There's only five weeks of school left and summer is one long stressful, laboring month away. With the freedom of summer comes the blockbuster season of movies. The most exciting, thrilling, and action packed films take over the hot months of May to August. The Cannes Film Festival, the most prestigious film festival in the world kicks off the summer movie season in May. Here are my most anticipated summer blockbusters of 2017.
Note: These movies are big-budget commercial blockbusters made for big bucks. There are plenty of other alternatives to these movies coming out this summer that are not just cheesy action-packed entertainment with overwhelming special effects but more meaningful storytelling and filmmaking. I'll talk about those later, but today I want to focus on the superheroes, remakes, and tentpoles for those big-budget movie lovers. Also, I'm pretending there's not another Transformers movie coming out.
1. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (May 5)
Star-Lord is back with his team to protect the galaxy in the sequel to one of the most surprisingly successful superhero movies. The first one was a lot of fun with its great classic soundtrack and not taking itself too seriously. That's the genius of Marvel, there's a talking raccoon and a walking tree so add sarcasm, humor, and a soundtrack that completely juxtaposes the setting of the film. At the same time you also become fond of these galaxy misfits and you become enamored by the weirdness of the film because of the passionate directing by James Gunn and the sincerity of the story.
2. Alien: Covenant (May 19)
Ridley Scott revitalized his Alien franchise with Prometheus, his prequel in 2012. Now he's continuing the prequel series with Alien: Covenant and man does it look crazy.
3. The Mummy (June 9)
A new version of the Mummy with the new version of Tom Cruise. Will it be good? Probably not. Will it be fun and better than the original? Probably.
4. Wonder Woman (June 2)
If Warner Bros. fails here then they're probably doomed. They've been hurrying to catch up to Marvel with their ownership of DC and it's been very disappointing. They've even tried to be like Marvel (Guardians of the Galaxy>Suicide Squad) and it's been nothing but jumbled, incoherent crap. Now here's the lone Wonder Woman movie before she teams up with the Justice League. Hopefully she'll save the day.
5. Spider-Man: Homecoming (July 7)
My childhood is here. This is the Spider-Man we've been waiting for. Tom Holland is a great casting choice as the young Peter Parker and he was magnificent in his short time in Captain America: Civil War. With Tony Stark helping Peter (in high school) to adjust to his life as a superhero, Homecoming might be Marvel at its best.
6. War of the Planet of the Apes (July 14)
The third of what's been an absolutely incredible franchise re-boot. Dawn was action packed and mind-blowing. The motion capture technology of each of these movies has been mesmerizing. Now Woody Harrelson joins the fun going full-out Rambo to take down Caesar, the leader of the Apes. Plus, this movie will finally make a connection to the 1968 classic Planet of the Apes. This is true blockbuster filmmaking.
7. Dunkirk (July 21)
Another example of true blockbuster filmmaking. Plus, it's not a remake or sequel. Christopher Nolan, the genius mind behind The Dark Knight, Inception, and Interstellar tackles the war genre. Based on the actual event of the evacuation of Allied troops trapped on the beaches of Dunkirk, France in World War II. With Nolan's exceptional direction and use of practical effects, this looks like it will be a memorable film. If anybody can make a PG-13 war movie, its Christopher Nolan.
8. The Dark Tower (August 4)
There's no trailer for this one yet but anything by Stephen King adapted to the screen is highly anticipated. Plus Matthew McConaughey and Idris Elba face off against each other as the two main characters, the Gunslinger and The Man in Black.
9. It (September 8)
Yes this comes out in September but it is still technically summer. Hollywood is spoiling us with two Stephen King adaptations in a month. This one may be the best and scariest one yet. It is back to find your biggest fears and prey on children. The trailer is promising and Pennywise the Clown has never looked more frightening. Also, I'm predicting another clown epidemic this fall.
