Article written by J-1 correspondent: Tony Detres

The summer season has almost always been the time for the popular movie blockbusters to release. This summer is no different with movies such as Guardians of the Galaxy and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.  Even though a lot of popular movies are starting to come out during the fall nowadays, like the Hunger Games movies and the Twilight series, there are still plenty of movies coming out in the summer time that are fun and action packed.

 May:

–        X-Men: Days of Future Past (May 23^rd)

• Director: Bryan Singer (Also directed X-Men and X-Men 2)
• Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Hugh Jackman, Ellen Page, Halle Berry
• Summary: From director Bryan Singer, who brought you the two good movies of the last X-Men trilogy, comes the sequel to 2011’s excellent X-Men First Class. Starring a number of well-known actors such as everyone’s favorite actress, Jennifer Lawrence.  You also have talent such as Ellen Page, Hugh Jackman, and Halle Berry. Among other talented actors, X-Men: Days of Future Past is shaping up to be one of summer’s best movies.

 

 

 

–       A Million Ways to Die in the West (May 30^th)

• Director: Seth McFarlane (Also directed Ted, well know writer on shows like Family Guy and American Dad)
• Starring: Seth McFarlane and Liam Neeson
• Summary: A Million Ways to Die in the West comes from Seth McFarlane, the mind that brought you the 2012 hit comedy Ted and is also the writer for popular shows such as Family Guy and American Dad.  Seth McFarlane stars in his own movie along with talent such as award winning actor Liam Neeson and famous comedian Sarah Silverman.   While this raunchy comedy is not for the faint-of-heart, it is looking to be one of the funnier movies of the summer.

 

 

 

June:

–        22 Jump Street (June 13^th)

• Directors: Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (Both also directed 21 Jump Street and The LEGO Movie)
• Starring: Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum
• Summary: Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill star in the sequel to the popular action comedy, 21 Jump Street.  Directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller are best known for their work on 21 Jump Street and the fantastic LEGO Movie.   While the first movie followed the duo going through high school, this sequel will have them going undercover in a local college.

 

 

 

 

–        Transformers: Age of Extinction (June 27^th)

• Director: Michael Bay (Directed the previous Transformers movies)
• Starring: Mark Wahlberg
• Summary:  Director Michael Bay’s string of mediocre, albeit fun, action films continue with a fourth entry in the Transformers movie series.  While these movies are nothing to rave about, they are always entertaining in some way.  With Age of Extinction being no different where in the trailer, Optimus Prime is shown riding a Dinobot.  That alone is reason enough to see the next entry in this series.  Well-known actor Mark Wahlberg stars in this movie, replacing Shia LeBeouf as the lead.

 

 

July:

–        Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (July 18^th)

• Director: Matt Reeves (Also directed Cloverfield )
• Starring: Gary Oldman and Andy Serkis
• Summary:  The follow up to 2011’s fantastic reboot of the Planet of the Apes franchise continues this summer with Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.  This sequel starts years after the outbreak that hit the earth at the end of the first movie.  The events that follow show the struggle between the apes and humans trying to live in harmony.

 

 

August:

–        Guardians of the Galaxy (August 1^st)

• Director: James Gunn (Also directed Super)
• Starring: Chris Pratt, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, and Zoe Saldana
• Summary:  The next entry in the Marvel movie universe is looking to be one of the best in the franchise.  Guardians of the Galaxy follows a band of misfits throughout their intergalactic adventure while being hunted by the villain Ronan after stealing a mysterious orb.  With actors such as Chris Pratt, known for his role as Andy on Parks and Recreation, and Bradley Cooper, who is well known for his role as Phil in The Hangover movies, this will be a hard movie to mess up.

 

 

 

–        Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (August 8^th)

• Director: Jonathan Liebesman ( Also directed Wrath of the Titans and Battle: Los Angeles)
• Starring: Megan Fox, Will Arnett, and Johnny Knoxville
• Summary:  The Turtles return in another reboot of the once wildly popular 90s cartoon.  While taking a more realistic style to the movie, it still retains the show’s quirkiness with the Turtles’ wild personalities.  The stars in this film are a little bit lukewarm, with talented comedy actor Will Arnett, contrasted by mediocre actress Megan Fox. Unbalanced acting talent aside, this movie isn’t looking like anything incredibly special, it does seem like it will be a fun time.

 

 

 

–        Expendables 3 (August 15^th)

• Director: Patrick Hughes (Also directed Red Hill)
• Starring; Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Harrison Ford and many more.)
• Summary:  The third entry in the wildly fun 80s action movie love letter series pulls no punches this time around.  With 80s action heroes like Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone and Harrison Ford, as well as many other modern action stars, come together one last time to take down the villain in the flashiest way possible.  Much like the other Expendables movies, this isn’t going to satisfy you if you are in for a very deep and engaging story.  This is a love letter to the people who can thoroughly enjoy every minute of wildly over the top, fun and insane action set pieces.

 

 

 

Honorable Mentions

–        Maleficent (May 30^th)

•  Director: Robert Stromberg (An Oscar winning visual director makes his directorial debut.)
• Starring: Angelina Jolie and Elle Fanning
• Summary:  The classic Sleeping Beauty villain Maleficent gets her own movie telling a more humanizing story about her.  Angelina Jolie plays Maleficent in this movie, and judging from the trailers, she is the perfect role for it.  I love a good Disney movie and even though their live action movies have been hit or miss in the past, Maleficent is looking to be a movie full of wonder and adventure.

 

 

 

 

–        Edge of Tomorrow (June 6^th)

• Director: Doug Liman (Also directed The Bourne Identity)
• Starring: Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt
• Summary:  Tom Cruise stars in another science fiction action movie this summer in Edge of Tomorrow.  The movie follows Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt as they try to figure out why they keep coming back after they die.  With having very talented leading actors, the director behind The Bourne Identity, and an interesting premise, Edge of Tomorrow is looking to be a sleeper hit.

 

 

 

 

–        How to Train Your Dragon 2 (June 13^th)

• Director: Dean DeBlois (Also directed Lilo & Stich and the first How to Train Your Dragon)
• Starring: Jonah Hill and Cate Blanchett
• Summary:  The first How to Train Your Dragon came out in 2010 and was fantastic.  There is no surprise that the sequel, How to Train Your Dragon 2, was being made.  The first was an animated movie that both children and their parents could both enjoy.  This movie seems to be no different taking place a few years after the events of the first movie.  It seems to retain the slapstick comedy that kids love and the more subtle jokes that the parents will enjoy.  All while retaining the great sense of adventure that the first had.  While Lego Movie still takes the cake as my favorite animated movie of this year, but How to Train Your Dragon 2 seems to bring good competition to the table.