The summer isn’t all action-packed. Get the other 15 must-see flicks of the summer — comedies, dramedies and more! Plus, which five movies to stay far, far away from …
1. Bruno
Who’s in It? Sacha Baron Cohen
What’s the Deal? The mock title of the movie was “Bruno: Delicious Journeys Through America for the Purpose of Making Heterosexual Males Visibly Uncomfortable in the Presence of a Gay Foreigner in a Mesh T-Shirt.” Need we say more?
Why It’s a Must: If you were a fan of the Ali G Show you already know Bruno, the flamboyant fashionista. Add to that the success of Borat, and you’ve got a sure hit on your hands. (July 10)
2. Funny People
Who’s in It? Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen, Leslie Mann
What’s the Deal? Sandler plays a dying comedian who, in search for true friendship, takes a green performer (Rogen) under his wing.
Why It’s a Must: Judd Apatow and Adam Sandler joining forces? It sounds so funny — in spite of the death angle — that it’s almost too good to be true. (July 31)
3. Inglorious Basterds
Who’s in It? Brad Pitt, Diane Kruger, BJ Novak
What’s the Deal? In this spaghetti western set in Nazi-occupied France, a group of Jewish-American soldiers known as “The Basterds” are sent to brutally kill Nazis in targeted acts of retribution. They eventually cross paths with a French-Jewish teenage girl who has witnessed the execution of her family by Nazis and is working on a revenge plan of her own.
Why It’s a Must: After eight or so years, Quentin Tarantino has finally completed his Dirty Dozen-meets-The Guns of Navarone — and cast Mike Myers as a military mastermind. Unmissable. (Aug. 21)
4. Up
Who’s in It? Ed Asner (voice), Christopher Plummer (voice), John Ratzenberger (voice)
What’s the Deal? Grumpy former balloon salesman, Carl (Asner), sets out to abandon his dreary world by tying thousands of balloons to his home. But right after lift-off, he realizes he unknowingly took a chubby eight-year-old “wilderness explorer” with him. Together, they embark on an adventure to South America, forming an unlikely friendship in the process.
Why It’s a Must: Pixar should probably build more shelves for the awards they’ll pick up next year. After 22 Academy Awards, 4 Golden Globes, and 3 Grammys, the bar is set high, and it looks like this movie will live “up” to those standards. (May 29)
5. The Brothers Bloom
Who’s in It? Mark Ruffalo, Rachel Weisz, Adrien Brody
What’s the Deal? The best con men in the world, the Bloom brothers (Ruffalo and Brody), decide to take on one last job — swindling a beautiful and eccentric heiress, and in the process ending up on a romantic adventure around the world.
Why It’s a Must: The whimsical movie that was supposed to open in January has already received rave reviews. This is the one to see. (May 29)
KEEP READING: Michael Cera + Oscar-winning foreign film![PAGEBREAK]
6. Year One
Who’s in It? Jack Black, Michael Cera, Olivia Wilde
What’s the Deal? In this comedy set in ancient times, a couple of lazy hunters (Black and Cera) are banished from their primitive village, setting them off on an epic journey through the stories of the Bible.
Why It’s a Must: Judd Apatow plus Jack Black apparently equals Monty Python-like hilarity. It could be the new holy grail of comedy. (June 19)
7. Departures
Who’s in It? Masahiro Motoki, Tsutomu Yamazaki, Ryoko Hirosue
What’s the Deal? Professional cellist Daigo Kobayashi (Motoki) finds himself without a job and decides to move back to his old hometown with his wife to start over. He answers a classified ad entitled “Departures,” thinking it is a travel agency but discovers it is for a funeral parlor looking for a professional who prepares deceased bodies for burial. While the people around him don’t approve of his job, Daigo, um, kind of likes it — and takes pride in it. It’s through the death of others that he discovers the joys of life — and we get to witness the beautiful journey.
Why it’s a Must: It won this year’s Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film (it beat out both predicted shoo-ins, Waltz With Bashir and The Class) and 29 other awards. All those people couldn’t be wrong. Thank God for a U.S. release!
8. Julie and Julia
Who’s in It? Amy Adams, Meryl Streep
What’s the Deal? Julie Powell is a bored temp secretary who decides to cook and blog her way through Julia Child’s classic cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, preparing 524 recipes in one year. The movie also follows Child’s life based on her memoir My Life in France.
Why It’s a Must: We can’t wait to see how the two stories intertwine with the help of Streep and Adams. In fact, we’re drooling at the thought of these women’s culinary journeys. (Aug. 7)
9. (500) Days of Summer
Who’s in It? Zooey Deschanel, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Minka Kelly
What’s the Deal? Tom (Gordon-Levitt) falls head over heals in love with a woman named Summer (Deschanel) who doesn’t believe true love exists. Over a span of 500 days, we follow this quirky romance from Tom’s perspective, going from ecstatic giddiness one moment to crippling depression the next.
Why It’s a Must: According to Sundance testimonials, Summer is a fresh and thought-provoking take on the rom-com, that doesn’t subscribe to clichés. (July 17)
10. Shorts
Who’s in It? William H. Macy, Leslie Mann, Jon Cryer, James Spader
What’s the Deal? In a suburb where all houses look the same and all denizens are employed by BLACK BOX Unlimited Worldwide Industries Incorporated, 11-year-old Toe Thompson finds a mysterious rainbow-colored rock that grants wishes to anyone who holds it. Before long, wishes-gone-wrong are causing mayhem around every corner. Now Toe must discover that what you wish for is not always what you want.
Why It’s a Must: The amazing cast alone should get audiences excited, and gore king Robert Rodriguez is surprisingly good at making movies without blood spatter. (Aug. 7)
KEEP READING: Best horror flick + the new Notebook! [PAGEBREAK]
11. Drag Me to Hell
Who’s in It? Alison Lohman, Justin Long
What’s the Deal? After a loan officer (Lohman) has to evict an old woman from her home, in order to score a promotion, she finds herself the recipient of a curse, threatening to send her to Hell for eternity.
Why It’s a Must: 1. It’s Sam Raimi‘s first horror film, as a director, in 15 years (and who didn’t love The Evil Dead). 2. The trailer looks awesome. 3. Every summer needs at least one decent horror movie, and this could well be it. We’re certainly not banking on Final Destination 4. (May 29)
12. Julia
Who’s in It? Tilda Swinton, Aidan Gould, Saul Rubinek
What’s the Deal? An alcoholic woman, Julia (Swinton), who loses her job due to her reckless behavior, meets a mother, Elena (Kate del Castillo), at an AA meeting. Elena asks Julia to kidnap her son from his wealthy grandfather, and Julia goes to Mexico, kidnaps the little boy and blackmails Elena’s father-in-law for two million dollars. But the plan is turned on its head when the boy is taken from her by Mexican kidnappers.
Why It’s a Must: The movie was well-received at last year’s Berlin Festival, where it was called one of the most stylish in the competition. (May 8)
13. Whatever Works
Who’s in It? Larry David, Evan Rachel Wood, Patricia Clarkson
What’s the Deal? Woody Allen‘s new film is a dark comedy starring an eccentric man (David) who gets caught up in a series of love stories that get him tangled up with a young girl from the south (Wood).
Why It’s a Must: Allen returns to his old stomping grounds after four films in Europe. New York has missed you, Woody! (June 19)
14. The Time Traveler’s Wife
Who’s in It? Rachel McAdams, Eric Bana, Ron Livingston
What’s the Deal? Adapted from Adurey Neffenegger’s best-selling novel, it’s the unconventional love story of Chicago librarian Henry (Bana) who has a gene that causes him to involuntarily time travel when he gets stressed, which creates some complications in his marriage to Clare (McAdams).
Why It’s a Must: This romantic drama should put all relationship problems into perspective. (Aug. 14)
15. The Proposal
Who’s in It? Sandra Bullock, Ryan Reynolds
What’s the Deal? Evil boss Margaret Tate (Bullock) forces her assistant Andrew (Reynolds) to marry her in order to keep her Visa status in the U.S. and avoid deportation to Canada. Afraid for his job, he brings her to Alaska to meet his family.
Why It’s a Must: We’re guessing we already know how it ends. And we can probably figure out the plot points that get us there, too. But doesn’t it look funny?! And of all the rom-coms, this one’s got Reynolds in it, swoon. (June 19)
KEEP READING: And the five flicks to skip are …
