July Movie Preview: Hamburgers, Hot Dogs, Apes and Exorcisms

June had its moments with different genres getting their moments in the spotlight. Now it’s time for July movies. This July seems to lack the showstopper we’ve grown accustomed to in the month. Last year Wolverine went to Japan. The year before Batman fought Bane and before that Harry Potter had his final showdown with Voldemort. So pardon me for expecting huge movies to drop each July. This year we have one anticipated sequel and a bunch of other modest titles. That isn’t including the healthy number of movies you have probably never heard of. But don’t worry. I have you covered with what to look forward to. Also keep in mind; if July isn’t doing it for you, a Marvel movie comes out in the beginning of August. Phew, what a relief.

The “I’ve Never Heard of It” Edition

July 1st-2nd- Deliver Us From Evil, Earth to Echo, Tammy

Okay, so Deliver Us from Evil looks absolutely terrifying. Apparently based on true events, it stars Eric Bana as a New York police officer investigating a series of crimes revolving around demonic possession. Well Olivia Munn is in it. She used to be on G4. So there is one slightly less creepy element to it.

Earth to Echo expands the found footage genre to children’s movies. Echo is a small alien who needs the help of a group of friends to get home. What can I tell you about the cast? Well, one of the leads is named Astro (I double checked to make sure it wasn’t a dog. It is, in fact, a human boy) and the alien looks like a mix between E.T. and Wall-E. Let’s call him Wall-E.T.

Melissa McCarthy is back in Tammy as a down on her luck woman, who goes on a road trip with her wise-cracking mother (Susan Sarandon). I’m usually quite critical of McCarthy’s movies since she often plays the same obnoxious, unlikeable character, but I won’t judge a book by its cover. For the record, the cover looks just like the others.

July 11th- Dawn of Planet of the Apes

One of the only true blockbusters in what is usually one of the year’s biggest months, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is a sequel to a prequel reboot. In the last one, Caesar (Andy Serkis) got all smart and stuff. Now, years later, the genetically evolved apes have all but taken over as a virus has wiped out most humans. The cast has been upgraded with Gary Oldman playing the lead human in place of the long gone James Franco character.

July 18th- And So It Goes, Planes: Fire and Rescue, The Purge: Anarchy, Sex Tape

If you’ve heard of And So It Goes, then you are on top of your movie releases because ads have been few and far between. Starring Michael Douglas and Diane Keaton, a selfish guy (Douglas) asks his neighbor (Keaton) for help when he has to take care of his granddaughter he never knew about. The leads are big names and it’s directed by Rob Reiner, who is a pretty big deal, so this might be worth a look if you’re into this sort of thing.

What is there to say about Planes: Fire and Rescue? Last year Disney made a spin-off of Cars called Planes. It was meant to go straight to DVD. They decided to put it on the big screen and it made some money. So here is a sequel less than 12 months later.

Do you hate laws? Do you own creepy masks? Well then The Purge: Anarchy is perfect for you. A sequel to the surprise hit The Purge, this one takes a wider look at what would happen if all laws were put on hold for one night every year. From the trailer it looks like the creepy mask people terrorize nice young couples and rich people auction off people for killing. That’s not what my Purge night would look like. I’d go fishing WITHOUT a fishing license. I’d park on the street WITHOUT feeding the meter. I may even go crazy and jaywalk just for the fun of it. Take that government!

Sex Tape stars Jason Segel and Cameron Diaz as a couple (who apparently survived Purge night) trying to spice up their marriage by making a ridiculous sex tape. They mean to delete it after, but it’s already been uploaded to the cloud. As you can see, this is an awkward comedy with 21st century technology. When people begin to see the video, the couple race to try and delete it before it’s too late. Jason Segel has a pretty good record as a lead in comedies, so I’m expecting good things from this one.

July 25th- The Fluffy Movie, Hercules, Lucy

Now without looking, tell me what The Fluffy Movie is about. Good guess, but it’s actually a stand-up comedy quasi-documentary about comedian Gabriel Iglesias. Think Kevin Hart: Let Me Explain with Iglesias, who apparently goes by “Fluffy,” as the star.

There was a lot of talk about how audiences would react to two movies about Hercules coming out in the same year. Well, the Kellan Lutz led The Legend of Hercules didn’t do great and is firmly forgotten at this point. So prepare for Dwayne Johnson this time around in Hercules. He definitely looks the part considering the fact that he is massive. Let’s just hope that they used all the cheesy moments in the trailer because it does look cheesy.

And you thought Black Widow was bad ass in the Marvel movies. Scarlett Johansson plays the title character in Lucy. After being forced to work as a drug mule, Lucy develops what can only be described as super powers when a drug leaks into her system. So naturally she seeks revenge on the people who forced her into this situation.

So it’s an interesting month without the marquee franchises we expect in July. But it has its moments. For me, the July movies I’m anticipating are Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and Sex Tape. Dawn looks to continue where its predecessor left off by adding some grit and realism to a story about apes taking over the world. And Sex Tape looks like the latest in a pretty funny summer with 22 Jump Street and Neighbors already breaking out. Happy viewing!