Summer Movie Preview: July 2010

Another summer month has come and gone and that means we're at the halfway point of the summer movie season. After a disappointing May, June added a little more excitement and cash flow. But only three movies stood out and excited the audiences. Let's take a quick recap:

If you haven't already, check out May and June's previews:

Hits:

Toy Story 3 - Pixar has done it again. A wonderful and touching film that made me remember why I loved (who am I kidding....I still do) my toys. The last half hour is some moving stuff...prepare to cry. In a lackluster summer, this movie has stood out even more and the grosses are showing it. It's almost at $300mm and looks headed for Shrek 2 teritory (i.e. $420mm). The probably #1 movie of the summer, with Inception having an outside shot of pulling the upset.

Twilight: Eclipse - With each movie the grosses just keep getting bigger and bigger. And they say this is the best of the franchise so far (although that's not saying much), so expect a final tally greater than the last Twilight film.

The Karate Kid - One of the surprises that I correctly predicted. Even though it's too long, the movie is a huge hit and could spawn it's own sequel. Jaden Smith will become a huge star...unless he starts hanging out with the wrong crowd.

Moderate Successes:

Grown Ups - just another in a long line of Adam Sandler hits. By few accounts is it actually good. But the cast really helped pull in big numbers at the box office.

Get Him to the Greek - some have called it hilarious...others have felt it was bland. It's made about $50mm so far, and will be considered a money maker. But it's no Hangover.

Misses:

The A-Team - supposedly the action was worth the price of admission. But the story was not well conceived and a sequel will most likely not be made.

Killers - Just didn't have the leading actor and actress to pull off a story that's been done plenty of times before...and way better.

Splice - I really swung and missed on this one. Audiences saw it as just another by the book horror movie and it will go on to live a better life on DVD.

Knight and Day - Another movie I really swung and missed on. I thought for sure this was the film that would bring Tom Cruise back to prominence. Especially after his performance on the MTV Movie Awards. But a poor title hurt it's cause. And it's shown that audiences don't love Tom like they used to.

Jonah Hex - And there goes Megan Fox's once promising career. She can't get by on looks forever.

JULY 2010:

The Last Airbender: Qualifies under #2

Starring: Dev Patel and a bunch of other people you never heard of.

Directed by: M. Night Shyamalan

M. Night Shyamalan directs his first ever feature that he didn’t write, which is a good thing. That means no surprise ending. No long, boring stretches of time wasted on building up to that surprise ending. And after “The Sixth Sense” (and arguably “Signs” and “Unbreakable”), Shyamalan seemed to become a little too complacent. Too willing to settle on that one trick pony/writing ploy. There is no denying the man has talent. So it’ll be interesting to see what he can do with this popular animated series that could lead to his own comeback story. Opening on the coveted July 4th weekend, I think this movie is going to get glowing reviews and have some sick special effects. Final gross will be $300+mm and a sequel will be in the works.

Pros: The return of M. Night. Air, Water, Fire, Earth…tailored made for 3D.

Cons: Uproar over the racial (or lack thereof) casting. (Um…they’re supposed to be Asian).


Despicable Me: Qualifies under #11

Featuring voices by: Steve Carrell, Kristin Wiig, Jason Segal, Russell Brand, Julie Andrews, and Will Arnett.

The summer’s required other animated offering to compete with Pixar. This one comes from Universal, which isn’t known for animated movies (yet). And the trailers have looked confusing so far, giving no indication of what the movie is about (or any voices). Heck, the only thing that stands out about the trailer is the rap song. Yet, with this all star lineup and a cute premise (that I had to look up) I expect this animated entry to make Ice Age money. Final gross of $190mm.

Pros: Big production animated movies like these usually do well.

Cons: A trailer that fails to excite.


Predators: Qualifies under #3

Starring: Adrian Brody, Topher Grace, Danny Trejo, Alice Braga, and Laurence Fishburne.

Based on the early trailer/preview, this could be the entry that brings the franchise back to its roots. After a lackluster sequel, followed by a couple of Aliens vs. Predators titles, we might finally see a basic man versus monster in the jungle movie. Consider me intrigued. The key will be how well the stars act as they mercenaries. Let’s face it, Arnold was awesome. But Carl Weathers and Jesse Ventura were money too. Danny Glover, Sanaa Lathan, and the girl from “24” were not so money. Can Brody, Grace, Fishburne, Trejo, and Braga pull it off? That will be the key to whether it makes $40mm or $75. I say they disappoint and the movie only makes $50mm.

Pros: Bringing the franchise back to its roots.

Cons: Would have been at least 27x more anticipated if Robert Rodriquez were the director.


Inception: Qualifies for #2, and #6

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Marion Cotillard, Ellen Page, Ken Watanabe, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

Directed by: Christopher Nolan

In this particular instance, doesn’t Christopher make him sound so much better than if he went by Chris Nolan (see Chris Weitz)? Anyway, I have no idea what this movie is about. No clue what anybody is doing in the trailer. Yet, this is probably going to be the coolest movie of the summer. Nolan does not disappoint: See Memento, Batman Begins, the Presitge, and The Dark Knight. The man is simply money. Throw in a stellar cast and prepare to have your mind blown. The only question is will people get it? Because let’s face it - some people are stupid. They want to see “Big Momma’s House 3” and “White Chicks 2” instead of having their minds challenged. Final gross will be $300mm making for Nolan’s biggest non-Batman hit.

Pros: Nolan’s only original movie in between making Batman’s. IMAX. Guaranteed twists and turns that will leave your mouths open and heads scratched. The next Matrix?

Cons: Too confusing for its own good?


The Sorcerer’s Apprentice: Qualifies for #2, and #6

Starring: Nicholas Cage, Jay Baruchel, Monica Bellucci, and Alfred Molina

Directed by: Jon Turteltaub

Great, another Jon Turteltaub-Nicholas Cage-Jerry Bruckehimer movie. Just what the National Treasure fans out there needed (although, I’m sure my friend Sherm is happy). I know that was my initial reaction. Followed by the obligatory, “How the heck does Nicholas Cage keep getting these gigs?” and “This movie will suck”. But then a funny thing happened. This movie started getting good press. Early leaks have all been good. They say this will make Jay Baruchel (last seen in “She’s Out of My League”) a star. And the trailers have looked impressive. Throw in the track records of J-N-J and consider me sold. I think this movie has a chance to be the breakout hit of the summer, exceeding all expectations, and finishing with a solid $250+mm box office run (sequel alert).

Pros: From the team that brought you National Treasure. Prepare for adventure and special effects.

Cons: More crazy, over-the-top Nicholas Cage.


Dinner for Schmucks: Qualifies for #3, and #4

Starring: Steve Carrell, Paud Rudd, and Zach Galifianakis

Directed by: Jay Roach

This movie has hit written all over it. Starring one of the comedy kings of the moment (Carrell), and two up and coming comedy stars that are moving up the ladder (Rudd – who was great in “I Love you, Man” and Galifianakis – who stole the show in “The Hangover”). Throw in the director of “Meet the Parents” and “Austin Powers” and how can you not be excited? Well because the trailer doesn’t look funny at all. Actually, it looks pretty bad. This movie is more of a farce than a raunchy comedy, and I’m not sure how that’ll play out for the fans of Rudd and Galifianakis. I think this comedy has a chance to be 2010’s version of “Funny People”. A dramedy that is being sold on the stars and director, instead of the quality of the movie. Final gross will be only $50mm.

Pros: An equal comedy dream team to the “Grown Ups”, minus the SNL pedigree.

Cons: Based on a foreign film, so might not be your typical brand of humor.


Salt:

Starring: Angelina Jolie, Live Schreiber, and Chiwetel Ejiofor.

Directed by: Philip Noyce

Another movie that has been supposedly hit by production troubles. Sure, the movie has gone through several directors and stars, even going through a gender change (Salt was supposed to be played by Tom Cruise). But I don’t think this is the same as Robin Hood or Jonah Hex. All that happened prior to the movie being made. And ending up with Angelina Jolie in the type of sexy, action heroine role that fans love to see her in (her biggest hits have been “Mr. and Mrs. Smith”, “Wanted”, and “Tomb Raider”) is not a bad consolation prize. The trailers have looked pretty cool - adding the right amount of action and intrigue, all while making people want to know if Jolie is bad or good in the movie. Job well done people who make the trailer and get paid tons of money to do it. Final box office gross: $165mm.

Pros: Angeline. Jolie. Naked. (I just made up the naked part)

Cons: Trying a little too hard to be the female Jason Bourne (right down to the NYPD car chase scene).


Cats and Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore: Qualifies for #3, #11

Starring: Chris O’Donnell and Jack McBrayer

Featuring voices by: Alec Baldwin, Michael Clarke Duncan, and Bette Midler

If G-Force has taught us anything, it’s that any kind of talking animals are cute and will make a lot of money at the box office. So nine years after the first film made a decent $93mm domestic gross, a sequel is back to delight little kids yet again. Now, I haven’t seen the trailer or heard anything about the movie. But do you really need to? The title says it all. Prepare for cute dogs and cats. A couple of humans thrown in to make it live action. And let the cash flow in. Final gross will be $105mm.

Pros: Dogs. Puppies. Cats. Kittens. Sooooo cute!

Cons: Will it reach beyond the family audience?


That's all I got readers...So which ones are you most excited to see?