By: Carter Caldwell

The summer movie season is always one that guarantees fun, and this summer is no exception.  This summer will see the release of upwards of 40 films, including horror, drama, superhero, and comedy films.  On June 2, right after school lets out, Wonder Woman will be the first modern day superhero movie centered on a female superhero.  Also released on that day will be Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie (based on Dav Pikley’s best-selling series) and Dean.  Released independently in August of 2016, Dean is the story of a stylistically simple cartoon artist and the chaos that develops in his life.

June 9 will see the release of The Mummy, the first film in Universal’s “Dark Universe,” which will center on monsters such as Frankenstein, Dracula, and the Invisible Man.  It Comes at Night, a psychological horror film starring Joel Edgerton, will also premiere, as will My Cousin Rachel, Megan Leavey, and Beatriz at Dinner.  My Cousin Rachel is based on the 1951 novel of the same name, while Megan Leavey is based on the true story of a Marine and her combat dog who saved many lives in Iraq.  Beatriz at Dinner has been called “the first great film of the Trump era,” and focuses on an immigrant health practitioner who “collides” with an opinionated billionaire at a dinner party.  A week later, on June 16, Cars 3, Rough Night, All Eyez on Me, and The Book of Henry will premiere.  The third installment in Pixar’s Cars franchise, Cars 3 will focus on an aged Lightning McQueen, whose sponsors attempt to save his image by asking him to retire.  All Eyez on Me is the story of hip-hop artist Tupac Shakur and is named after his 1996 album, while The Book of Henry centers around a waitress and her sons who try to “save” a neighbor from her police commissioner stepfather.  On June 21, Transformers: The Last Knight will be the only film released, and the fifth film in Michael Bay’s Transformers franchise.  It will pick up relatively soon after Age of Extinction, which was released in 2014.

On June 23 audiences will be treated to the Jaws-esque 47 Meters Down, which follows two sisters who get stuck at the bottom of the ocean in a cage surrounded by sharks.  47 Meters will compete with The Bad Batch, a horror-comedy about a couple who find themselves vacationing among a community of cannibals.  Additionally, Sofia Coppola’s The Beguiled and Michael Showalter’s The Big Sick will be released.  Baby Driver, the story of a reluctant getaway driver who falls in love, will be released on June 28.  Closing June will be Despicable Me 3, The House, Amityville: The Awakening, and 2:22 on June 30.  Despicable Me 3 is actually the fourth film of its franchise, and it will explore Gru’s relationship with his long-lost brother.  For those looking for something more adult-oriented, Amityville and 2:22 promise edge-of your seat suspense, while The House (starring Will Ferrell and Amy Poehler) will keep the laughs rolling.
  
July also looks promising for cinemas, and it will start with the newest Marvel film, Spider-Man: Homecoming on July 7.  A week later, Andy Serkis’s War for the Planet of the Apes and Wish Upon.  Apes is the third film in its franchise, while Wish Upon is a horror film about a girl whose wishes come true, but only at a price. On July 21, Christopher Nolan’s new war drama based on World War II, Dunkirk will premiere in cinemas, as will sci-fi adventure Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets and rom-com Girls Trip.  The following week will close July with Atomic Blonde, a spy film starring Charlize Theron, adult comedy Brigsby Bear, pop culture comedy The Emoji Movie, and Al Gore documentary An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power.  

As summer closes, August 4 will bring a more serious lineup of movies, with the sole comedy being Ingrid Goes West, in which Aubrey Plaza’s Ingrid moves West to become friends with social media star Taylor Sloane.  Detroit, a period crime film detailing the events of Detroit’s 1967 12th Street Riot, will also come out that day, as will the film adaptation of Stephen King’s Dark Tower series starring future James Bond Idris Elba.  Accompanying them on August 4 will be Wind River, in which a US Fish and Wildlife Service agent works as a tracker against the elements.

August 11 will bring the fourth installment to the Conjuring franchise with Annabelle: Creation.  Another franchise film to be released that day will be The Nut Job 2: Nutty By Nature.  The third film to be released on August 11 is The Glass Castle, based on Jeanette Walls’ 2005 memoir.  Brie Larson will headline, along with Naomi Watts and Woody Harrelson.  In contrast, August 18 will bring three original films, The Hitman’s Bodyguard, Logan Lucky, and Patti Cake$.  The first two will sport star-studded casts including Ryan Reynolds, Samuel L. Jackson, Channing Tatum, and Academy Award winner Hilary Swank.  Patti Cake$ does not have the big name draw of its competitors, but it’s comedic synopsis (a New Jersey girl seeks fame as a gangster rapper) promises to draw interest.  Closing the summer is Leap!, an animated story about a poor girl who aims to become a ballerina and her inventor friend.