SUMMER OF THE SEQUEL
Familiar feel to big screen offerings
Hey, 2018 is the summer of sequels! Now, I know you’ve heard that every summer for as long as you can remember, but this year there’s a twist. Instead of the straight-up numbered sequels of yore, moviegoers can feast on an array of semi- and sort-of sequels. Here are just a few. Dates, as always, are subject to change.
The pre-but-also-post-quel
You could argue that Solo has been a Star Wars story ready to be told ever since Luke and Obi-Wan met Han and Chewie in the Mos Eisley cantina back in ’77. But it clearly wouldn’t have happened had Disney not purchased the galaxy and reignited the franchise. So this is a prequel that needed those sequels to happen. It wasn’t going to shoot first. (May 25)
The sequel-and-a-half
It’s called Deadpool 2, but remember that Ryan Reynolds originated the character back in 2009’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine. So this is Deadpool’s third go-round, but his second starring role. Also prepare for one of the R-est rated sequels since
The Hangover Part II. (May 18)
The extended universe se-prequel
Ant-Man and the Wasp brings back Paul Rudd and introduces Evangeline Lilly as the Wasp in the sequel to 2015’s Ant-Man. But the action takes place before the recent Avengers: Infinity War, which box office numbers suggest everyone in Canada has now seen twice. Maybe it will explain why Rudd wasn’t in that one. (July 6)
The feminine reboot
Ocean’s 11 was made in 1960 with Frank Sinatra, remade in 2001 with George Clooney and spawned two sequels in 2004 and 2007. Now Sandra Bullock heads up an all-female cast in Ocean’s 8, which means they each get a bigger cut of the heist. But what do you want to bet they get to steal less money in the first place? (June 8)
The reboot sequel
Jurassic World in 2015 was billed as a sequel to Jurassic Park that somehow ignored its existing sequels. But it was really just a reboot of the franchise. Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom is, however, a proper sequel. (June 22)
The sequel lite
Sicario in 2015 was an incredible film directed by Denis Villeneuve, scored by the now-deceased Jóhann Jóhannsson, shot by Roger Deakins and starring Emily Blunt. Sicario: Day of the Soldado has none of them, though it does feature the same writer (Taylor Sheridan) and returning stars Josh Brolin and Benicio Del Toro. But with all those other pieces missing, can it stack up? (June 29)
The side-quel
Book Club is about four friends who decide to read Fifty Shades of Grey and get all hot and bothered. You may recall the 2015 movie based on the book, and its two sequels; maybe Book Club will have more chapters as well? (May 18)
The back-to-the-beginning prequel
Horror movies like to delve into the backstories of their depravity, and The Purge is no exception. After the 2013 original and two sequels, The First Purge takes us back to how this whole all-crime-is-legal-for-one-night idea took off. (July 4, of course)
The what-numberis-this? sequel
Mission: Impossible (1996), itself a reboot of a ’60s TV show, has spawned four sequels to date: the easyto-understand II and III, and the oddly named Ghost Protocol and Rogue Nation, the second of which sounds like a Star Wars fan club. The newest is Mission: Impossible — Fallout. (July 27)
The encore sequel
Ten years ago, the jukebox musical Mamma Mia! proved that Meryl Streep can get a Golden Globe nomination for showing up, and that Pierce Brosnan can’t sing. Has anything changed since then? We’ll find out in Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again. (July 20)
The because-we-can-quel
The Equalizer (2014) wasn’t a great critical success nor a huge box office hit. But there’s no stopping the team of Denzel Washington and director Antoine Fuqua when they set their minds on something. (July 20)
The long-awaited sequel
Pixar likes to keep us waiting: Finding Dory came out in 2016, 13 years after the original, Finding Nemo. And there’s a similar gap between 2004’s The Incredibles and Incredibles 2, although the action apparently picks up immediately after the last one ended. (June 15)
The non-awaited sequel
Critics were not kind to 2012’s Hotel Transylvania and its 2015 sequel, though I kind of liked the first one. But Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation, set on a cruise ship, looks abysmal. (July 13)
The rest
Some of the summer’s releases aren’t sequels, although a few of them may feel that way.
May brings thrillers (Breaking In and Revenge), silly comedies (dogs in Show Dogs, Melissa McCarthy in Life of the Party) and Canadian dramas (Venus, Kayak to Klemtu).
June includes the Fred Rogers doc Won’t You Be My Neighbor? and a remake of the 1972 blaxploitation crime drama Super Fly (all one word this time).
In July, the Rock has to save his family from a burning building in Skyscraper, while Vera Farmiga and Christopher Plummer go on a road trip in Boundaries.
And August brings the latest teen dystopias, one set in the future (The Darkest Minds), the other during the last Ice Age (Alpha).
Christopher Robin puts Winnie-the-Pooh in a live-action dramedy, while Spike Lee tells a true story in BlacKkKlansman.