What a perfect time for the summer movie season to hit. Millions of people are currently drunk on the power of cinema after flocking to see Sinners in theaters over the past 11 days and there's a deep slate of films that could benefit from riding the wave that Ryan Coogler's spectacular film set into motion. Both big superhero brands will be hoping that their new films (Thunderbolts*, Superman, The Fantastic Four: First Steps) will be as beloved and successful as last summer's sensation Deadpool & Wolverine. Universal is taking Jurassic Park back to its roots by enlisting original screenwriter David Koepp to write a movie where dinosaurs are squaring off with humans (led by Scarlett Johansson, Mahershala Ali and Jonathan Bailey) on an island that they made the mistake of visiting for their own personal gain. Long-dormant horror franchises are back from the dead (Final Destination: Bloodlines, 28 Years Later, I Know What You Did Last Summer) and hoping to reignite the passion of their respective cult fanbases. A24 is back in business with a trio of directors responsible for some of the splashiest movies in their catalogue (Ari Aster, Celine Song, Danny and Michael Phillipou) on daring projects that could really stand out among this high-profile slate. The "we're sick of live action remakes of animated movies crowd!!" that did victory laps over the failure of Snow White in March will immediately show their whole ass when they help make Lilo & Stitch and How to Train Your Dragon into massive hits. Tom Cruise appears set to say goodbye to a career-defining character of his after 30 years of putting his life on the line for the entertainment of others. Wes Anderson is back with a Wes Anderson-y spy comedy (The Phoenician Scheme) that's led by Benicio del Toro, Mia Threapleton and Michael Cera-who somehow has never worked with Anderson prior to this despite being absolutely perfect for his style. Original movies of various sizes and genres (Together, Weapons, Elio, F1, Shadow Force) will be aiming to replicate the magical run of Sinners. There really is something for everyone and it's just beautiful to see. Here are the 10 films I'm most looking forward to seeing from May-August.
(Note: I've seen Friendship-which would've otherwise been #1- and to the shock of absolutely no one, I loved it. Tim Robinson is a master of his absurdist comedy craft, and I can't wait to watch it 32 more times by the end of the year.)
10.F1 (June 27):
To put it mildly, I'm not a fan of F1 racing. In fact, the only times I've ever even passively watched a moment of a race was the morning of my friend's wedding in 2022 and during another friend's bachelor party last year. So why I am really excited to see a film that's centered around a widely popular motorsport that I have absolutely zero attachment to? Simple: It boasts the kind of classic sports movie underdog storyline that I eat up (an aging driver with a checkered past is brought in to mentor a young hotshot during his rookie season on the F1 circuit), the creative team behind it (director Joseph Kosinski, writer Ehren Kruger, cinematographer Claudio Miranda, producer Jerry Bruckheimer) are applying the same principles they used on their previous blockbuster effort Top Gun: Maverick here by shooting on real F1 tracks all over the world during race weekends and using camera rigs that attach to the cars so the viewer can feel like they're in the middle of the action and the cast is absolutely loaded (Brad Pitt, Damson Idiris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem, Tobias Menzies, Shea Whigham, Simone Ashley).
9.Together (July 30):
This body horror comedy which marks the feature debut for Australian filmmaker Michael Shanks was arguably the single most buzzed about title that premiered at this year's Sundance and the teaser that Neon-who won the distribution rights after a massive auction in Park City-released a couple months back does a terrific job of establishing the film's atmosphere without delving into any of the specifics of the plot.
8.Materialists (June 13):
A vintage James L.Brooks-esque romantic comedy is about the last thing anyone would've expected Celine Song to make immediately after her gut-wrenching debut Past Lives. Massive tonal/genre shift aside; I can clearly see the vision she has for this one from the trailer and wouldn't be the least bit surprised if this shit ended up being charming as hell.
7.Weapons (August 8):
While it's definitely rough around the edges and probably ended up being a smidge overhyped in the grand scheme of things, Barbarian was a sufficiently nutty, unique horror flick that cemented Zach Cregger as a filmmaker to keep an eye on. His next feature Weapons is an even more ambitious undertaking as the plot involves a mysterious incident where a group of children from the same elementary school class all leave their homes in the middle of the night and disappear into the woods without a trace told from the perspective of multiple characters that have an attachment to the kids including their teacher (Julia Garner), a parent of one of the students (Josh Brolin) and a cop investigating the disappearances (Alden Ehrenreich). Early rumblings are indicating that Cregger made something really special here and I'm really excited to see what kind of madness he cooked up this time around.
6.Nobody 2 (August 15):
Nobody is one of the best action movies of the last decade and with Indonesian martial arts titan Timo Tjahjanto (The Night Comes for Us, The Shadow Strays) taking over directorial duties this time around, the sequel could prove to be a bigger, bloodier and more entertaining affair.
5.The Naked Gun (August 1):
Trying to replicate the singular zaniness of The Naked Gun! movies is a tall order. However, if anybody can pull it off, it's the team behind this reboot. Liam Nesson is the perfect deadpan foil to the non-stop colorful gags that are sure to be surrounding him here and director/co-writer Akiva Schaffer (Hot Rod, Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping, Chip n'Dale: Rescue Rangers) has excelled in the world of silly comedy throughout his career.
4.Mission-Impossible: The Final Reckoning (May 23):
After 30 years and 8 films, Tom Cruise's madman superspy Ethan Hunt is set to embark on his final mission. Considering the dizzying heights this franchise has reached since Christopher McQuarrie took over as director with 2015's Rogue Nation, I'm fully expecting the finale to deliver some of the craziest stunts and action setpieces of the entire franchise to ensure that Cruise's legacy-defining character goes out with a fittingly excessive, exhilarating bang.
3.Ballerina (June 6):
I'm equally curious and nervous to see where the wide world of John Wick goes from here as it officially expands its universe beyond the titular character with the spin-off Ballerina, which focuses on a member (Ana de Armas) of the ballet-dancing troupe of assassins that were introduced in John Wick: Chapter 3. With a magnetic actor with proven action chops leading the way and some very credible rumors out there suggesting that franchise architect Chad Stahelski took over for credited director Len Wiseman on the major reshoots Lionsgate ordered that moved the film back from last June to its current date which are certainly backed up by how good the action looks in the trailers, I'm cautiously optimistic that Ballerina will live up to the high Wick standard.
2.Superman (July 11):
A new era for DC movies is finally launching with the first solo Superman vehicle in 12 years. There's a lot riding on this movie as the embattled superhero brand hopes to wash away the stink of the string of failures that led them to hit the reset button on the entire cinematic universe they had been working in from 2013-2023, but it would be hard to not have faith in James Gunn's ability to reverse their fortunes given his impeccable track record of making great superhero projects and just how much the pure-hearted sentimentality that Superman possesses as a character lines up with his strengths as a storyteller.
1.28 Years Later (June 20):
Danny Boyle and Alex Garland returning to the terrifying world they began to build 24 years ago still doesn't feel real. There are lofty expectations that come with following up one of the defining horror masterpieces of the first quarter of the 21st century after spending so much time away that have inevitably been further elevated by the incredible set of trailers Sony has released thus far. Despite the bar being so high, Boyle and Garland are definitely gifted enough to clear it and I'll be stoked to head to the theater on opening weekend to see if they were able to pull off this incredibly difficult feat.
Also Plan on Watching:
Another Simple Favor (May 1)
The Surfer (May 2)
Thunderbolts* (May 2)
Clown in a Cornfield (May 9)
Fight or Flight (May 9)
Shadow Force (May 9)
Sharp Corner (May 9)
Summer of 69 (May 9)
Final Destination: Bloodlines (May 16)
Hurry Up Tomorrow (May 16)
Bring Her Back (May 30)
The Phoenician Scheme (May 30)
Dangerous Animals (June 6)
The Life of Chuck (June 6)
Elio (June 20)
M3GAN 2.0 (June 27)
Heads of State (July 2)
Jurassic World Rebirth (July 2)
The Old Guard 2 (July 2)
Eddington (July 18)
The Fantastic Four: First Steps (July 25)
Happy Gilmore 2 (July 25)
Oh, Hi! (July 25)
The Bad Guys 2 (August 1)
Fixed (August 13)
Americana (August 22)
Eden (August 22)
Honey Don't! (August 22)
Lurker (August 22)
Relay (August 22)
Caught Stealing (August 29)
The Roses (August 29)
The Toxic Avenger (August 29)
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