LITTLE ROCK — Maybe those British researchers at the University of Sheffield who claim that summer is arriving 18 days earlier than it did in the 1950s are right - Hollywood certainly seems to think that summer begins in mid-May.
The summer solstice is a few days more than three weeks hence, yet it feels like we’re already in the middle of the summer movie season. The Avengers, Men in Black III and Battleship are already rampaging through theaters, and industry analysts are theorizing that the summer of 2012 is going to be even bigger than the summer of 2008.
But just for the record, the whole idea of summer as a time when it’s OK to enjoy mindless spectacle is dubious. The best summer movies are never (completely) dumb. Most critics I know are looking forward to Christopher Nolan’s conclusion to his Batman trilogy The Dark Knight Rises, and the rebooted Spider-Man with Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone. But I’m never really comfortable guessing - I’d rather see the movies before I review them.
Even so, it is that time of year when we’re compelled to look down the road to spy what noisy rough beast is about to slam into us. It’s in that spirit we present the 2012 summer movie preview. All dates are tentative, and no warranty is expressed or implied.
Remember to keep your hands and feet inside the cart at all times, turn off your cell phones and refrain from using flash photography as it’s dangerous to our entertainers.
Wagering is strictly prohibited. This way to the great egress.
JUNE 1
Battlefield America. Misfit kids at risk sing and dance on the underground singing and dancing circuit. I guess.
For Greater Glory. Andy Garcia plays Enrique Gorostieta Velarde, the atheist general who was one of the leaders of the early 20th-century Mexican Cristero Rebellion, a Catholic uprising spurred by government attempts to secularize the country. I know nothing about the film, but my sense of Gorostieta is that he was a highly paid mercenary who took on the fight more out of political ambition than any empathy with the Catholic cause. Maybe I’ll learn something.
Piranha 3-DD. Another fish tale. 83 minutes.
Snow White and the Huntsman. The second, darker Snow White movie to come out this year features Kristen Stewart, Chris Hemsworth and Charlize Theron, who seems born to play evil.
JUNE 8
Lola Versus. When Lola (Greta Gerwi) is dumped by her fiance three weeks before their wedding, she embarks on a series of adventures with her girlfriends. Joel Kinnaman, from The Killing, also stars. In limited release.
Moonrise Kingdom. Wes Anderson’s latest fable opened in limited release May 25. This is my best guess as to when it will arrive in Arkansas. It features the usual great ensemble cast, with Edward Norton and Tilda Swinton, along with Anderson regulars Bill Murray and Jason Schwartzman.
Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted. I liked the first installment of the series. While I’m generally unenthusiastic about anthropomorphism, this one feels mildly promising.
Peace, Love & Misunderstanding. Uptight New York lawyer Diana (Catherine Keener) finally takes her children to meet her hippie mother (Jane Fonda) who lives upstate in a rambling farmhouse. This got some nice buzz at last year’s Toronto International Film Festival. In limited release.
Prometheus. Does Blade Runner and Alien director Ridley Scott still have his science-fiction chops? We’ll find out with this story of a team of explorers looking for evidence of the origin of life. With Noomi Rapace and Charlize “Evil Queen” Theron.
Safety Not Guaranteed. The DuPlass brothers (Jay and Mark) strike again with this festival hit about a lonely guy (Mark) looking to find a time travel partner.
JUNE 15
Rock of Ages. Tom Cruiseand Alec Baldwin fill out the cast in the film version of the rock musical about two singers (Diego Boneta and Julianne Hough) looking to make it in the hair-metal scene of ’80s Los Angeles.
That’s My Boy. Andy Samberg is Adam Sandler’s long lost son. The good news is that Dennis Dugan isn’t directing. Sex Drive director Sean Anders is a small step up. Maybe.
Your Sister’s Sister. This dramedy is about a woman named Iris (Emily Blunt), who arranges for her friend Jack (Mark DuPlass) to spend a few days at her family’s cabin after the death of his brother. There Jack encounters Iris’ sister Hannah (Rosemarie DeWitt), who has retreated there to recover from her own traumas. It was well received at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival; it’s on my list. In limited release.
JUNE 22
Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. The title says it all. It stars the son-in-law of Meryl Streep, Benjamin Walker.
Brave. The season’s animated pick to click has Boardwalk Empire’s Kelly Macdonald giving voice to the heroic Scottish Princess Merida, who has to use her bow to bring down a beastly curse. It’s from Pixar.
To Rome With Love. Woody Allen continues his European tour. He’s in this one, with Penelope Cruz, Jesse Eisenberg, Alec Baldwin and Ellen Page.
JUNE 29
G.I. Joe: Retaliation. Bruce Willis, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and the ubiquitous Channing Tatum play dolls.
Madea’s Witness Protection. Tyler Perry does it again.
Magic Mike. Matthew McConaughey and the ubiquitous Channing Tatum play dolls in this semi-autobiographic story of Tatum’s days as a male stripper. Steven Soderbergh directs.
Take This Waltz. I don’t know that I have ever so anticipated a movie that ultimately made me so angry as Sarah Polley’s second film as a director. I’ll tell you why when I review it. It does have a strong cast - Michelle Williams, Seth Rogen, Sarah Silverman, Aaron Abrams - and visual sense.
JULY 3
The Amazing Spider-Man. Andrew Garfield picks up the Peter Parker role; Emma Stone is Gwen Stacy and (500) Days of Summer director Marc Webb takes over for Sam Raimi. Looks very good.
JULY 5
Katy Perry: Part of Me. Probably part concert film, part hagiography. In 3-D.
JULY 6
Savages. Intriguing Oliver Stone project about “pot” growers taking on the Mexican cartel has a strong cast - Taylor Kitsch, Uma Thurman, Benicio del Toro, John Travolta, Blake Lively, Emile Hirsch and Salma Hayek - but very little buzz. I’m always willing to give Stone a chance.
JULY 13
Ice Age: Continental Drift. The series hasn’t been as good as the Madagascar films, but that hardly matters. You already know whether you’ll see this or not; if you’ve got little ones, you probably will.
Ted. From Family Guy creator Seth McFarlane, Ted stars Mark Wahlberg as a man whose best friend is a teddy bear that not only talks, but curses and makes obscene gestures. Sounds a bit like Jodie Foster’s undeservedly panned The Beaver.
JULY 20
The Dark Knight Rises. The one you’re all waiting for ... Christopher Nolan caps off his Christian Bale Batman trilogy. And the box office records fall.
JULY 27
Killer Joe. William Friedkin directs the film version of the Tracy Letts play. With Matthew McConaughey in the title role; also starring Emile Hirsch, Juno Temple and Thomas Haden Church. I can’t wait. In limited release.
Neighborhood Watch. A silly film freighted a bit by the Trayvon Martin killing, N.W. stars Jonah Hill, Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Billy Crudup and Will Forte as fathers looking to protect their neighborhood. Then the aliens show up. Directed by Lonely Island member Akiva Schaffer.
AUG. 3
The Bourne Legacy. Jeremy Renner takes over from Matt Damon, but he’s not playing Jason Bourne. He’s Aaron Cross. Writer-director Tony Gilroy is still on board.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days. The third film in this sort-of-under-the-radar family series. Little Rock native Bradford Simpson produces.
Total Recall. Colin Farrell takes on the Arnold Schwarzenegger role. It doesn’t seem like 22 years since the original came out, does it?
AUG. 10
The Campaign. Will Ferrell and Zach Galifianakis are rival North Carolina politicians in this Jay Roach satire. This one could go either way. Ferrell and Galifianakis have a lot of comedic firepower, but they often disappoint. Directed by Jay Roach (Meet the Parents, Austin Powers). Let’s be hopeful.
AUG. 17
The Expendables 2. Jason Statham, Sylvester Stallone, Chuck Norris, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Dolph Lundgren, Jet Li, Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger get the band back together.
Hope Springs. A late-season sop to the adults in the audience? After 30 years of marriage, a middle-aged couple decide to jump-start their relationship by attending an intense, week-long counseling session. With Meryl Streep, Tommy Lee Jones, Steve Carell and Elisabeth Shue.
The Odd Life of Timothy Green. A childless couple (Jennifer Garner and Joel Edgerton) has an unusual, and unexpected, child. In limited release.
ParaNorman. Animated horror story about a strangle little boy who can talk to ghosts. With the voices of Kodi Smit-McPhee, Anna Kendrick, Christopher Mintz-Plasse and Leslie Mann.
Sparkle. Whitney Houston’s last film; she died during post-production. Three sisters form a girl group and become Motown sensations - sort of like Dreamgirls? With Jordin Sparks, Carmen Ejogo, Derek Luke and Cee-Lo.
AUG. 24
Premium Rush. A Manhattan bicycle messenger (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) picks up an envelope that draws the attention of a corrupt policeman. Directed by David Koepp, it also features Michael Shannon, Jamie Chung and Dania Ramirez. Intriguing.
The Apparition. A college experiment goes awry, causing a young couple supernatural distress.
Hit and Run. Dax Shepard co-directs and stars in this story of a reformed mob wheelman (named Charles Bronson) who risks his life by abandoning a witness protection program to take his girlfriend to Los Angeles for the job she has always dreamed of.
AUG. 31
7500.Director Takashi Shimizu (The Grudge) explores the scary potential of a trans-Atlantic commercial flight. Fans of Japanese horror films rejoice.
Lawless. Tom Hardy, Shia LaBeouf, Guy Pearce and Jessica Chastain star in this Depression-era tale about Virginia bootleggers from The Road director John Hillcoat.
The Possession. Scary movie about a little girl who buys a box at a garage sale with a surprise inside - a nasty ancient spirit.
For a Good Time, Call ... An R-rated comedy about former college rivals (Ari Graynor and Lauren Miller) who become roomies and start a phone sex line together. Not a Judd Apatow franchise film,but Seth Rogen does show up. Seriously, Graynor deserves better material than she has heretofore had - maybe this will work out for her. In limited release.
E-mail:
pmartin@arkansasonline.com www.blooddirtangels.com
Style, Pages 47 on 05/27/2012