Summer Movie Season Preview

Summer starts on May 1 this year.  How do we know?  Well, that's when the first big ticket release opens (X-Men Origins: Wolverine), and that's usually what I go on.  To help you plan your summer moviegoing, here is a handy guide to the notable release dates (with the movies I'm most excited about in bold).  Where I've heard some advance reviews, I'll let you know.

May 1: 

X-Men Origins: Wolverine (leaked online two months ago; not good)

Ghosts of Girlfriends Past

May 8:

Star Trek (J.J. Abrams and Co. knock it out of the park; good for both Trekkies and newbies)

May 15:

Angels & Demons (better than The Da Vinci Code)

May 21:

Terminator Salvation (rated PG-13 - what?)

May 22:

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian

Dance Flick

May 29:

Up (Pixar does it again)

Drag Me to Hell (Sam Raimi successfully goes back to Evil Dead roots)

June 5:

The Hangover (Warner Bros. already greenlit a sequel)

Land of the Lost 

Away We Go (Juno wannabe with John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph)

June 12:

The Taking of Pelham 123 (meh)

June 19:

The Proposal

Year One (talented cast, lackluster laughs)

Whatever Works

June 24:

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (Spielberg called it Michael Bay's best movie yet)

June 26:

My Sister's Keeper

The Hurt Locker (first Iraq War movie that actually works)

July 1:

Public Enemies

Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs

July 10:

Bruno (better than Borat)

I Love You Beth Cooper

July 15:

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

July 17:

500 Days of Summer (Sundance hit; romantic comedy that's poised to be a breakout hit)

July 24:

The Ugly Truth

G-Force

July 31:

Funny People (Judd Apatow's third film - he's 3 for 3)

August 7: 

GI Joe: Rise of Cobra (cheesy and unspectacular)

Julie and Julia

Shorts (fun Robert Rodriguez film for kids)

August 14:

Taking Woodstock

The Time Traveler's Wife

August 21:

Inglourious Basterds

August 28:

H2

Final Destination 4

The Boat That Rocked

-John