It’s not just the weather that’s warming up after a long, snowy winter — the cinema’s getting a little hotter, too.
Some of the year’s best films arise in anticipation of summer’s blockbuster onslaught. With this year’s crop involving everything from dramatic literary adaptations (Water for Elephants, April 22) to bizarre horror tales about telepathic tires (Rubber, April 8) springtime blooms with something for all.
April screams for more
While the action flares up shortly after the spring equinox with Zack Snyder’s (Watchmen) Sucker Punch (03/25), the hits keep on coming in the form of sci-fi thriller Source Code (04/01), the creepy ghost story Insidious (04/01), the latest installment of the Fast and the Furious — Fast Five (04/29) and the highly anticipated return of another blockbuster franchise — Scream 4 (04/15).
But April balances the suspense with a few lighter options as well. Watch for animated family fare like the Easter Bunny comedy Hop (04/01), the flightless bird feature Rio (04/15) and the sequel, Hoodwinked Too! (04/29). Plus, April features funnymen like Russell Brand reinventing Dudley Moore’s iconic role in the remake of Arthur (04/08), Danny McBride (Eastbound & Down) goes medieval in Your Highness (04/08) and Tyler Perry revisits Madea’s Big Happy Family (04/22).
May provides with Thor
Adventures continue in May as multiplexes are overrun by comic book fans when Marvel’s long-maned superhero Thor (05/06) makes his cinematic debut. Meanwhile, buccaneer buffs will flood theatres once Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides opens (05/20). However a week later, the tone will alter dramatically when The Hangover: Part II (05/27) shows what damage Bradley Cooper and company can produce in Bangkok.
Other anticipated hits include comedian Kristin Wiig having her own hangover moment in Bridesmaids (05/13), Super Size Me director Morgan Spurlock’s latest documentary, The Greatest Movie Ever Sold (05/06) and the animated sequel to Kung Fu Panda 05/26).
