By James Robert Shaw (The Wind up Geek)
I see June as the first official summer month for movie goers. It’s a time when film studios hope their careful arrangements of their release schedules pay off.
Just which film will make billions and be crowned the king of summer blockbusters? Right now it looks like a stare down between Guardians of the Galaxy and Transformers: Age of Extinction. But can Edge of Tomorrow club both of them over the head and walk away with all the glory? We have three whole months to find out. Or am I off?
Presented here is my top 10 list of movies that may peak your interest as it does mine.
Edge of Tomorrow
June 6 – (USA / Canada)
Cast: Tom Cruise, Emily Blunt, Brendan Gleeson, Bill Paxton, and Jonas Armstrong.
What Bill Murray did for Groundhog Day, Tom Cruise will do for Edge of Tomorrow, but instead of comedy gold, this film will feature exo-suits and big guns. And we can’t forget the love interest (Katie Holmes). I was never a Tom Cruise fan but I’ll admit to watching his films when it involved other actors I was a fan of. Of those, Rain man with Dustin Hoffman, A Few Good Men with Jack Nicholson, and Top Gun with Anthony Edwards comes to mind.
Okay, that last film was because of Cruise. But the fact of the matter is, in time, I’ve come to appreciate Cruise for the solid actor he is. I’m not a self-confessed Cruiseaholic but many of his films has been money in the bank since he took creative control. And that’s something to really jump on Oprah’s couch about.
Filmistaan
June 6 – (India)
Cast: Sharib Hashmi, Inaamulhaq, Kumud Mishra, and Gopal Dutt.
Sunny, a wannabe actor, is taken prisoner along the Pakistan border. His captors don’t see eye to eye with him on politics. Even with the wall of difference between themselves, they eventually share a bond over their love of cinema.
From first time director Nitin Kakkar, this Indian film won The Silver Crow Pheasant Award for Best Debut at the International Film Festival of Kerala.
Obvious Child
June 6 – (USA)
Cast: Jenny Slate, Jake Lacy, Gaby Hoffman, Gabe Liedman, David Cross, Richard Kind, and Polly Draper.
This short film grew into a feature-length project after director/writer Gillian Robespierre raised $37,000 in funds on Kickstarter to help pay for production costs. The end result is something that tastes like the drinking water from the comedy well of Woody Allen.
In this feature, Donna Stern (Jenny Slate) struggles with insecurities. Her relationship fails, she is fired from her job, and she finds out she is pregnant all before St. Valentine’s Day.
I predict this film will push Jenny Slate into the Hollywood limelight. Jenny has matured as an actress since her funny turn as Zoe in Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked.
女子ーズ
June 7 – (Japan)
Cast: Kiritani Mirei, Mina Fuji, TakashiNozomi Takahata, KaJun Arimura, Mizuki Yamamoto, and Shunsuke Daito.
女子ーズ pokes fun at the Power Rangers genre. If you have ever seen Hikonin Sentai Akibaranger or Downtown’s Five Rangers comedy sketches (they can be found subtitled on YouTube), this may appeal to you.
All Cheerleaders Die
June 13 – (USA – Limited Release)
Cast: Caitlin Stasey, Sianoa Smit-McPhee, Brooke Butler, Amanda Grace Cooper, Reanin Johannink, Tom Williamson, and Chris Petrovski.
I know who the target audience is for this flick and I’m definitely not in the 17-23-year old majority that this film appeals to. But what I am is a geek. And being that geek is what this film has a lot to offer. It has comedy-horror (I have to make it clear because I’m very picky about my horror [yeah, right -Ed.]), it has vampires, witches and T & A. A little eye candy is okay, as long as it doesn’t divert from the storyline (curse you Megan Fox).
The Hooligan Factory
June 13 – (UK)
Cast: Jason Maza, Nick Nevern, Tom Burke, Ray Fearon, Steven O’Donnell, and Josef Altin.
A wacky send up of hooligans as only British filmmakers can.
Danny wanted to be a hooligan as far back as he could remember. He wanted to emulate his father, Danny Senior, a man who was sentenced to prison for force feeding a Judge his own wig. But now as an adult he tries again to become “Top Boy” by placing himself under the wing of legendary football hooligan Dex.
How To Train Your Dragon 2
June 13 – (USA)
Cast: Jay Baruchel, Kristen Wiig, T.J. Miller, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, America Ferrera, Cate Blanchett, Kit Harington, Gerard Butler, Jonah Hill, Djimon Hounsou, and Craig Ferguson.
In this product’s second outing, Hiccup and Toothless discover a cave that is home to hundreds of wild dragons and a mysterious Dragon Rider lurking just outside of the Archipelego, getting ready to conquer Berk and its outlying regions.
Un plan parfait
June 13 – (UK)
Cast: Dany Boon, Diane Kruger, and Alice Pol.
Diane Kruger proves a perfect sidekick to Dany Boon’s comedic talents in this awkward romantic comedy.
Mrs. Brown’s Boys: D’Movie
June 27 – (UK)
Cast: Brendan O’Carroll, Jennifer Gibney, Paddy Houlihan, Fiona O’Carroll, Dermot O’Neill, Pat Shields, Amanda Woods, Rory Cowan, Gary Hollywood, Eilish O’Carroll, and Danny O’Carroll.
An evil company tries to shut down Mrs. Brown’s fruit and veg stall.
If you love the BBC sitcom Mrs. Brown’s Boys, then you’ll love the movie. But will anything that made the series a success fail to appear in the film? Good or bad, it can’t be worse than Bottom’s Guest House Paradiso, can it?
Transformers: Age of Extinction
June 27 – (USA / Canada)
Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Nicola Peltz, Stanley Tucci, T.J. Miller, Kelsey Grammer, Titus Welliver, Peter Cullen, Ken Watanabe, and John Goodman.
Okay, hate me if you must but this one is on my must see list. I’m a Transformers fan as equally as I am a G.I.Joe fan, and I am sure if I mentioned how I love Gobots, die-hard G1 fans will no doubt whip out the pitchforks and torches.
The first Transformers film was tolerable, the second film was embarrassing and the third installment, well let’s not go there.
Let’s call this what it is, an action flick for guys and gals who love giant robots. It’s too easy to see Hasbro’s chosen goldenbots Optimus Prime and Bumblebee to stand next to the newest version of Dinobots at your local Toys R’ Us store. Sales will continue long after the movie has collected its billion dollar box office, but no awards (gee, funny that).
