John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum” and 2023’s “John Wick: Chapter 4,” the film allows a resurrection for the Wick character who died last time out. Don’t sweat the petty details. The presence of iconic Keanu Reeves, however briefly, ties the series to de Armas as she goes all Wick on the organization that trained her since the baddies killed her family. That riles up this ballerina and she has the stunt moves to send them straight to hell.
‘The Life of Chuck'
Winners of the Peoples Choice Award at the Toronto Film Festival usually have great success at the Oscars (think “Twelves Years a Slave” and “The King’s Speech”) so expect big things from Mike Flanagan’s adaptation of Stephen King’s novella about an ordinary guy named Chuck (Tom Hiddleston) told in reverse and in three parts. There’s more humor than King-like horror in this sentimental tale of a world turned upside down. And Hiddleston has a dance sequence (you heard me) at mid-point that belongs in the Hollywood musical time capsule.
June 13
‘How to Train Your Dragon’
Family films are a summer staple or should be. And this live-action version of the 2010 animated crowdpleaser should fill the bill. Mason Thames brings flesh and spirit to the role of Viking teen Hiccup, a wimpy misfit in the eyes to his macho chief-dad, Stoick the Vast, vastly embodied by Gerard Butler, who only voiced the character last time out. Hiccup wants to make peace between the Vikings and the dragons they’re hot to slaughter. It might be easy to predict the outcome, but charm in human or cartoon form is not to shrug off.
'Materialists '
Following up her Oscar nominated debut with the romantic triangle of “Past Lives,” filmmaker Celine Song returns with a different New York threesome. Dakota Johnson stars as a matchmaker torn between a wealthy suitor (Pedro Pascal) and her poor boy former boyfriend. (Chris Evans). Sounds like she can’t lose either way. Can Song achieve the delicate balance between funny and touching she achieved the first time? That is the question.
June 20
'28 Years Later'
Zombies never moved faster or scarier than they did in 2002’s “28 Days Later,” from director Danny Boyle, screenwriter Alex Garland and star Cillian Murphy. In 2007, the team hit the sweet spot in “28 Weeks Later.” Now they’re up at bat again—minus Murphy— with “28 Years Later,” in which a pregnant woman (Jodie Comer) and her husband (Aaron Taylor Johnson) team up with a doctor (Ralph Fiennes) to make peace with the walking dead. Good luck with that. I’m assuming we won’t be hearing from them again until 28 decades later.
'Elio’
There’s been talk about reshoots and rethinks concerning this animated Pixar party about a shy, lonely 11-year-old boy named Elio Solis (Yonas Kibreab) who dreams of being abducted by aliens. Relatable or not, Elio’s dream comes true, sort of, when he’s accidentally zapped into outer space and ends up holding the future of planet Earth in his hands. Elio has no interest in becoming a war machine. He just wants a friend. And don’t we all? That’s the simple message pulsing through the visual and comic craziness with freshly minted “Emilia Perez” Oscar winner Zoe Saldana voicing Elio’s aunt.
June 27
‘F1'
Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise’s costar 23 years ago in “Interview With a Vampire,” finds his own mission impossible in playing Sonny Hayes, a former Formula One driver, sidelined by a debilitating crash, who comes out of retirement to teach the F1 ropes to a young racer (Damson Idris). Director Joseph Kosinski, who mined box-office gold for Cruise in “Top Gun: Maverick,” got the go-ahead from Formula One honchos to film scenes at actual Apex Grand Pix events. I’m guessing that access and the eternal Pitt appeal will make this epic a top summer choice for audiences who feel the need, the need for speed.
'M3GAN 2.0'
What would any movie summer be without a killer doll to raise horror hackles and lots of wicked laughs. Enter this sequel to 2022’s surprise smash, which brings back M3GAN (an acronym for Model 3 Generative Android), an AI doll created by robotics expert Gemma (Allison Williams) to babysit her young niece Cady (Violet McGraw). Naturally that relationship backfires again as M3GAN does battle with a military doll called Amelia, intent on world domination and eradicating M3GAN. Who’d expect anything else? Stay tuned for ferocious fun.
'Sorry, Baby'
The best film I saw at January’s Sundance Film Festival is the award-caliber debut from writer-director-star Eva Victor, a comic known for her viral, short-form videos. Victor plays a college professor putting a brave face on surviving a sexual assault with her twisted sense of humor and purpose intact. Her social contacts are mostly limited to a best friend (Naomi Acke), a sometime lover (Lucas Hedge) and a rescue cat. Victor has the artist’s gift of accumulating small details into a into a full-scale human portrait that takes a piece out of you. Easy? You try it.
July 2
'Jurassic World: Rebirth'
I understand if the title alone makes you sigh, “Oh no, not again.” But trust returning original screenwriter David Koepp, director Gareth Edwards and a cast of A-listers, led by Scarlett Johansson, Mahershala Ali, “Wicked" charmer Jonathan Bailey, to perform beyond the call of paycheck duty. I’m still a sucker for watching digital dinos in action—thank you Mr. Spielberg— and this sequel to 2022’s “Jurassic World Dominion” has the potential to paint outside the box.
July 11
'Superman’
Just when you thought no one would be stupid enough to try to revive the musty hero of the DC Cinematic Universe, say hello to gonzo writer-director James Gunn (“Guardians of the Galaxy”) with a fresh take on the painfully familiar Man of Steel. Out of the Ryan Murphy TV stable comes David Corenswet (“The Politician,” “Hollywood”) ready to put on the tights and Clark Kent peepers in the dual role Christopher Reeve nailed for the ages. Along with Nicolas Hoult as evil Lex Luthor, Rachel Brosnahan as lovely Lois Lane and whoever is playing Krypto the superdog, Corenswet has something to prove. So let's watch him try.
July 18
'Eddington'
With the shots being called by innovative director Ari Aster (“Hereditary,” “Midsommar,” “Beau is Afraid”), expectations are high for this modern western in which a New Mexico sheriff (Joaquin Phoenix) and town mayor (Pedro Pascal) face off during the Covid-19 pandemic era. Emma Stone and Austin Butler join Phoenix and Pascal to investigate how the terrors and traumas of lockdown might still be seeping into our bruised psyches.
July 25
'The Fantastic Four: First Steps’
Given how lousy the last two cinema iterations were in 2005’s “Fantastic Four” and 2007’s “Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer,” this Marvel version of the comics has to be an improvement, right? Pedro Pascal, who appears to star in every other film released this summer, plays scientist Reed Hastings/Mr. Fantastic. Vanessa Kirby is Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, Reed’s pregnant wife and sister of Johnny Storm/Human Torch, played by Joseph Quinn. ”The Bear” Emmy winner Ebon Moss-Bachrach uses motion capture to play a pile of orange rocks known as Ben Grimm/The Thing. Got that? No matter. Director Matt Shakman merely needs to break the movie jinx and bring a mad-dog energy and emotional coherence to watching the Fan 4 stop the planet-eating villain Galactus from swallowing this 1960s retro-futuristic vision of Earth. It has to happen sometime.
'Happy Gilmore 2'
As a fan of the earlier, sillier comedies of Adam Sandler (love ya “Billy Madison”), I’m excited to see this farce-first sequel to 1996’s “Happy Gilmore,” that in deference to Sandler’s age (58) will now be wreaking havoc during a senior golf tour. Also back will be Julie Bowen, Ben Stiller, and the immortal Christopher McDonald as Shooter McGavin. We’ll miss the killer fights Sandler had with game-show host Bob Barker—he died two summers ago at 99—but expect outrageous cameos from Eminem, Dan Patrick and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce (Taylor Swift doesn’t join him). I’m in any time Happy decides to grip it and rip it.
August 1
'The Naked Gun'
The unlikeliest clown of the summer has to be “Taken” avenger Liam Neeson playing a cop who can’t get anything right. Police procedurals are skewered and spoofed in this legacy reboot of 1988s “The Naked Gun” in which Leslie Nielson (wow, same initials) shook his sillies out with a vengeance. This time Neeson plays Lt. Frank Drebin Jr, the police squad son of Nielson’s cop dufus. Even wearing a skirt and dressed as a little girl, the star of “Schindler’s List” uses his deadpan to hilarious results whether he’s wooing a femme fatale (Pamela Anderson) or just falling flat on his face. It’s summer, people, when anything goes is a call to comic action.
'Together’
Here’s a deep-dish scare flick about the terrors of co-dependency. Real-life marrieds Dave Franco and Alison Brie star as a couple—she’s a teacher, he’s an indie rocker— who move from city to country and find themselves too close for comfort when they fall down a cave. Aussie writer-director Michael Hanks really puts Franco and Brie through their paces, blending body horror and queasy laughs into a surreal hellscape that may give you nightmares, especially if you and your new romance are maybe thinking about living together. You’ll think again for sure.
Aug. 8
'Freakier Friday'
Time is really flying. In this long awaited sequel to the 2003 slapstick smash “Freaky Friday,” Jamie Lee Curtis is now playing livewire granny to Lindsay Lohan’s daughter and stepdaughter. No worries. The fun gimmick still holds with a little “Parent Trap” flavor mixed in. In the OG version, mother Curtis and daughter Lohan swapped bodies. Now both are doing the generational swap with these two 14-year-old girls who are currently part of their extended family. Quadruple the fun? That’s the idea. And Curtis and Lohan have the comedy chops to pull it off.
August 15
‘Nobody 2'
The great Bob Odenkirk, of the late, lamented “Better Call Saul” and a deserved current Tony nominee for Broadway’s “Glengarry Glen Ross,” returns to the role he created in 2021 as Hutch Mansell, a workslave nobody and family guy who secretly moonlights as an assassin and could be from the world of John Wick. Well, Hutch is back in action. And it’s good to see him as we learn a bit more about how he first connected with his wife Becca (Connie Nielsen). That’s sweet. But the real heat intensifies when Hutch, his ex FBI daddy (Christopher Lloyd) and adopted brother (RZA) start cracking heads. What are sequels for, right?
Aug. 22
'Highest 2 Lowest'
Denzel Washington and director Spike Lee make an unbeatable team (just think of “Malcolm X”) and they’re back together for the fifth time with this reimagining of Akira Kurosawa’s classic 1963 Japanese kidnap thriller “High and Low.” Washington plays an NYC music industry tycoon embroiled in a ransom plot that could end his career. No telling why the film was shown out of competition instead of the main race at this month’s Cannes Film Festival, but with Jeffrey Wright, Ice Spice and ASAP Rocky in support of Denzel, I’m expecting high drama.
August 29
'The Roses’
In this revamp of the stinging 1989 divorce satire, “The War of the Roses,” the roles played by Kathleen Turner and Michael Douglas are taken over by British acting royalty. I’m talking Oscar winner Olivia Colman and stage and screen maestro Benedict Cumberbatch. With expert support from Allison Janney, Andy Samberg, and Kate McKinnon, Jay Roach directs their relationship from love to indifference to open hatred, setting the stage for a comic battle for the ages. Don’t worry. It only hurts when you laugh.
'Caught Stealing'
Fittingly, summer movies wrap up on a ballgame theme, with “Elvis” Oscar nominee Austin Butler starring as an ex baseball player with a thing for stealing third base. Now he’s stuck in a 1990s version of New York’s mean streets trying not to get caught by the NYPD while swinging his old aluminum bat at Russian mobsters and other criminals who are trying to hunt him down. Based on a novel by Charlie Huston, this crime thriller is directed by “The Whale” virtuoso Darren Aronofsky with Butler joining such heavyhitters as Zoe Kravitz, Matt Smith, Regina King, and Bad Bunny. Even in the bleachers, expect to mightily entertained. I’ll bring the popcorn.
