Summertime is here, show me the movies

Summertime is upon us, which means it’s time for over-produced movies with hundred-million-dollar budgets and tons of special effects. 

     This summer is again dominated by sequels, with only a few original works coming out. 

     Here is your guide for which movies are a must-see in theaters, and which you can wait to watch on an airplane.

“X-Men Origins: Wolverine”-In Theaters

     Hugh Jackman reprises the role of mutant Wolverine in the summer’s first blockbuster. 

     With a budget of around $140 million, it is ironic that the biggest downfall is its seeming lack of any production value. 

     The special effects in the movie are cheesy with the biggest offender being Wolverine’s claws, an important part of the character. 

     His claws look fake throughout the entire movie. It’s tough to get into the movie when the main character’s weapons are a supreme let down. 

     The movie also suffers from one of the main problems that plagued “X-Men: The Last Stand,” too many mutants for too little time. 

     Instead of concentrating on a core group of mutants, the movie haphazardly throws as many on screen as possible, and none of them get enough screen time. 

     These criticisms aside, the movie doesn’t skimp on action or explosions, and Liev Schreiber’s take on Sabretooth is fantastic. He does an excellent job of being both animalistic and human. 

     Taylor Kitsch’s portrayal of Gambit is also well done and deserved more screen time than he got.

“Star Trek”-In Theaters

     The first must-see movie of the summer comes in the form of the series restart of “Star Trek.” 

     Reintroducing all the original crew of the Enterprise, this film uses the concept of time travel to wipe the series’ slate clean, conveniently allowing the new Spock and Captain Kirk to continue their adventures without worrying about stepping on the toes of the older movies. 

     As for this movie, “Star Trek” is tons of fun from start to finish. It manages to throw enough nerd factor in to satisfy hard core Trek fans while also keeping it simple enough to not throw off any casual moviegoers. 

     With plenty of action, the movie rarely lets off and seems to fly by. It can get a little confusing during some parts of the time traveling, but for the most part it’s all about flying around in space and shooting things.

 Director J.J. Abrams does a great job keeping the film going, and the special effects are top notch. Great action, good acting and enough laughs make this movie worth seeing in theaters, maybe even more than once.

“Angels and Demons”-May 15

     The next movie starring Tom Hanks as mystery-solving professor Robert Langdon is actually a prequel to “The Da Vinci Code.” 

     In “Angels and Demons,” Langdon races against time to stop an ancient secret organization called the Illuminati from destroying the Catholic Church.

     Langdon rushes through Rome, going from ancient tombs to centuries-old churches in order to solve this latest mystery. 

     Hanks’ portrayal of Langdon in “The Da Vinci Code” seemed completely phoned in, and hopefully he will change his attitude a bit and put a little more acting flair into “Angels and Demons.” 

     It is doubtful that this movie will cause as much of an uproar as “The Da Vinci Code.” 

     Which is really too bad because I enjoyed wading through the religious zealots to purchase my ticket to watch a fictional story play out on the big screen.

     One thing that everyone can be thankful for is his horrendous haircut has been shaped into something a little less jarring to the eye. 

     If you are into adventure movies or garner enjoyment at watching Tom Hanks do his best Indiana Jones impression, then this is the film for you.

“Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen”-June 24

     After a nice break from sequels, we jump back on board with “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.” 

     The sequel to the 2007 piece of eye candy that was “Transformers,” “Revenge of the Fallen” picks up where the other movie left off. 

     Shia LeBeouf returns as young Sam Witwicky, who, after helping defeat the evil Megatron, decides that he wants to go to college. 

     So he inexplicably decides to leave his transforming car and smoking hot girlfriend, played by Megan Fox, behind and head off to get an education. 

     Of course, that doesn’t last long and soon more robots arrive on Earth to wage another epic battle. 

     With more robots and more fighting, there is sure to be plenty of awesome action. Director Michael Bay promises that when they were writing the second movie, they went for broke. 

     I really can’t imagine that Michael Bay could put any more explosions into his movies, but it looks like he is going to try.