The summer blockbuster season is upon us– superhero sequels, animated adventures, and crazy comedies. My tastes are somewhat different from your average 14 year old boy, so keep that in mind as you peruse the list below. Here’s what I can’t wait to see as the summer kicks off in PART I of my Summer Movie Preview:

MAY 1: FAR FROM THE  MADDING CROWD


Adapted from English novelist Thomas Hardy’s desperately romantic 1874 novel, this remake stars Carey Mulligan as headstrong beauty Bathsheba Everdine who rejects a marriage proposal and makes her way through a thicket of sensual encounters–all set against the wild English countryside. Just my cup of tea. I still remember the 1967 original starring the gorgeous Julie Christie, Peter Finch, Alan Bates, and Terence Stamp. Can Carey match Christie’s eroticism? Can’t wait to find out and lose myself on the moors…

 

MAY 1: WELCOME TO ME

SNL luminary Kristen Wiig stars as a woman with borderline personality disorder– how perfect is that casting? She wins the lottery, goes off her meds, and uses the cash to mount her own talk show! It’s poised between comedy and drama, something Wiig balances really well (see THE SKELETON TWINS). I usually flip for Wiig and this sounds like the perfect vehicle to drive her eccentric gifts.

MAY 8: HOT PURSUIT

Reese Witherspoon and Sofia Vergara team up in this action/comedy as an earnest cop (REESE) trying to protect a sexy widow (SOFIA) from a drug dealer and his gun-toting henchmen as they are chased through the wilds of Texas! You had me at Witherspoon and Vergara.

MAY 15: PITCH PERFECT 2

The girls with the golden vocals team up again–and boy, can they sing! This melodious ode to college a cappella competitions reunites Anna Kendrick, Brittany Snow, and Rebel Wilson as “Fat Amy,” with newcomer Hailee Steinfeld to help the “Bellas” win a global competition that no American group has ever won before. The stakes are higher, the arrangements hotter– check out the trailer!

MAY 22: TOMORROWLAND

George Clooney (I’ve missed you) stars as an eccentric inventor in a time-traveling sci-fi, mystery, adventure tale about a secret society founded by Thomas Edison, Jules Verne, and Gustave Eiffel (of the tower) and a place in time where inventors imaginations can run free! Huh? Who cares. Did someone say George Clooney?

MAY 29: ALOHA

The ubiquitous Oscar nominee Bradley Cooper washes up in Hawaii after washing up professionally and tries to salvage his life and career. Will he sink or swim? Emma Stone, Rachel McAdams, Alec Baldwin, and Bill Murray provide a raft of support in this Comedy/Drama/Romance from writer/director Cameron Crowe who brought us a similar character arc in JERRY MAGUIRE.

JUNE 5: SPY

Melissa McCarthy– my idea of a super hero–is back in top form as a CIA agent who jumps at the chance to leave her desk job and leap into the world of spies in disguise! Hot on the the trail of villainous vixen Rose Byrne, McCarthy buddies up with super-agent Jason Statham and together they set out to save the world. Can they do it? My money’s on McCarthy. I’m already laughing.

JULY 1: MAGIC MIKE XXL


The XXL stands for Extra Extra Large. Keep that in mind along with the plot of this sequel which reunites hunky Channing Tatum and fellow strippers Matt Bomer and Joe Manganiello who head to a stripper convention where they meet up with club-owner Jada Pinkett Smith and Michael Strahan (Football star and Kelly Ripa cohost).  I’ve heard there’s not much plot (really?), but there’s lots of action on the dance floor. Tatum has moves which defy his size (remember that pas de deux at the Oscars two years ago with Charlize Theron?) Well, MAGIC MIKE XXL promises more moves, fewer clothes, and everyone breaking a sweat. Get me an ice cube.

Stay tuned for Part II of my Summer Movie Preview as the summer heats up!