Sequels, Some Good Original Films in July

Minions, Terminator, Magic Mike, Vacation will be Back

by Sandra Olmsted

The Holiday weekend offers may options for the movie goer. Two films that opened June 26 go beyond the typical coming of age film. Max (Warner Bros.) offers dog lovers a patriotic story for Independence Day (PG for action violence, peril, brief language and some thematic elements; 111 minutes). The much-touted Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (Fox Searchlight) lives up to the buzz and provides an intelligent, meaningful story for adults as well as mature teens. This Winner of the Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival is rated PG-13 for sexual content, drug material, language and some thematic elements and runs 104 minutes.

Two more films open on Wednesday, July 1, just in time for the summer’s biggest holiday. In Terminator Genisys (Paramount), a John Connor (Jason Clarke), leader of the human resistance, sends Sgt. Kyle Reese (Jai Courtney) back to 1984 to protect Sarah Connor (Emilia Clarke) but a fractured in time changes everything, even regarding Guardian (Arnold Schwarzenegger). Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and gunplay throughout, partial nudity and brief strong language and runs 126 minutes, this blockbuster doesn’t reach the level of earlier installments, but the effects and pace provide an exciting ride.

Magic Mike XXL (Warner Bros.) reunites the old gang of male strippers for what might the their last, burn-down-the-house performance. This sequel to 2012 worldwide hit is rated R for strong sexual content, pervasive language, some nudity and drug use and runs 115 minutes.

   July 10 brings four new films. The popular, little yellow masters of anarchy, fun,and general silliness from Despicable Me and Despicable Me 2 get their own movie at last! In Minions (Universal), the Minions can’t keep an evil master alive, and Kevin, Bob, and Stuart set out on a thrilling quest to find a new master for the whole gang to serve. Their quest takes them to many locations world wide, but can they prove worthy to serve their next potential master, Scarlet Overkill (voice of Sandra Bullock), the world’s first-ever female super-villain?

The loveable Minions are back in their own film this summer.

Minions features a soundtrack of hit music from the ’60s, is rated PG for action and rude humor, runs 104 minutes, and promises to be entertaining for the whole family. Warner Bros.’s Gallows, a teens-in-danger horror film runs 80 minutes and is rated not yet rated, but anticipate the usually violence and gore. In Self/less (Focus), a provocative psychological science fiction thriller, an extremely wealthy man (Ben Kingsley), who is dying from cancer, undergoes a radical medical procedure that transfers his consciousness into the body of a healthy young man (Ryan Reynolds), but all is not as it seems. It’s rated PG-13 and runs 117 minutes.

In Amy (A24), BAFTA Award-winning director Asif Kapadia tells the incredible story of six-time Grammy-winner Amy Winehouse using unseen archival footage and previously unheard tracks and shines a light on our culture and the world. This documentary is rated R by the MPAA for language and drug material and runs 128 minutes.

On July 17, five more films open and may provide an excuse to hide from the summer heat in the movie theater. Rated R by the MPAA for language and some sexuality and running 97 minutes, Aloft (Sony Pictures Classics) explores the tragic past and troubled relationship between a mother (Jennifer Connelly) and her son (Cillian Murphy) that is brought to head by journalist (Mélanie Laurent).

In Trainwreck, a magazine writer (Amy Schumer), whose father (Colin Quinn) told her that monogamy isn’t realistic since she was a little girl, lives by that credo — until she find herself falling in love with the subject of her latest article, a charming sports doctor (Bill Hader). This comedy from Universal, is rated R for strong sexual content, nudity, language and some drug use and runs 122 minutes.

In Ant-Man, from Disney/Marvel, a con-man Scott Lang (Paul Rudd), armed with a super-suit with the astonishing ability to shrink in scale but increase in strength, must embrace his inner hero and help his mentor, Dr. Hank Pym (Michael Douglas), pull off a heist that will save the world. This Marvel Comics-based adventure promises action, special effects, and excitement, runs 117 minutes, and should to be rated PG-13.

Set in 1947, Mr. Holmes (Roadside Attractions) follows an aging Sherlock Holmes, who is grappling with diminished mental powers, and his son as they solve the case that forced the famous detective into retirement. It’s rated PG, runs 105 minutes, and has an excellent cast headed up by Ian McKellen and Laura Linney, promising exceptional acting.

   Testament of Youth (Sony Pictures Classics) is a powerful story of love, war and remembrance, based on Vera Brittain’s (Alicia Vikander) classic WWI memoir told from the female point of view. This searing drama about young love and the futility of war also stars Emily Watson and Miranda Richardson. Rated PG-13 for thematic material including bloody and disturbing war related images and runs 129 minutes.

Five more films round out the scheduled releases for July. On July 24,

Adapted from the best-selling, coming-of-age novel by author John Green, Paper Towns (Fox), centers on Quentin and his enigmatic neighbor Margo, who loves mysteries so much she becomes one, and Quentin and his friends embark upon the road trip of their lives to find her. PG-13 for some language, drinking, sexuality, and partial nudity – all involving teens; length not available. In Pixels (Sony), starring Adam Sandler, aliens misinterpret video feeds of classic arcade games as a declaration of war and attack the Earth in the form of the video games; this variation on Wreck Ralph, rated PG 13.

   Southpaw (The Weinstein Co.) follows a boxer (Jake Gyllenhaal), who fights his way to the top, only to find his life falling apart around him. Although the buzz is good for Gyllenhaal’s performance, the movie doesn’t challenge the boxing genre conventions and runs 123 minutes. The expected rating is either PG-13 or R for bloody violence, drug use, language and some sexuality/nudity.

   Infinitely Polar Bear (Sony Pictures Classics) is about a manic-depressive mess of a father (Mark Ruffalo) tries to win back his wife (Zoe Saldana) by attempting to take full responsibility for their two young, spirited daughters. This dramedy based on writer/director Maya Forbes’s life is rated R for language and runs 90 minutes.

Finally, on July 29, Warner Bros.,’ Vacation opens; its a new installment in the National Lampoon’s Vacation (1983) franchise. A grown up Rusty Griswold takes his own family on a road trip to “Walley World” in order to spice things up with his wife and reconnect with his sons. What could go wrong?

Enjoy the movies this July! And Happy Fourth of July!

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