The 2008 summer blockbuster movie season spans from Memorial Day weekend, May 22, through Labor Day weekend, September 1. So, what treats are in store at your local movie theater for summer 2008?
Yet again, a summer movie season will be chock full of sequels, remakes and super hero movies. Before the summer blockbuster movie season even officially begins, we will see the likes of Speed Racer (May 9th), starring Emile Hirsch and directed by the Wachowski brothers, which looks visually appealing, and The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (May 16th), the sequel to C.S. Lewis’ epic tale, which raked in $744 million in worldwide box office sales.
So, grab your soda and popcorn (or hot dogs, nachos, snow caps or gummi bears) and check out the blockbuster movies premiering in the summer of 2008.
May 22nd – Start the Season in Spectacular Fashion
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull – Harrison Ford reprises his role as Indiana Jones as he is joined by Shia LaBeouf and Cate Blanchett in the fourth Indiana Jones installment. The adventure movie directed by Steven Spielberg should rank as the number one movie at the box office for the 2008 summer blockbuster season.
May 30th – Chicks Need Flicks Too
Sex and the City: The Movie – The hit television show transfers to the big screen with the usual characters played by Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrall, Kristin Davis and Cynthia Nixon, but can the usual success transfer to the big screen? Don’t expect aging fans to show up in droves on opening weekend.
June 6th – Comedy Comes Calling
Kung Fu Panda (PG) – The animated movie about a martial arts panda features the voices of Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan and Lucy Liu. Kung Fu Panda is the first solid children’s entertainment of the 2008 summer blockbuster movie season and should rake in it’s share of box office dollars.
You Don’t Mess with the Zohan – The comedy about an Israeli counter-terrorist turned hairstylist will draw Adam Sandler fans, but don’t expect You Don’t Mess with the Zohan to be gangbusters at the box office.
June 13th – What’s Happening with the Hulk? Revival?
The Incredible Hulk – The superhero franchise has not been as cinematically successfully as its’ counterparts Spider Man and Batman, but Edward Norton appearing in the starring role as Bruce Banner has people interested. However, will Edward Norton, along with Liv Tyler and Tim Roth, be enough to revive The Incredible Hulk?
The Happening – Starring Mark Wahlberg and Zooey Deschanel, The Happening is another thriller directed by M. Night Shyamalan, but it’s hard to suggest that the box office take will be as apocalyptic as the movie tries to be.
June 20th – Comedy Comes Calling Again, But Which Bunch is Smarter?
Get Smart (PG-13) – The first solid comedy of the 2008 summer movie season stars Steve Carell as Maxwell Smart and Anne Hathaway as 99, also with The Rock.
The Love Guru – In the comedy, Mike Myers’ character tells people GURU stands for “Gee, U Are U.” Hopefully, ticket holders won’t be screaming “Gee, U Raped Us” after not getting their money’s worth. The Love Guru also features Jessica Alba, Justin Timberlake and Verne Troyer, but shouldn’t compete with Get Smart.
June 27th – Wanted: Wall-E
WALL-E (PG) – The mere advertising saturation of the animated movie about a robot shot into space should equate to a large box office gross, since children will be asking their parents to take them to see Wall-E.
Wanted – The thriller starring James McAvoy, Morgan Freeman and Angelina Jolie has an interesting enough trailer, but will Wanted be desired enough to compete with the other summer blockbuster movies?
July 2nd / 3rd – Time to Catch up on Previous Summer Releases
Hancock (2nd) – Will Smith appears in yet another movie opening on the weekend of Independence Day. However, even with the help of Charlize Theron and Jason Bateman, do not expect him to repeat past successes in the superhero movie Hancock. Although, Will Smith will still attract fans. The bottom line though is if you’re going to watch a superhero movie in the summer of 2008, this is not the first one to watch, or even the second one.
The Wackness (3rd, R) – A Sundance Film Festival movie starring Ben Kingsley, Famke Janssen and Josh Peck is positioned to steal a fair share of total box office sales.
July 11th – Hellboy Meet Dave
Hellboy 2 – The original Hellboy only grossed $59 million in domestic box office sales compared to a production budget of $66 million. Although Hellboy’s worldwide box office sales gross was $99 million, don’t expect Hellboy 2 to match that total. Any success of Hellboy 2 will rely on the margin allowed by the production budget.
Meet Dave – The science fiction comedy starring Eddie Murphy has little competition until the true Dark Knight arrives.
July 18th – The Dark Knight Arrives Along With the Second to Last Performance by Heath Ledger
The Dark Knight – The sequel to Batman Begins features Christian Bale, Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine and, most importantly, the late Heath Ledger. The Dark Knight should rank as the number two movie at the box office for the 2008 summer blockbuster season.
July 25th – Duos Return
The X-Files 2 – David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson and the X-Files have their loyal fans, even if the sequel took ten years to come to fruition. The thriller X-Files 2 will find success as the usual duo investigates the unusual.
Step Brothers – The last time Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly hooked up for a summer blockbuster movie, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby grossed $148 million in domestic box office sales. Step Brothers should step up and surpass that mark.
August 1st – Embalmed or Choked?
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor – Brendan Fraser returns in the third installment of the Mummy series, along with Maria Bello and Jet Li. Anticipate the movie to slip in box office sales from the second installment, but that still leaves room to make a fair chunk of money.
Choke (R) – The last Chuck Palahniuk adaptation, Fight Club, did not have a stellar performance at the box office, but it garnered a cult following, which could help the box office sales of Choke, the latest Chuck Palahniuk adaptation. However, don’t expect anything beyond cult status, as Choke is about a con-man addicted to sex who works at a theme park, starring Sam Rockwell and Anjelica Huston.
August 8th – R Rated Movies
Hell Ride (R) – The Quentin Tarantino film starring Larry Bishop, Dennis Hopper and Michael Madsen will benefit from loyal Quentin Tarantino fans, even though die-hard fans may have already seen Hell Ride at The Sundance Film Festival.
Pineapple Express (R)- Seth Rogen stars in the comedy created by the same people who created the comedy movie Superbad. Expect Pineapple Express to chug along a similar box office revenue track.
August 15th – Now For Something a Little Different
Tropic Thunder (R) – The comedy war movie starring Ben Stiller, Jack Black and Nick Nolte features Robert Downey Jr. as a black man – that alone is worth the price of admission.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars – The animated science fiction movie would chronologically occur between episodes two and three. Star Wars: The Clone Wars is a rehashing of the Cartoon Network television series, but die-hard Star Wars fans will follow the movie to theaters, especially since they have no other Star Wars movies to expect any time in the foreseeable near future.
August 22nd – The Accidental Husband Dangerous for Bangkok
Bangkok Dangerous (R) – “Don’t ask questions… There is no right and wrong… Don’t take an interest in people outside of work… Know when to get out… And walk away rich,” which is what Nicholas Cage hopes to do in the thriller Bangkok Dangerous.
The Accidental Husband (PG-13) – The romantic comedy featuring Uma Thurman and Colin Firth should offer a change of pace from the summer releases in the previous weeks, allowing The Accidental Husband to outperform Bangkok Dangerous in box office receipts.
August 29th – Back to College or Visiting College for the First Time
Babylon A.D. – An action-adventure movie starring Vin Diesel, who is a long-time Dungeon and Dragons player. Although Vin Diesel is a bigger name than anyone in the movie College, the strategic timing of the collegiate comedy should prove triumphant over Babylon A.D.
College (R) – The comedy about prospective freshmen visiting college has a timely release date, if nothing else. The long weekend shouldn’t hurt box office numbers either. Perhaps some real aspiring collegians will find College enjoyable.
So, which summer blockbuster movies do you anticipate the most? Leave a comment and let LIVIN know. Thanks.
Note: This article contains forward looking statements, the accuracy of which may change.
