Movie scene gears up for ‘super’ summer lineup
LOS ANGELES—AS superhero summers go, this one is truly super. Amid one of the most promising box-office seasons Hollywood has ever served up, three movies stand above the rest.
The first weekend in May brings “The Avengers,” the ensemble adventure teaming Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man with Thor, Captain America and the Incredible Hulk.
“The Amazing Spider-man” follows over the Fourth of July as Marvel’s web-slinger gets a fresh origin story, with Andrew Garfield taking over as teen-turned-superhero Peter Parker.
Finally, in late July, there’s “The Dark Knight Rises,” with Christian Bale returning as DC Comics’ masked vigilante in the finale of director Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy.
These three are the gold standard for fans: “The Dark Knight,” Tobey Maguire’s three “Spider-man” flicks, and Downey’s two “Iron Man” movies are the six topgrossing superhero adventures ever.
Add in solid receipts for solo turns of “Avengers” costars Chris Hemsworth in “Thor” and Chris Evans in “Captain America: The First Avenger”—plus, the lure of a new incarnation of the Incredible Hulk by Mark Ruffalo in “Avengers”—and summer’s superhero meter is off the charts.
Of course, there’s plenty to fill in the gaps between superhero sagas: Other action tales include “Men in Black 3,” with Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones; Kristen Stewart and Charlize Theron’s fairytale makeover, “Snow White and the Huntsman”; Ridley Scott’s return to scifi, with “Prometheus”; Jeremy Renner’s “The Bourne Legacy”; Colin Farrell’s remake, “Total Recall,” and the board- game adaptation “Battleship.”
Cartoon makers offer up the Scottish adventure, “Brave,” the latest from the animation virtuosos at Pixar, while talking-animal franchises return with “Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted” and “Ice Age: Continental Drift.”
The comedy and music front brings Adam Sandler’s fatherhood story, “That’s My Boy”; the all-star song fest, “Rock of Ages”; Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn and Jonah Hill’s suburban romp, “Neighborhood Watch”; Sacha Baron Cohen’s tyrant tale, “The Dictator,” and Whitney Houston’s final film, “Sparkle.”
And, what would summer be without vampires? Johnny Depp turns blood-sucker as he reunites with director Tim Burton in “Dark Shadows,” a big-screen take on the gothic soap opera. “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter” has the great emancipator taking down the undead.
“Amazing Spider-man’s” Garfield practically has Peter Parker in his DNA. Garfield has been a huge Spider-man fan since age 4.
“I know the character well—it’s already part of me. It’s like I’ve been preparing for the role for 24 years,” said Garfield, who hints that destiny is at work in this version as orphan boy Peter’s search for his parents puts him on a showdown path with the mutant spider that endows him with superpowers.
Directed by Marc Webb and costarring Emma Stone as romantic interest, Gwen Stacy, and Rhys Ifans as the villainous Lizard, “Amazing Spider-man” aims to walk the line between gravity and exuberance.
“Marc Webb has approached this with a real eye for
authenticity and grittiness. It feels darker to me,” Garfield shared. “It’s also important that Spidey has fun and is witty. The mask is a very powerful thing for anyone who wears it. It gives you the confidence to do anything you want—and in the hands of a teenager, he’ll just run riot! I hope we’ve managed to have some of that.”
Unlike “Avengers” and “Amazing SpiderMan,” “Dark Knight Rises” will not be playing in 3D—nolan just isn’t a fan, though helikes shooting for the huge-screen Imax format.
Anne Hathaway signs on as Catwoman, while Nolan’s “Inception” costars, Marion Cotillard, Joseph Gordon-levitt and Tom Hardy, join returning Batman cast members, Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine. A look at other summer highlights:
The latest reunion of Johnny Depp and Tim Burton will bring some fresh bite to vampires as they adapt the creepy TV soap opera featuring a 200year-old blood-sucker.
Dark Shadows”—
Sacha Baron Cohen outdoes Castro with his wild beard in this comedy about a tyrant battling for untruth, injustice and the totalitarian way.
Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones return to fight aliens in a time-traveling action-comedy that adds Josh Brolin as the young version of Jones’ Agent K.
“The Dictator”—
“Men in Black 3”—
“What to Expect When You’re Expecting”—
Everyone’s in a family way with an ensemble tale about pending parenthood that features Cameron Diaz, Jennifer Lopez, Elizabeth Banks and Dennis Quaid.
“Abraham Hunter”—
Lincoln:
Vampire
Can’t wait for Steven Spielberg’s upcoming biopic, “Lincoln”? Then, catch the 16th president (Benjamin Walker) as he emancipates the land from blood-suckers!