The Great Gatsby (in theatres now)
Baz Luhrmann’s glitz-filled 3D adaption of a classic American novel about the Roaring Twenties has proved to be an audience pleaser, but its liberties with the story and anachronistic touches like a hip-hop soundtrack have divided critics into two broad camps: those who see it as a sharply-dressed period romp based on a book few moviegoers are likely to read anyway; and those who see it as one of the most misguided and overblown production efforts in recent film history, at least since Luhrmann’s Australia in 2008.
Fast and Furious 6 (in theatres now)
Proving that you can’t have two many action sequels, F&F6 also proves that you can’t have too many bald-but-hunky action superstars either. Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson joined Vin Diesel in 2011’s Fast Five, and both have signed on for the inevitable number seven in the series. Rumours say the Fast &Furious franchise is trying to be the next Expendables, and that the seventh movie will also feature the follicly-challenged British star Jason Statham as the bad guy. Someone get Bruce Willis on the phone.
After Earth (7 June)
Pioneering new ground for indulgent fathers everywhere, Will Smith and his son Jaden (Karate Kid, Pursuit of Happyness) appear once again as father and son in a film co-produced by dad. This time they star as father-and-son spacemen who visit earth a thousand years after it was abandoned by humans, to find our home planet overrun by alien monsters. Smith and son have proved a reliable success at the box office, but even the Fresh Prince of Hollywood may not be enough to save this vaguely promising idea from the dead touch of director M. Night Shyamalan, who must be running out of chances soon.
Man of Steel (14 June)
Superman gets a bit of the Batman re-treatment in this reboot, produced by Dark Knight collaborators Christopher Nolan and David Goyer and directed by Zack Snyder, who made 300 and Watchmen. British actor Henry Cavill plays the Man of Steel, Russell Crowe plays Supe’s father Jor-El (with Australian accent) during the destruction of his home planet Krypton, and Kevin Costner his adopted earthling father, Pa Kent. It’s reported that Cavill was in the running for limp 2006 reboot Superman Returns, but lost out to Brandon Routh, notable only for his resemblance to Christopher Reeve.
World War Z (21 June)
Brad Pitt produced and stars in this horror flick about a global zombie pandemic, based on a popular book by Max Brooks, the son of director and actor Mel Brooks. Pitt stars as Gerry Lane, a United Nations health expert searching for information that can stop a zombie outbreak, as governments and order crumble around the world. It’s had a troubled production: Pitt’s production company Plan B Pictures started development after a bidding war for the screen rights in 2007, but the movie has been delayed and rewritten several times since.
Despicable Me 2 (28 June)
Steve Carrell returns as the super-criminal Gru, now softened by family life with three adorable adopted kids and the geriatric mad scientist Dr Nethario (Russell Brand). Al Pacino and Steve Coogan join the voice cast for this animated sequel to 2010 hit Despicable Me, Pacino as a new arch-villain named Eduardo. Gru’s miniature yellow minions are likely to steal the show, once again – they’ve proved so popular that a spin-off film, Minions, is scheduled for release next year.
Pacific Rim (12 July)
“We’re cancelling the apocalypse,” bellows star Idris Elba in this epic about human-piloted giant robots keeping the world safe from underwater monsters known by the Japanese name Kaiju, or “strange beasts” (the most famous movie kaiju is Godzilla). Directed by Guillermo del Toro, who won an Oscar for Pan’s Labyrinth in 2006, it’s likely to be a sensitive as well as action-packed affair. Del Toro says he wants the battle sequences to convey “a sense of awe”.
Monsters University (12 July)
Hopes are high for this Disney Pixar prequel to the 2001 animated movie Monsters, Inc., which brings back many of the original voice cast, including Billy Crystal as the green round Mike Wazowski, and John Goodman as cuddly monster James P. “Sulley” Sullivan. The film introduces Mike and Sulley as college room-mates, before they became friends and professional scarers.