May Movie Preview: Gotta Watch ’em All

In all likelihood the highest grossing movie of May will be Avengers: Endgame, which of course was released in April. But don’t let that distract you from the gems that are among the May movie list. It’s a big list. There’s definitely a “diamond in the rough” joke to be made here with Aladdin coming out. Here’s our May movie preview.

May 3rd– The Intruder, Long Shot, UglyDolls

Denis Quaid as a creeper? Sign me up. The Intruder has a couple played by Michael Ealy and Meagan Good buying a house. But Quaid, the former owner, keeps popping in and then invading their privacy. It seems he has some secrets… along with a villainous smile.

Charlize Theron and Seth Rogen star in the odd couple comedy, The Long Shot. She’s the Secretary of State, he’s a scruffy writer and it turns out she was his babysitter as a kid. Now she’s running for President and hires him to help write speeches for her. Could they possibly fall for each other? Yes, the answer is probably definitely yes.

Based on a line of plush toys, UglyDolls is an animated feature starring Kelly Clarkson, Nick Jonas, and a whole bunch more famous names. The plot has the UglyDoll characters coming across a town where everyone tries to be perfect. While they are drawn to that idea, they learn they have to be comfortable being themselves. Some singing may also be involved.

May 10th– Pokemon Detective Pikachu, The Hustle, Poms, Tolkien

It sure seemed like the idea of a live action Pokemon movie may have missed its window. It doesn’t hold the same stranglehold on pop culture that it once did. But it’s still plenty popular and the movie is coming. Pokemon Detective Pikachu has Ryan Reynolds voicing the yellow creature. Pokemon are still caught to do battle like in the games, but this Pikachu wants to be a detective. Go for it, dude.

Teaming up Anne Hathaway and Rebel Wilson, The Hustle has the pair playing con-artists of differing social status attempting to bring down men who have wronged them. Naturally Wilson is the rough around the edges character with Hathaway playing high society in the comedy.

Poms stars Diane Keaton as a woman who organizes a cheerleading team at her retirement home. Combating insulting detractors, the group go for it anyway. Jacki Weaver, Rhea Perlman and Pam Grier co-star.

Focusing on the popular Lord of the Rings writer, Tolkien features the author’s friendship with a group of writers and artists, his falling in love, and his service in World War I. A lot of the imagery in the marketing attempts to tie this film in with Middle Earth. However, I didn’t see a single dwarf in the trailer. How insulting.

May 17th– A Dog’s Journey, John Wick: Chapter 3- Parabellum, The Sun Is Also a Star

If you see A Dog’s Journey as a new release and you’re feeling some déjà vu, I can understand why. This is the second film adaptation of a W. Bruce Cameron dog novel this year. A Dog’s Way Home came out in January, but now A Dog’s Journey is coming out. This is a sequel to the 2017 movie A Dog’s Purpose. Like all of those other ones, this has a dog learning from a variety of people he meets.

If you’re looking for a plot synopsis for John Wick: Chapter 3- Parabellum then you’ve obviously never seen the franchise. Keanu Reeves plays a super-assassin, he’s bad ass, lots of people die. That’s the John Wick trilogy for you.

To fulfill the teen drama quota of the month, The Sun Is Also a Star features Riverdale’s Charles Melton and Yara Shahidi from Blackish as the potential lovebirds. After a chance meeting, Melton’s character openly attempts to woo Shahidi over an afternoon. However, she is set to move away the next day. What will happen to this budding romance!?

May 24th– Ad Astra, Aladdin, Booksmart, Brightburn

Ad Astra stars Brad Pitt as an astronaut on a risky mission to save Earth and find his father. However beyond the brief details provided, there isn’t too much known about the sci-fi film. As of May 2nd, there hasn’t been a trailer. So we’ll see how it turns out. That is if it’s actually released this month.

As Disney continues their project of remaking all their animated classics into live action films, let’s see how Aladdin turns out. Most of the attention has been directed toward Will Smith’s portrayal of the Genie. Robin Williams’ voice performance in the cartoon is iconic, but let’s not write off the fresh prince quite yet. Best known for his gritty crime films, Guy Ritchie directed this adaptation. Mena Massoud and Naomi Scott play Aladdin and Jasmine respectively.

Gaining some attention after its premiere at South by Southwest, Booksmart has been repeatedly compared to Superbad. Olivia Wilde’s directorial debut follows two girls about to graduate high school. After focusing exclusively on academics for four years, they decide to try to make up for lost partying time in one night. Beanie Feldstein and Kaitlyn Dever star.

It doesn’t have any association with DC Comics, but Brightburn essentially asks the question what if Superman was evil? It’s like a Dark Smallville. After crash landing in Kansas from another planet, an alien boy terrorizes the town as his parents attempt to see the good in him. It appears he kills a lot of people.

May 31st– Godzilla: King of the Monsters, Ma, Rocketman

The trailers for Godzilla: King of the Monsters essentially consist of giant monsters and Millie Bobby Brown staring at them in various stages of awe. With many of the classic Godzilla opponents appearing on Earth, Godzilla is humanity’s best chance at survival. Mothra, Rodan, and King Ghidorah are the ones causing issues.

We’ve grown accustomed to Octavia Spencer playing likeable and usually loving characters in her films. Well, Ma is definitely a departure from that. She plays a woman who befriends some teenagers after buying them beer and letting them party at her house. But it turns out her she isn’t just trying to show the kids a good time. She’s a crazy, stalkerish maybe killer. We’ll have to see the movie to find out her level of evil. But ultimately, it seems the teenagers should have kept their distance.

And the award for best wardrobe among May releases goes to Rocketman. A biopic about Elton John’s rise to fame and superstardom, Taron Egerton plays the legendary musician. Anyone who has seen the animated movie Sing, where Egerton plays a gorilla that sings “I’m Still Standing,” knows he is a strong choice for the role. Richard Madden, Bryce Dallas Howard, and Jamie Bell costar.

With such a variety of options, there is likely at least one May movie that appeals to your cinematic taste. May is usually the Super Bowl of blockbuster movies with some of the year’s marquee titles. You could make a case for that being true here. But there are no superheroes to be seen. That seems odd. My pick for the month is Godzilla: King of the Monsters. I’ve always had a fondness for the giant lizard monster. What’s that on the building next to him? Oh, Millie Bobby Brown is just staring again.