Summer Movies
– Jacob Glandon, Black Oak Films
Summer 2024 is looking to be a big one for the movie scene. From family friendly, to action, to horror and thriller, there is something coming out that will capture the excitement of everyone. Ryan Gosling is back on the big screen in the action-thriller, The Fall Guy which is set to release on May 3rd. Gosling stars as Colt Seavers, a stuntman who is tasked in finding and returning the kidnapped movie star Tom Ryder (Aaron Taylor-Johnson). Emily Blunt stars as Gosling’s love interest, film director Jody Moreno. On May 10th, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes releases and on May 17th, the latest John Krasinski (A Quiet Place, The Office) project “IF” hits theaters. The premise of the movie is about Bea (Cailey Fleming) a young girl who discovers she can see abandoned imaginary friends while everyone else cannot. Krasinski stars and directs this star-loaded film with cast members such as Steve Carell, Emily Blunt, Matt Damon and others. Also releasing on May 17th, is The Strangers: Chapter 1, a horror film not related to the two previous The Strangers films but the beginning of a trilogy. Go Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, accompanied by The Garfield Movie kicks off the summer season in late May. Furiosa is a prequel to the Oscar winning film Mad Max: Fury Road. It stars rising icon Anya Taylor-Joy who plays the younger version of Imperator Furiosa. George Miller, who directed Fury Road, is the director once again. Chris Hemsworth is also slated to play a large role in the film. On the other side of the ball, The Garfield Movie is a more family oriented choice. If you’re a fan of Chris Pratt’s voice acting, then this film is for you. If not, you might want to reconsider those double feature tickets. Samuel L. Jackson will be voicing Garfield’s father Vic as well. Both Garfield and Furiosa will be released on May 24th.
In June, The Crow will hit theaters on the 7th. The film is a remake of the controversial 1994 release of the same name. During production of the original The Crow, Brandon Lee, son of Bruce Lee, was killed by a bullet fragment that had been left inside the barrel of the firearm that was supposed to contain only blank rounds. Stuntman Chad Stahelski stepped in to replace Lee while Lee’s face was digitally replaced over Stahelski and parts of the film were rewritten. The consequences of this film had a great influence on Stahelski who just wrapped up the final installation of the John Wick franchise last year. The Crow (2024) stars Bill Skarsgård and is directed by Rupert Sanders. Bad Boys: Ride or Die returns the explosive film series to theaters on June 14th and stars Will Smith and Adil El Arbi. Inside Out 2 also comes out on the 14th. Pixar’s latest release is expected to be a big hit this summer. The film explores the emotions that Riley, now a college student, faces as she explores her world. Her emotions, who like in the first movie, live inside her brain in a control room of sorts work together to maintain Riley’s well being. The film stars Amy Poehler and Maya Hawke whose success from Stranger Things has been getting an influx of roles.
Fans have been asking for an origin story to the A Quiet Place series and have finally received that. A Quiet Place: Day One releases on June 28th. A mostly new cast, outside of Djimon Hounsou, will see their lives turned upside down from the attack of the sound-sensitive aliens that control the lives of the characters in the two original films.
The Beverly Hills Cop franchise makes a return after a near 30 year gap since the third installation in 1994. Eddie Murphy’s Axel Foley is back in Los Angeles to investigate yet again, corrupt cops. Several original cast members return along with newcomers Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Taylor Paige who will play Foley’s daughter. Catch Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F in theaters on July 3rd.
Despicable Me 4 returns to theaters on July 3rd. Gru, once again voiced by Steve Carell, takes on a vengeful enemy voiced by Will Ferrell. Gru, along with his family and baby Gru Jr take on yet another villain.
The third film of the “X” franchise releases on July 5th. Starring Mia Goth (Infinity Pool), Maxxxine continues the story that Pearl and X began in 2022. The aspiring movie star Maxine Minx has finally gotten her big break in Hollywood but her dreams are threatened by the presence of a serial killer whose killings leave a trail of blood linked to Maxine’s dark past.
On July 12th, Fly Me to the Moon and Longlegs will be released in theaters. The latter stars Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum in a comedy romance set in the 1960s space race to the moon. Johansson’s character, Kelly Jones is in charge of getting public support for NASA’s efforts to put a man on the moon and in the process of her work, finds herself starstruck by NASA scientist, Cole Davis (Tatum). Longlegs is a horror thriller starring Maika Monroe as an FBI agent assigned to an unsolved case of serial killings. As her search deepens, she discovers the killer is linked to the occult and to her personal family.
Meteorology fanatics everywhere are eagerly awaiting the release of Twisters, the somewhat remake, somewhat sequel to the 1996 film, Twister. Starring Glen Powell and Daisy Edgar-Jones, Twisters will feature, you guessed it, two tornadoes. Let’s just hope they only charge us for one ticket. Twisters will be released on July 19th.
One week later, the summer’s likely biggest film will be released. Deadpool & Wolverine may leave its legacy as one of the few examples of Disney movies with R rated content. Deadpool is well known for its over the top humor and visuals so it will be interesting to see if that is refined to Disney’s standards. The film will include the involvement of Wolverine, who through some connection with the Time Variance Authority (TVA), is brought together with Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool to assumedly take down some kind of enemy or evil force. The film will be released in theaters on July 26th.
