#30: summer preview

top 10 summer movies to see!

May 27, 2024

Here's why straight-to-streaming blockbusters might never work — go to the movies… please… i’m begging you *(via CNN)*

It’s been a tough year for movies so far: studios are still feeling the impact of last year’s strikes and the box office is down without much to anchor it. Even so, as the weather gets warmer in New York, I can’t help but feel that summer optimism. In that spirit, I’m counting down my ten most anticipated summer releases. I can’t promise they’ll all be good, but I’m already looking forward to my theater Icee (coke flavor or bust). See you at the movies!

#10: cuckoo (August 2)

Dan Stevens, perhaps still best known as Matthew Crawley from Downton Abbey, has had a bizarre career ever since he left the show. From period-drama heartthrob to horror king (Apostle, Abigail), he’s been working more and more in genre film and TV. Now, he stars in Cuckoo as a mad scientist type alongside Hunter Schafer. The trailer gives very little away, but given this is a Neon release, I’m sure we’re in for an off-kilter, weird, and deeply disturbing movie. Horror has been on a difficult run this year, but with its fantastic leads and mysterious premise, maybe Cuckoo can bring us back.

#9: horizon: an american saga (June 28)

Did anyone ask for this? No. Are the reviews out of Cannes good? No. Does Kevin Costner have enough money to make the other two films? No. But read my lips: I don’t care! Kevin Costner is back in the director’s chair for an epic four-part American western financed with $38M of his own money. Unlike Megalopolis, the similarly self-financed epic from Francis Ford Coppola, Costner’s Horizon: Part One and Horizon: Part Two already have U.S. distribution and will be released nearly back-to-back on June 28 and August 16. I love a western, and as much as I’m usually allergic to the directorial bombast that’s clearly built into this, I’ll be seeing those wide-open vistas on the biggest screen I can find.

#8: didi (July 16)

Dìdi (little brother in Mandarin) is directed by Sean Wang, creator of the Oscar-nominated short film Nai Nai & Wài Pó (and therefore the person to thank for these excellent red carpet appearances). His feature length film, which premiered to much praise at Sundance, follows an adolescent Taiwanese-American boy growing up in San Diego during the early days of the internet. It’s a new take on the coming-of-age film with plenty of humor but also a focus on the relationship between “didi”, his sister, and his mother. I have a feeling this one is going to ring true for me— I’m coming armed with tissues.

#7: the bikeriders (June 21)

I am a simple woman: I see Tom Hardy doing a funny accent and I’m sold. The Bikeriders was originally scheduled to be released last year but was dropped by its original distributor before, thankfully, being picked up by Focus Features. Originally based on a photo book of bike riders in the 60s, it stars Tom Hardy as the leader of an increasingly crime-driven bike gang, Austin Butler as the hot new recruit, and Jodie Comer as the love interest caught up in the drama of it all. Every single one of their accents sounds like they’re chewing their way through a hock of ham, and after over a year of waiting, I’m ready to eat it up.

#6: robot dreams (May 31)

Robot Dreams is an animated, no-dialogue feature that comes to U.S. theaters with an Oscar nomination from last year’s season. In it, a dog orders a robot friend, and they get up to various hijinks around 80s Manhattan. I don’t watch a ton of new animated releases, but the trailer for this is too charming to resist. And I have a feeling this film’s clear love for an unlikely friendship is going to make me shed a few happy tears.

#5: maxxxine (July 5)

As the third film in Ti West’s gonzo horror trilogy (also featuring X and Pearl), Maxxxine picks up where X left off with Mia Goth’s titular character arriving in 80s LA to pursue stardom. Full confession: I got to see this film early, and not only is it easily the best film of the trilogy, it’s also a smashing summer slasher hit all on its own. All the ingredients line up here: the 80s energy, Mia Goth’s outfits, the Hollywood jokes, the incredible cast (hello Kevin Bacon). If you’re looking for a fun time in theaters, horror fan or not, this is going to be the romp of the summer.

#4: twisters (July 19)

If you feel it— CHASE IT! Twisters probably wins the award for the trailer I’ve seen the most in theaters, but it’s so much fun I can’t be upset about it. This sequel comes, unexpectedly, from Lee Isaac Chung, the director of the indie hit Minari, which I loved and wrote about upon its release in 2021. Having not seen the original Twister, I can’t say I would care that much about this movie if it didn’t star Glen Powell, maybe the busiest actor in Hollywood right now. With his cowboy hat and white t-shirt, he’s bringing enough star power to blow the entire audience away, pun intended.

#3: sing sing (September 10)

Sing Sing is named after the maximum security New York prison on the banks of the Hudson River, but the title has a deeper resonance with the film’s subject matter. It follows people who have been incarcerated at Sing Sing who have joined the prison’s Rehabilitation Through the Arts (RTA) program, which has members put on a full theatrical production each year. It seems simple, but the impact of RTA runs deep. The film is based on a true story, with many of the actors playing versions of themselves. They’re joined by Colman Domingo, who gives a beautiful, nuanced performance. In some ways, this film feels like a “tough sell”— it’s based on a true story, it’s indie, it’s about people in a prison. All that aside, it remains at #3 in this list, because I was moved by the light and grace that suffuse every fiber of this film. I was lucky enough to see it last September, and it hasn’t left my head since.

#2: hit man (May 24)

Glen Powell is about to become the biggest movie star in the world (move over Tom Cruise!). Hit Man is Richard Linklater’s latest film starring Glen Powell as an awkward, oatmeal-dull good samaritan who pretends to be a hitman for hire to help the police identify would-be murderers. When he meets Adria Arjona, who’s looking for a little help with her ex-husband, sparks fly. It’s a crazy premise, but Hit Man is hands-down the sexiest rom-com of the year. The chemistry is off the charts, and the film itself spools out its drama with tons of confidence, charm, and winning personality (not unlike Glen Powell himself). I’ve been eagerly waiting to rewatch this one. While it’s unfortunately only getting a limited release as it was acquired out of TIFF by Netflix, I promise Hit Man is worth the trip to the theater.

#1: furiosa (May 24)

Friends will know I haven’t even seen this trailer for fear of spoilers, because Furiosa is my most anticipated movie of the entire year. It’s been almost a decade since George Miller released Mad Max: Fury Road and the excitement for this prequel has been building ever since. Furiosa stars Anya Taylor-Joy and Chris Hemsworth, but I’m really here for the special effects and the continued growth of the Mad Max world. Whether or not action is your thing, Fury Road is one of the most perfectly rendered, wholly realized directorial visions we’ve seen since 2010. Miller storyboarded the entire film (which is mostly without dialogue) and had practical, functioning, custom-built cars running through the Namibian desert to create the world of Fury Road. One of the hallmarks of the Mad Max franchise is that each film provides a complete reinvention of its worldbuilding. The first Mad Max takes place in a nearly recognizable society. Fury Road takes place in a very different one. 45 years (!) after the first Mad Max, I just can’t wait to see what George Miller has in store for us this time. I’m seeing this one today in IMAX— I hope you’ll join me and ride eternal to Valhalla!