USA TODAY US Edition

New movies are coming up rosy in time for spring

From The Rock stopping an albino King Kong in Rampage to Isle of Dogs, there’ll be a lot to like in theaters.

- Bryan Alexander

Black Panther continues to dominate the box office, five weeks at No. 1 and counting. But Avengers: Infinity War (April 27) is already looking to take over movie ascendancy in the spring.

It’s boosted, of course by Black Panther himself, Chadwick Boseman, who will appear with co-stars Danai Gurira, Letitia Wright and Winston Duke alongside Iron Man, Spider-Man and the Guardians of the Galaxy stars in the superhero extravagan­za — which topped a Fandango.com poll of frequent moviegoers as 2018’s most anticipate­d film.

But there’s plenty on offer at theaters that’s worth seeing between now and Infinity War. Here are our best suggestion­s:

If you’re yearning for the most peculiar dog-love story ever: ‘Isle of Dogs’

Writer/director Wes Anderson returns to stop-motion animation (which he perfected with 2009’s Fantastic Mr. Fox), depicting a world where dogs are quarantine­d on a trash-filled island to curb an outbreak of “snout fever.” But 12-year-old Atari Kobayashi (voiced by Koyu Rankin) wins hearts — canine and human — when he sets out to find Spots (Liev Schreiber), his beloved banished dog. In theaters Friday.

If you’re for an escape with plenty of nostalgia: ‘Ready Player One’

Steven Spielberg is the perfect director to put cinematic marvels, hope and double helpings of nostalgia into a dystopic 2045 future. That’s because everyone onscreen escapes to a virtualrea­lity nirvana (“The Oasis”) — and it happens to be crammed with the 1980s memories of its idiosyncra­tic creator (Mark Rylance).

In theaters March 29.

Dwayne Johnson is out of the jungle setting of his holiday-season smash Jumanji. In Rampage, Johnson’s primatolog­ist is up against giant apex predators, trying to stop a huge crocodile, a 30-foot wolf and his beloved (and now oversized) albino gorilla, George, from destroying one another and the world.

In theaters April 13.

If you want to see the scariest horror movie without words: ‘A Quiet Place’

John Krasinski and Emily Blunt didn’t go romantic comedy for their first screen project together. Far from it. In- stead, with Krasinski directing, the real-life couple portray parents trying to silently protect their children from an unseen, horrifying creature that attacks after the slightest noise.

In theaters April 6.

If you’re keeping faith for the return of JC (Jim Caviezel): ‘Paul, Apostle of Christ’

It’s been 14 years since Jim Caviezel moved the faith-based film world as Jesus in The Passion of the Christ. Caviezel makes his long-awaited biblical return as disciple Luke, a physician who aids the imprisoned Paul (James Faulkner), in Paul, Apostle of Christ.

In theaters March 23.

If you think it’s about time to see the humor in internatio­nal disputes: ‘Super Troopers 2’

The comedic pitfalls of the Vermont state patrol troopers in 2002’s Super Troopers already have a devoted legion of fans (and are the subject of a popular drinking game). But in a perfectly timed sequel 16 years later, the bumbling police troop is thrust into the world spotlight during a border dispute with Canada. Finally, internatio­nal mayhem for laughs.

In theaters April 20.

 ?? JONNY COURNOYER/PARAMOUNT ?? A father and his son (John Krasinski and Noah Jupe) have to keep it down in “A Quiet Place.”
JONNY COURNOYER/PARAMOUNT A father and his son (John Krasinski and Noah Jupe) have to keep it down in “A Quiet Place.”
 ?? WARNER BROS. PICTURES ?? Tye Sheridan escapes from problems of the real world in “Ready Player One,” the latest from director Steven Spielberg.
WARNER BROS. PICTURES Tye Sheridan escapes from problems of the real world in “Ready Player One,” the latest from director Steven Spielberg.
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WARNER BROS.
 ?? WARNER BROS. ?? Oh, look, Dwayne Johnson is saving the world again. This time, it’s in “Rampage.”
WARNER BROS. Oh, look, Dwayne Johnson is saving the world again. This time, it’s in “Rampage.”

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