July Movies: Ant-Man, Mission: Impossible, Equalizer, & Skyscraper

[Mark Vader]

The Summer continues to sizzle with high temperatures and high box office numbers. As "Incredibles 2" & "Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom" are putting smiles on the faces of audiences and studio executives, more big movie titles arrive as the month of July starts. If audiences are starving for more outrageous action, they need not worry, because there will be plenty to feed them. The Marvel Cinematic Universe has hit it big this year, and now they are back again as they continue with a character who was curiously absent from "Avengers: Infinity War".

 

Disney & Marvel present, and Paul Rudd & Evangeline Lilly star in, "Ant-Man and the Wasp". As Scott Lang balances being both a Super Hero and a father, Hope van Dyne and Dr. Hank Pym present an urgent new mission that finds the Ant-Man fighting alongside The Wasp to uncover secrets from their past. Also starring Michael Pena, Walton Goggins, Bobby Cannavale, Judy Greer, Hannah John-Kamen, Abby Ryder Fortson, Michelle Pfeiffer, Laurence Fishburne & Michael Douglas.

 

Tom Cruise returns as Ethan Hunt in, "Mission: Impossible Fallout". Ethan Hunt and his IMF team, along with some familiar allies, race against time after a mission gone wrong. Also starring Henry Cavill, Michelle Monaghan, Rebecca Ferguson, Simon Pegg, Angela Bassett, Alec Baldwin & Ving Rhames.

 

Denzel Washington returns for, "The Equalizer 2". Robert McCall serves an unflinching justice for the exploited and oppressed, but how far will he go when that is someone he loves? Also starring Pedro Pascal, Bill Pullman & Melissa Leo.

 

Dwayne Johnson stars in, "Skyscraper". FBI Hostage Rescue Team leader and U.S. war veteran Will Sawyer now assesses security for skyscrapers. On assignment in Hong Kong he finds the tallest, safest building in the world suddenly ablaze, and he's been framed for it. Also starring Neve Campbell, Pablo Schreiber & Noah Taylor.

 

In "Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation, Mavis surprises Dracula with a family voyage on a luxury Monster Cruise Ship so he can take a vacation from providing everyone else's vacation at the hotel. The rest of Drac's Pack cannot resist going along.  Starring the voices of Adam Sandler, Mel Brooks, Selena Gomez, Andy Samberg, Kathryn Hahn, Fran Drescher, Steve Buscemi, David Spade, Kevin James & Molly Shannon.

 

In "Teen Titans GO! To The Movies", A villain's maniacal plan for world domination sidetracks five teenage superheroes who dream of Hollywood stardom. Starring the voices of Nicolas Cage, Kristen Bell, Will Arnett, & Tara Strong.

 

In "Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again", Sophie learns about her mother's past while pregnant herself. Starring Lily James, Amanda Seyfried, Meryl Streep, Dominic Cooper, Cher, Christine Baranski, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Andy Garcia, Stellan Skarsgard & Julie Walters.

 

In "The First Purge", After the rise of a third political party, the New Founding Fathers of America, an experiment is conducted, no laws for 12 hours on Staten Island. Starring Y'Lan Noel, Lex Scott Davis, Joivan Wade & Marisa Tomei.

 

Finally, in "Unfriended: Dark Web", A teen comes into possession of a new laptop and soon discovers that the previous owner is not only watching him, but will also do anything to get it back. Starring Rebecca Rittenhouse, Betty Gabriel, Chelsea Alden & Colin Woodell.

 

Calendar with Trailers

 

7/4

"The First Purge":     https://www.thefirstpurge.com/

 

7/6

"Ant-Man and the Wasp":     http://marvel.com/movies/movie/245/ant-man_and_the_wasp

 

7/13

"Skyscraper":     https://www.skyscrapermovie.com/

 

"Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation":     https://sites.sonypictures.com/hoteltransylvania3/hub/

 

7/20

"Unfriended: Dark Web":     https://www.unfriended-darkweb.com/

 

"The Equalizer 2":     http://www.equalizer.movie/site/

 

"Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again":     https://www.mammamiamovie.com/

 

7/27

"Mission: Impossible Fallout":     http://www.paramount.com/movies/mission-impossible-fallout

 

"Teen Titans GO! To The Movies":     https://www.warnerbros.com/teen-titans-go-movies

 

That's all for now. I will post some Independent Films later. Until then.....Enjoy!

[DC Tom]

We saw the previews for MI, and my wife said "Tom Cruise really needs to stop doing those movies."

To which I replied "As long as he can keep doing his own stunts, he can keep doing those movies."  

 

Cruise may be nuttier than a granola bar...but from everything I've seen and heard about him, he's a consummate professional.

[Soda Popinski]

Pass on all of them.  My last trip to the movies was marred by a girl who laughed hysterically  at every little quip, and the lady to my right who's phone was set to strobe every time she got a text message.   

 

No mas

[dpberr]

I'll probably see Mission Impossible because the story seems decent and they've been doing better with the villains.  

 

The first Equalizer exceeded my expectations so I'll probably see Denzel's first sequel ever.  (True story.)

 

The Purge story could have been so much more.  It's a concept that screams for somebody like John Carpenter to do in his prime.  

 

(My question about the Purge:  If all crime is legal for 12 hours, why aren't you pulling a gigantic bank heist or stealing everything not bolted down?)

[Mark Vader]

5 hours ago, DC Tom said:

We saw the previews for MI, and my wife said "Tom Cruise really needs to stop doing those movies."

To which I replied "As long as he can keep doing his own stunts, he can keep doing those movies."  

 

Cruise may be nuttier than a granola bar...but from everything I've seen and heard about him, he's a consummate professional.

While I am not a fan of the Mission: Impossible series, although I've heard it's gotten very good since J.J. Abrams got involved, I do like Tom Cruise as an actor.

 

I've liked him more as he's aged. I never cared for "Top Gun" or "Risky Business" or "Color of Money".

 

It wasn't until "A Few Good Men" & "The Firm" were released that I began to like Cruise as an actor.

[Buffalo_Gal]

Dwayne Johnson is so hot he sizzles. Still passing on that one.

 

The only movie I am definitely seeing this month is Mission: Impossible Fallout. Tom Cruise is not my favorite actor, but I do enjoy him as Ethan Hunt.

[Mark Vader]

4 hours ago, dpberr said:

I'll probably see Mission Impossible because the story seems decent and they've been doing better with the villains.  

 

The first Equalizer exceeded my expectations so I'll probably see Denzel's first sequel ever.  (True story.)

 

The Purge story could have been so much more.  It's a concept that screams for somebody like John Carpenter to do in his prime.  

 

(My question about the Purge:  If all crime is legal for 12 hours, why aren't you pulling a gigantic bank heist or stealing everything not bolted down?)

Because they want the movie to be about violence, not about heists.

[DC Tom]

6 minutes ago, Mark Vader said:

Because they want the movie to be about violence, not about heists.

 

Kind-of like how they want the Fast and Furious movies to be about morons in cars, and not about screenwriting, plot, coherence, reality...

 

Although I have to say, now that dpberr mentions it...I wouldn't mind seeing Ocean's 11 with machetes and chainsaws...

[DC Tom]

44 minutes ago, Mark Vader said:

While I am not a fan of the Mission: Impossible series, although I've heard it's gotten very good since J.J. Abrams got involved, I do like Tom Cruise as an actor.

 

I've liked him more as he's aged. I never cared for "Top Gun" or "Risky Business" or "Color of Money".

 

It wasn't until "A Few Good Men" & "The Firm" were released that I began to like Cruise as an actor.

 

I've found that the first MI has grown on me with time...it's still got a convoluted, chaotic plot ("The Usual Suspects" meets blunt force head trauma), but some of the direction and cinematography is De Palma's best work.  The "hanging just above the floor on wires" scene may be trite and cliche now...but it is because it's been referenced and satirized so much, which is because it was such a masterful set piece.  Building tension via the lack of a score for the scene was brilliant, and so subtle it still goes virtually unnoticed by most people.

 

I don't think I really started to appreciate Cruise as an actor until The Last Samurai and Collateral, though.

[shrader]

I just can’t get past the insanity that revolves around Cruise. I have no interest in paying for anything he does. 

[Mark Vader]

3 hours ago, DC Tom said:

 

I've found that the first MI has grown on me with time...it's still got a convoluted, chaotic plot ("The Usual Suspects" meets blunt force head trauma), but some of the direction and cinematography is De Palma's best work.  The "hanging just above the floor on wires" scene may be trite and cliche now...but it is because it's been referenced and satirized so much, which is because it was such a masterful set piece.  Building tension via the lack of a score for the scene was brilliant, and so subtle it still goes virtually unnoticed by most people.

 

I don't think I really started to appreciate Cruise as an actor until The Last Samurai and Collateral, though.

I never saw "The Last Samurai" but I did enjoy "Collateral" a lot.

 

I thought he was good in "Minority Report", and he was great in "Magnolia". I also really enjoyed "Valkyrie", although a lot of movie audiences, not critics, really dumped on his performance in that, and I don't know why. He did a fine job, and "Valkyrie" was an outstanding movie.

[Doc Brown]

4 hours ago, Mark Vader said:

I never saw "The Last Samurai" but I did enjoy "Collateral" a lot.

 

I thought he was good in "Minority Report", and he was great in "Magnolia". I also really enjoyed "Valkyrie", although a lot of movie audiences, not critics, really dumped on his performance in that, and I don't know why. He did a fine job, and "Valkyrie" was an outstanding movie.

The one thing about Cruise I've always admired is he always gives 100% to every movie he's in.  I've been a Cruise fan since Born on the Forth of July.  I agree that his best performance was Magnolia and he did a solid job in Minority Report (Spielberg's most underrated movie and my favorite Tom Cruise film).  His cameo in Tropic Thunder was superb considering he'd gone full scientology crazy at the time.  I've complained that I feel his talent's being wasted on all these action films, but he loves what he does so I can't blame him for that.  He was good in American Made even though the movie was average.

[Pine Barrens Mafia]

I've been looking forward to "Equalizer 2" for a LONG time.

 

[US Egg]

17 hours ago, Soda Popinski said:

Pass on all of them.  My last trip to the movies was marred by a girl who laughed hysterically at every little quip

I

It's pretty much impossible to go anywhere, movies, restaurants, outdoor events, etc.and not have to deal with obnoxious and inconsiderate it's all about me types.

[Soda Popinski]

Just now, I am the egg man said:

I

It's pretty much impossible to go anywhere, movies, restaurants, outdoor events, etc.and not have to deal with obnoxious and inconsiderate it's all about me types.

And I've got a 55" tv at the house with a sound bar, so what's my motivation to go to the movies other than to see a movie when it comes out?   Really none and ehh, none of these movies motivate me at all.   After the stink burger that was pacific rim 2 I won't even pay per view things anymore, just wait for HBO and Starz to have em. 

[Paulus]

17 hours ago, dpberr said:

I'll probably see Mission Impossible because the story seems decent and they've been doing better with the villains.  

 

The first Equalizer exceeded my expectations so I'll probably see Denzel's first sequel ever.  (True story.)

 

The Purge story could have been so much more.  It's a concept that screams for somebody like John Carpenter to do in his prime.  

 

(My question about the Purge:  If all crime is legal for 12 hours, why aren't you pulling a gigantic bank heist or stealing everything not bolted down?)

I think the solution to many horror movies is fire. All these people have to do is simply set shiz on fire. Fire is cheap, effective, and readily available. 

 

I agree with you on the purge movies, they can be so much better and mostly disappoint. 

[LeviF]

It's gonna be "Equalizer 2" and indie flicks for me this month, if any of them look decent.

[Mark Vader]

On 7/5/2018 at 1:50 PM, dpberr said:

The first Equalizer exceeded my expectations so I'll probably see Denzel's first sequel ever.  (True story.)

 

9 hours ago, joesixpack said:

I've been looking forward to "Equalizer 2" for a LONG time.

 

 

1 hour ago, LeviF91 said:

It's gonna be "Equalizer 2" and indie flicks for me this month, if any of them look decent.

 I never saw the first Equalizer movie. Did I miss something very good?

[Pine Barrens Mafia]

39 minutes ago, Mark Vader said:

 

 

 I never saw the first Equalizer movie. Did I miss something very good?

Yes.

 

count the different tools he uses to kill bad guys. 

[LeGOATski]

14 hours ago, Doc Brown said:

The one thing about Cruise I've always admired is he always gives 100% to every movie he's in.  I've been a Cruise fan since Born on the Forth of July.  I agree that his best performance was Magnolia and he did a solid job in Minority Report (Spielberg's most underrated movie and my favorite Tom Cruise film).  His cameo in Tropic Thunder was superb considering he'd gone full scientology crazy at the time.  I've complained that I feel his talent's being wasted on all these action films, but he loves what he does so I can't blame him for that.  He was good in American Made even though the movie was average.

He did that cameo because he'd gone full Scientology crazy.

 

That cameo saved his reputation. And this was by design. 

[Doc Brown]

31 minutes ago, LeGOATski said:

He did that cameo because he'd gone full Scientology crazy.

 

That cameo saved his reputation. And this was by design. 

I'm aware of that.  Badly worded on my part.  I wasn't as crazy about that movie as some people, but RDJ's and Cruise's performances made it worth the price of admission.

[Mark Vader]

Saw "Ant-Man and the Wasp" today.

 

Like the first movie it has a lot of good clean humor, and it's an all-around fun film.

[apuszczalowski]

On 7/7/2018 at 7:38 PM, Mark Vader said:

Saw "Ant-Man and the Wasp" today.

 

Like the first movie it has a lot of good clean humor, and it's an all-around fun film.

That's the one I want to see, although heard it might be a little weird cause it takes place before infinity war? (Which I have not had a chance to see yet)

 

I heard it could be the last Ant Man movie too? Guess they just agreed to do a sequel to Doctor Strange. I thought they would keep going with these.

 

I know 2 of my kids want to see Hotel Transylvania 3, and at least one of them would want to see Teen Titans

[Mark Vader]

1 hour ago, apuszczalowski said:

That's the one I want to see, although heard it might be a little weird cause it takes place before infinity war? (Which I have not had a chance to see yet)

 

I heard it could be the last Ant Man movie too? Guess they just agreed to do a sequel to Doctor Strange. I thought they would keep going with these.

 

I know 2 of my kids want to see Hotel Transylvania 3, and at least one of them would want to see Teen Titans

It's not weird at all that it takes place before Infinity War. And you really should see Infinity War before this, because it's awesome!

 

I have not seen an official word on a 3rd Ant-Man movie, but I think there will be one. Another Doctor Strange movie was imminent, and there is another Spider-Man movie all set for next year and a 3rd Guardians of the Galaxy movie.

 

Also Captain Marvel will have her first feature length film next March.

 

Disney & Marvel will find a way to keep these movies going, as they move on with these "newer" characters while phasing out Iron Man, Captain America, Hulk & Thor. 

[apuszczalowski]

3 hours ago, Mark Vader said:

It's not weird at all that it takes place before Infinity War. And you really should see Infinity War before this, because it's awesome!

 

I have not seen an official word on a 3rd Ant-Man movie, but I think there will be one. Another Doctor Strange movie was imminent, and there is another Spider-Man movie all set for next year and a 3rd Guardians of the Galaxy movie.

 

Also Captain Marvel will have her first feature length film next March.

 

Disney & Marvel will find a way to keep these movies going, as they move on with these "newer" characters while phasing out Iron Man, Captain America, Hulk & Thor. 

Yeah, I Really have to see Infinity War, tough to get to the theater with 3 little kids....

 

I thought Paul Rudd said something about them not planning o  more Ant Man stand alone movies. Also remember hearing that Dr Strange sequel wasnt guaranteed going either until now. Heard about the next spiderman next year and Captain Marvel who it sounds like may be the focus of the next phase (like Iron Man in phase 1).

 

Also read Guardians 3 may be the last one with the current characters. And they will be doing the same thing as Avengers and swap characters out for new ones

[ChevyVanMiller]

On ‎7‎/‎7‎/‎2018 at 7:38 PM, Mark Vader said:

Saw "Ant-Man and the Wasp" today.

 

Like the first movie it has a lot of good clean humor, and it's an all-around fun film.

I saw it on Saturday and liked it a lot. Nice character development and lots of good humor.

[shrader]

19 hours ago, Mark Vader said:

It's not weird at all that it takes place before Infinity War. And you really should see Infinity War before this, because it's awesome!

 

I have not seen an official word on a 3rd Ant-Man movie, but I think there will be one. Another Doctor Strange movie was imminent, and there is another Spider-Man movie all set for next year and a 3rd Guardians of the Galaxy movie.

 

Also Captain Marvel will have her first feature length film next March.

 

Disney & Marvel will find a way to keep these movies going, as they move on with these "newer" characters while phasing out Iron Man, Captain America, Hulk & Thor. 

 

Out of all of them, I kind of wish they wouldn't phase out Thor.  It feels like they've just started to make him into something bigger.  I guess they probably can't do much with him if he turns into an overseeing god type like Odin, but it could work for brief cameos if Hemsworth every wanted to sign on for something like that.

[shrader]

I feel like it all started with the Tobey McGuire Spider-Man movies, but wow did they take the whole “heroes excessively taking off their masks” thing to a whole new level in Antman and the Wasp. Anyone who wants to rant about the vanity of Hollywood needs to look no further than this. 

 

Anyway, fun movie. I wish we could get more stand alone movies. 

[Mark Vader]

2 hours ago, shrader said:

I feel like it all started with the Tobey McGuire Spider-Man movies, but wow did they take the whole “heroes excessively taking off their masks” thing to a whole new level in Antman and the Wasp. Anyone who wants to rant about the vanity of Hollywood needs to look no further than this. 

 

Anyway, fun movie. I wish we could get more stand alone movies. 

That's pretty good, I honestly wasn't paying attention to that.

 

You should try watching the television show "Supergirl". It's amazing how many people on that show know her true identity. Not subtle about it all.

[shrader]

7 hours ago, Mark Vader said:

That's pretty good, I honestly wasn't paying attention to that.

 

You should try watching the television show "Supergirl". It's amazing how many people on that show know her true identity. Not subtle about it all.

 

And they call her by her first name constantly while in the company of the people who don't know her true identity?  Yeah, that show is really horrible with that whole thing.

 

But anyway, they popped off their masks essentially every time the returned to full size, even in the middle of fights.  Other than that, the one thing that kind of irritated me about the movie was how they pretty much turned Lang into a bumbling idiot.  He was not like that at all in the first one.  It's another piece of how they're overemphasizing the humor in their movies lately.

[apuszczalowski]

4 minutes ago, shrader said:

 

And they call her by her first name constantly while in the company of the people who don't know her true identity?  Yeah, that show is really horrible with that whole thing.

 

But anyway, they popped off their masks essentially every time the returned to full size, even in the middle of fights.  Other than that, the one thing that kind of irritated me about the movie was how they pretty much turned Lang into a bumbling idiot.  He was not like that at all in the first one.  It's another piece of how they're overemphasizing the humor in their movies lately.

That was my problem with Thor Ragnorok.

I liked it, but what I didnt liked was all the forced humor in it. It feels like after the success of Guardians, they are trying to do the same with other characters and add alot more goofy humor to it. The movie seemed to be a complete 180 degree turn from the previous ones where Thor wasnt comedic relief. I like that they are making him less serious, I just think they turned too much

 

I'm also thinking that some of the issues that Marvel/Disney are having is that they are too successful with these movies. I almost think that they made some of these stand alone movies just introduce a character or scenerio but then it makes a bunch of money and they have to continue with it and do more.

 

Unlike DC that cant seem to do anything right.....

[dpberr]

On 7/6/2018 at 1:34 AM, Mark Vader said:

I never saw "The Last Samurai" but I did enjoy "Collateral" a lot.

 

I thought he was good in "Minority Report", and he was great in "Magnolia". I also really enjoyed "Valkyrie", although a lot of movie audiences, not critics, really dumped on his performance in that, and I don't know why. He did a fine job, and "Valkyrie" was an outstanding movie.

 

Collateral is Michael Mann's second best movie behind Heat. I'd say it's probably one of Cruise's top acting performances. 

 

I too thought Valkyrie was a good movie.  I think McQuarrie is a pretty good director.  

[shrader]

Yes, they completely changed Thor's character in order to fit that Guardians comedy direction.  The change wasn't as obvious with Lang since he was a bit of a goof in the first one.  But he was also presented as smart and a quick thinker in that one.  I'm not so sure they ever showed that with this one.  Pym and Hope are the brains of every single move in this one.

[apuszczalowski]

I think the shift with Antman/Langs character started to happen during Civil War., but even then it wasnt as much.

[dpberr]

Mission Impossible: Fallout is easily the best so far in the series.  I like how they are tying all the movies together in this installment.