I am glad to say that I am back to writing reviews now that my hectic spring semester has finally ended. This also means that summer has begun! As all of you are probably aware, The Avengers launched this summer with some truly massive fanfare as the film raked in 207.4 million in its first weekend and managed to simultaneously wow critics with a 93% Fresh rating from Rotten Tomatoes and a Meta-score of 69 .  It lived up to the hype and them some. I recently wrote a review of the movie and gave my first 10 since starting this blog. Now that the summer is underway, we have a host of movies coming out that hope to make half the amount of money that The Avengers did. These movies include Scottish fairy tales, an alien invasion, the discovery of man kind’s end, A historical drama about the sixteenth president, a time traveling secret agent, yet another retelling of a classic fairy tale character, and the return of Gotham’s savior. This summer at the movies is going to be one of epic proportions and may go down as one of the best in the last decade. This is a list of five of the movies I’m most excited to see. I will definitely be catching more than five movies, but these are the ones I am anticipating to be a cut above the others.

5. Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter

Releases June 22

Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter looks to be an elaborate(but true) take on the story of Abraham Lincoln.  I’m excited to see how this movie takes the outrageous story of Abe Lincoln and executes it. This movie should be absolutely hilarious, especially for history buffs. This historical-fiction looks to take itself overly seriously which should lend itself to a funnier movie. There’s not much to say about this movie that the title hasn’t already said.

4. The Amazing Spiderman

Releases July 3

Although I may have not hated Spiderman 3 as much as most fans did, the movie certainly left a sour taste in the mouths of film goers everywhere. Since Spiderman 3 hit theaters in 2007 the scene on comic book movies has changed quite a bit with Iron Man launching Marvel’s own line of movies and  The Dark Knight changing the game in 2008 by challenging what could be done in a comic book movies with its dark tone and intricate story. The Amazing Spiderman is stepping into a completely different ballgame than the original Spiderman trilogy had to compete in.  I’m very excited to see how the webslinger adapts to this different state of comic book movies. The trailer certainly looks edgier than Sam Raimi’s Spiderman, but I also don’t want the movie to be too serious as Spiderman is known for his wisecracking. The movie is directed by Mac Webb(500 Days of Summer) and stars the young and fantastic Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone,  and Rhys Ifans. This movie certainly has the potential to bring Spidey back to the big screen in a really big way, but can it adapt to it’s steeper competition?

3. Brave

Releases June 22

After having a very off year with Cars 2, Pixar looks to return to form with Brave; a Scottish fairy tale about the coming of age of a princess. I can honestly say I do not know much about the film other than that it sounds odd and it seems like it shouldn’t work. This is why I can be assured that this will be a great movie. After successfully taking the two completely absurd concepts of Wall-e and Up and turning them into two of the best animated film’s I’ve ever scene, I can safely say that Pixar has a knack for surprising me with ridiculous concepts. Pixar is easily one of my favorite production studios, and this alone is enough to have me exctited for their next movie.

2. Prometheus

Releases June 8

Prometheus has been through many different stages of existance for years now, and I am extremely excited to see it finally make it to the big screen. This film is legendary film director Ridley Scott’s return to the sci-fi genre he helped pioneer in film making in the late 70s and early 80s with films like Alien and Blade Runner. The movie is a spiritual successor and a(kinda, sort of, not really?) prequel to Alien. The movie was written by Damon Lindelof(Co-creator of Lost) and has a great cast made up of Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Charlize Theron, and Guy Pearce. With Prometheus you can expect a dark, moody, and atmospheric sci-fi horror that is sure to leave fans excited for more. This certainly looks to be a movie catered to my own personal taste as it looks to be a very complex tale in dark sci-fi, one of my favoirte genres. Can this modern take on a classic genre really become an modern classic? Based on everything I’ve seen and read, it certainly looks plausible.

1. The Dark Knight Rises

Releases July 20

The Dark Knight Rises has been a movie that has consistently stayed in the media to some degree ever since The Dark Knight was released in 2008. It is a film that looks to continue to push the limits of what comic book movies can do. Like The Dark Knight, Rises looks to be about far more than just Batman with its dark look and seemingly complex story. Christopher Nolan’s Batman films have changed the genre and given new depth to comic book adaptions, and Nolan looks to do something different than most comic book movies by ending the story with Rises. I am very excited to see Batman on July 20, but I am even more excited to see a terrific Christopher Nolan film which is why Rises takes my #1 spot. It looks to transcend the genre it was birthed in and hopefully will give audiences a conclusion and closure to Nolan’s exceptional film trilogy. The Dark Knight Rises will also feature a star studded cast made up of  Christian Bale, Gary Oldman, Tom Hardy, Anne Hathaway, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Marion Cotillard, and the always great Joseph Gordon-Levitt. This movie is oozing with talent and potential, and I cannot wait see what my favorite director Christopher Nolan does to make it as legendary as the character he’s portraying.

Honorable Mentions

Snow White and the Huntsman-June 1

G.I. Joe: Retaliation-June 29

The Bourne Legacy-August 3

The Expendables 2-August 17