It’s that time of year again. You know the time of year I’m talking about; it’s the time where week after week we flock to the theater to grab some popcorn and catch some of the biggest pieces of spectacle entertainment we’ll see all year . It’s time of year when we pile into the theaters with friends, family, and even total strangers to create experiences, discussions, and memories that will stick with us for years. That’s right! It’s summer blockbuster season!

Star Trek Into Darkness

In Theaters May 17

In 2009 we were all blown away by J.J. Abrams’s incredible new take on Star Trek. It had great characters, a pitch perfect cast, impressive action set pieces, and a space opera vibe that has really been lacking in theaters the last several years. After a four year wait, we’re finally getting a follow-up that is looking to top the original by raising the stakes even further by putting the entire Star Fleet in jeopardy. The entire cast is back for Into Darkness, but perhaps the most intriguing actor on the cast is Benedict Cumberbatch(Sherlock) who is playing an illusive villain that looks like he means some serious business. Everyone including Trekkies, Trekkers, and Star Wars should all check out Star Trek Into Darkness which is sure to deliver one of the most exciting movie going experiences of the year. Live Long and Prosper!

Man of Steel

In Theaters June 14

Superman has had a super(no pun intended) spotty history on the big screen with only the first two films being memorable at best. Now that he has resurrected the Batman franchise, Chris Nolan is teaming with director Zack Snyder(300, Watchmen) to bring back the boy scout superhero in a way that’s never been done before. What little we’ve seen of the movie looks incredible with the heart of the story being Clark Kent’s coming to terms with his Kryptonian heritage. The movie has a knock-out cast I can’t wait to see; I’m especially excited to see Henry McCavill(The Immortals, The Tudors) as Superman and Michael Shannon(Take Shelter, Boardwalk Empire) as the iconic and infamous Zod. Can you smell an epic Metropolis leveling battle? This movie looks bigger, edgier, and more character driven than any of the cheesy old Christopher Reeves movies which has me hopeful that one of my favorite superheroes will finally get the story worthy of his title for the whole world to see.

Pacific Rim

In Theaters July 12

After the abysmal stupidity of the Transformers movies, I never thought I could bring myself to get excited to see a movie about giant fighting robots ever again. But then the fan pleasing director Guillermo Del Toro picked up Pacific Rim, a movie that looks like a tribute to old Japanese monster movies. After seeing the first trailer I was sold on the gargantuan robots vs monsters idea in a way I never thought I would be. To call these larger than life battles massive would be the understatement of the decade. Aside from just the monster slaying, the movie is bringing in actors like Ron Pearlman(Hellboy,Sons of Anarchy) and Idris Elba(The Wire, Prometheus) to play the people who pilot these machines with a fun bit of cockiness. With all of the spectacle, corny dialog, and crazy explosions, this movie looks like the stuff popcorn blockbusters are made of!

The Wolverine

In Theaters July 26

I don’t think any of us have forgotten the letdown of X-men Origns: Wolverine, but deep down I believe there is still hope for an excellent Wolverine movie out there. Wolverine is a character that is better suited than any other character in the series for his own movie because of his loner tenancies and illusive history. This story takes place sometime after X-men The Last Stand and explores Wolverine’s immortality by taking away the powers that have made him unstoppable. This movie has potential to be his best outing yet as it covers the most famous and most brutal era from the Wolverine comics. I’ve always been a bit worried about the movie, but Hugh Jackman has promised that 1)Christopher Mcquarrie’s script is the best X-men script yet and 2) this is by far his most challenging take on the character that we’ve seen so far. It’s fair to remain skeptical, but I can’t help but wait to see what I hope is the best spin-off in modern Hollywood.  I’m still crossing my fingers to see if Logan finally goes into the feral rampage that the comics have been promising us for years.

Elysium

In Theaters August 9

Ever since Neill Blomkamp’s 2009 break-out debut with the sci-fi docu-drama District 9, I’ve been incredibly curious to see what this young director would be taking on next. Four years later and we are finally getting that answer with Elysium, a sci-fi movie starring Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, and Shartlo Copley. This movie continues Blomkamp’s exploration into politics, class warfare, and poverty with the very rich living in the paradise of Elysium above while those who can’t afford the lifestyle live on the wasteland of earth below. Original sci-fi is something that is harder and harder to come by these days, and if the trailer is to believed then we are in for a great piece of classic sci-fi made by some of the best people currently working in Hollywood. Even if this movie completely falls apart, at least we still get to see Matt Damon go Jason Bourne on the bad guys with his power suit.

 

Original post can be found at TheMooreDaily.com