It’s no secret that this summer has been one of the biggest letdown for recent blockbusters. Other than the occasional Baby Driver, it’s been nothing but tired old franchises that people have generally stopped caring about (ask me about Transformers: The Last Knight sometime). There’s just not that much worth trekking to the local Cineplex for these days.
Summer 2017 might not be down for the count just yet, however. Despite lackluster May and June releases, this month is packed to the gills with potentially excellent crowdpleasers, from long-running franchises to refreshing first installments.
Spider-Man-Homecoming — It’s been a long time since we’re had an honest to goodness great Spider-Man movie. Truth be told, I’m tempted to go so far as to write off even the Raimi trilogy, since sadsack Peter Parker is not the version of the character that I fell in love with.
We’ve already gotten a taste of what to expect from this iteration of the character. He’s quick, he’s funny and he’s every inch of him a millennial suiting up in a spandex spider costume to punch a menagerie of animal-themed villains. Tom Holland absolutely stole the show in Civil War despite being in a mere two scenes, the trailer looks to give us more of the same and early word-of-mouth has been universally positive.
War for the Planet of the Apes — If there was a franchise of yesteryear whose revival I didn’t expect to make a big splash in the modern movie scene, it was probably Planet of the Apes. Other than the first classic film, there wasn’t a good one in the bunch before 2011’s Rise of the Planet of the Apes, which depicted the events that lead to the simian uprising hinted at as ancient history in the earlier films. I thought any chance of its return died with the abhorrent Tim Burton remake at the turn of the century.
And yet here we are, waiting with bated breath for the third in the revisited series. The first established the Ape Cesar as a compelling and complex protagonist; the second showed the escalating tensions in the increasingly ape-dominated world; and now the latest will pit Man and Ape against one another in an apocalyptic final battle for dominance of the planet. What a time to be alive.
Dunkirk — One of the most unerringly excellent film makers working today is Christopher Nolan, whose every new movie seems to be an instant classic. Between Mememnto, The Dark Knight trilogy and Inception, he’s accumulated quite the repertoire: movies that bridge the gap between arthouse snobs and popcorn-munching plebeians
His latest movie is a bit outside of his typical wheelhouse: that is, cerebral science fiction and crime thrillers. Instead, he tackles the straight-forward war drama formula that made classics of Saving Private Ryan and Bridge on the River Kwai. It focusses on a single, climactic battle during World War II, where the allied forces were penned against the sea and facing certain annihilation, when a daring sea rescue — by a fleet cobbled together from fishing boats and pleasure schooners — saves them all.
I don’t expect any crazy twists here: no stylistic gimmicks nor out of left field reveals. It promises a straight forward narrative shot by a master craftsman at the top of his game.
Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets — Maybe I’m just not as into comics as I ought to be, but I never so much as heard of Valerian before the movie’s first trailer released. Evidently based on a groundbreaking French graphic novel, it might just be the most visually arresting films to come out this year. Seriously, this movie is gorgeous, and anything less than an Oscar nomination for its special effects will be a heinous sleight by the Academy.
More than just a notable literary source to draw from and a particularly striking look, Vaerian is made by fan-favorite director responsible for the similarly gorgeous Fifth Element. The cast is a veritable who’s who of genre staples, including Ethan Hawke, John Goodman, Clive Owen and Rutger Hauer. Although less notable than their older costars, young headliners Dane DeHaan and Cara Delevingne are similarly excellent choices. And with a creative team this good behind it, Valerian might just be 2017’s breakout sci-fi adventure.
Atomic Blonde — In a lot of ways, 2017 seems to be the year that Hollywood realized what an untapped asset they had in female-centered action movies. The young Daphne Keen was just as responsible for Logan‘s spectacular success as Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart were. Wonder Woman shattered box office records and outdated misconceptions of the market for female created films. And now there’s Atomic Blonde, which promises to be yet another nail in the coffin of cinematic misogyny
While people often complain about movies that are “style over substance,” I never understood why. I loved everything from John Woo to Sin City. As long as the execution is sharp and action is riveting, who cares how deep and meaningful the story is? It accomplished what it set out to do and was damned entertaining along the way.
