Hollywood’s first wave of summer blockbusters have arrived. Whether it’s fast cars or flying superheroes, there’s definitely a movie or two you will enjoy.
Scheduled release: Now showing
Director: James Wan
Cast: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Dwayne Johnson
The adrenaline-fueled crew are back for another round of speed-chasing thrills and spills. This sequel was due for release much earlier, but the untimely demise of lead actor Paul Walker led to production delays and changes in order to accommodate his character’s role in the movie. In addition to the usage of old footage, CGI and audio, Walker’s two brothers stepped in as stand-ins to help complete the film.
Following the events of Fast and Furious 6, where the antagonist Owen Shaw (Luke Evans) was beaten to a pulp and left to die on a burning plane, this installment sees his brother Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) exacting revenge by turning the tables on Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and gang. Expect plenty of vehicular mayhem that will keep you at the edge of your seats.
Scheduled release: April 9th
Director: Pierre Morel
Cast: Sean Penn, Idris Elba, Javier Bardem
Just as he made Liam Neeson a credible action star in the first Taken movie, director Pierre Morel will be hoping to emulate that success with the transformation of Sean Penn into a gun-welding badass in The Gunman.
Penn takes on the role of Terrier, a former sniper whose last successful kill shot in Congo forced him into hiding. Little does he know that his return to the country many years later would make him the target of a hit squad. Terrier would have to take up arms once again to protect himself in this game of cat and mouse.
Scheduled release: April 9th
Director: George Tillman Jr.
Cast: Britt Robertson, Scott Eastwood, Jack Huston
Nicholas Sparks’ romance novels have sparked (no pun intended) off a series of Hollywood film adaptations, notably A Walk to Remember and The Notebook. It didn’t take long for his latest published work, The Longest Ride, to be made into a movie, and we know his fervent followers will be hoping that the movie lives up their expectations.
In this film, Luke Collins (Scott Eastwood) is a former champion bull rider who’s looking to make a comeback, while Sophia Danko (Britt Robertson) is a college student who’s about to start her dream job in New York City. Their paths cross, a relationship results, and as their ideals and differences are put to the test, it is an unexpected meeting and connection with Ira Levinson (Alan Alda) and his own love life that deeply inspire this young couple.
Scheduled release: April 16th
Director: Ekachai Uekrongtham
Cast: Dolph Lundgren, Tony Jaa, Ron Perlman
Veteran actor Dolph Lundgren plays New Jersey detective Nick Cassidy, who teams up with his Thai counterpart Tony Vitayakui (Tony Jaa) to hunt down human trafficker Viktor Dragovic (Ron Perlman). Both hero and villain have suffered losses prior, with Cassidy’s wife and daughter having been murdered following the mistaken killing of Dragovic’s son in a previous sting operation.
There will be plenty of vengeance in store for both parties, and moviegoers will get to see martial arts extraordinaire Tony Jaa doing what he does best, as he brings the pain with a slew of slick action moves.
Scheduled release: April 23rd
Director: Joss Whedon
Cast: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo
The Marvel Cinematic Universe returns to enthrall the audience and smash box office records. A whole bunch of new superheroes – Quicksilver, Scarlett Witch and Vision to be specific – join the original group to save the universe.
Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) appears to have inadvertently created Ultron, the villain in this sequel. Originally a robot that was meant to take over the duties of the Avengers, Ultron went rogue and decided to inflict extinction upon humankind. It will take a whole lot more than Thor’s hammer or Captain America’s shield fix this problem, and we all know that once they are done, the superheroes will have to face the all-powerful Thanos in Avengers 3, due 2018.