Summer Movies 2009 - Watchmen - Terminator Salvation - Transformers 2 Revenge of the Fallen - X-Men Origins Wolverine - Fast and Furious

I know what you did last summer. You sat in the movie theatre and you were enthralled by Robert Downey Jr. in the role of Iron Man, only to get even more amazed with the Oscar-winning performance of Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight. The summer movie season typically bombards you with a nearly endless onslaught of Hollywood blockbusters. This summer will be no exception.

To help you prepare for the months to come, I thought it may be apt to consider some of the big special effects-laden films that will be hitting the silver screen this summer. While I don’t really expect any of these to floor me in the quite the same way as the Dark Knight, I fully expect to be entertained. Even if it takes two bottles of Nos. Which I need by tonight.

Watchmen
Opens March 6, 2009 (today)

Yes, I know that it’s not technically summer just yet, but this movie has to be worth mentioning. I didn’t really know about the Watchmen graphic novels until I first caught the epic trailer to this movie, but after seeing those first few scenes (with music provided by the Smashing Pumpkins), I was hooked. From what I hear, the comic was very dark and brooding, approaching many topics that are not normally explored within the realm of a comic book. I just want to see Dr. Manhattan, the crazy glowing blue guy with all sorts of insane superpowers. Apparently, there have been more presales for Watchmen than for Frank Miller’s 300. That’s quite a bit of hype!

Terminator Salvation
Opens May 21, 2009

One of my favorite movies of all time is Terminator 2: Judgement Day. The violence was positively epic, the atmosphere was powerful, and it featured Arnold Schwarzenegger telling us that he’ll be back. Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines really disappointed me, but I have high hopes for Terminator 4 Terminator Salvation. We finally get to enter the world post-Judgment Day, filled with Terminators blasting the crap out of everyone. Christian Bale flipped out on the set of this movie (and inspired some spoofs), so let’s hope that he was able to translate that energy into his role as John Connor.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
Opens June 24, 2009

There were a lot of things that weren’t quite right with the first Michael Bay Transformers movie. Optimus Prime had a moving mandible and there were several inconsistencies with the canonical Transformers G1. Even so, the huge robot battling action made the film well worthwhile. Seeing the trailer for Transformers 2, it gets crazier than ever, with bigger robots, bigger explosions, and bigger battles in pure Michael Bay fashion. Oh, and that massive bot at the end of trailer is said to be just one of the Constructicons. It takes at least five of them to make Devastator. Epic!

X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Opens May 1, 2009

Sabretooth doesn’t look nearly as large and menacing as he does in the comics (and Saturday morning cartoon). The story probably won’t be all that satisfying, even though we may catch a glimpse into the Alpha Flight era in Wolverine’s life. The dialogue will probably be poor and the other characters terribly contrived. But I don’t care. This is Wolverine and he’s arguably one of the best comic book characters ever created. I’ve always been a huge fan of the X-Men universe and Wolverine’s “wild man” attitude is nothing short of entertaining.

Fast and Furious
Opens April 3, 2009

I’d like to believe that fiction is more than just a diversion, but it comes to the unrealistic street racing antics of this franchise, it really is just a diversion. After discovering that they are nowhere near as profitable as they thought they were, both Paul Walker and Vin Diesel are coming back to the Fast and Furious world to race one last time. Well, they’ll probably leave it open for another sequel. Get ready for more double-shifting, floors dropping out, and the desire for more vinyl, more nitrous, and more speed. It’s so cheesy and horribly bad that it’s incredibly good.

Honorable Mentions: GI Joe: Rise of Cobra, Crank: High Voltage, Public Enemies, Night at the Museum 2