Page 14 - aruba-today-20220506

a14 people & arts
Friday 6 May 2022
Movies love a comeback story. This summer, it’s their turn.

This combination of photos shows poster art for upcoming films, top row from left, "Benediction," "Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers," "Doctor Strange in the Multitude of
Madness," "Downton Abbey: A New Era," "Elvis," "Fire Island," "Firestarter," "Happening," "Jurassic World Dominion," "Lightyear," bottom row from left, "Marcel the Shell
with Shoes On," "Minions: The Rise of Gru," "Nope," "Paws of Fury," "Senior Year," "DC League of Super Pets," "Thor: Love and Thunder," "Top Gun Maverick," "Watcher,"
and Where the Crawdads Sing."
(Roadside Attractions, top row from left, Disney+, Marvel Studios, Focus Features, Warner Bros., Hulu/Searchlight Pictures, Universal, IFC Films, Universal, Disney, top
row from left, A24 Films, Universal, Universal, Paramount, Netflix, Warner Bros., Marvel Studios, Paramount, IFC Films and Sony Pictures via Associated Press)
By LINDSEY BAHR owners and exhibitors at on the big screen this sum- versal is proud of their di- Garland is a little worried
AP Film Writer a convention in Las Ve- mer. Netflix last month also verse summer slate that about the movie industry
This summer at the movies, gas, hyping films that they reported its first subscriber includes a certain dinosaur and the seismic shifts that
Tom Cruise is back in the promise will get audiences loss in ten years and ex- tentpole, family animation, are happening under the
cockpit behind those icon- back to the movie theaters pects to lose two million thrillers and horrors, com- surface that are "partly cul-
ic aviators. Doctors Grant, week after week. more this quarter. edies and period charm- tural and partly economic."
Sattler and Ian Malcolm Expectations are particu- Adam Aron, the Chairman ers from Focus Features like "Every time an interesting
are returning for another larly high for "Top Gun: and CEO of AMC Theatres, "Downton Abbey: A New film comes out and under-
round with the dinosaurs. Maverick," which Para- the nation's largest theater Era" and "Mrs. Harris Goes performs, I get a kind of
Natalie Portman is picking mount Pictures will release chain, is one who is par- to Paris." gnawing anxiety about it,"
up Thor's hammer. And Jor- on May 27 after two years ticularly excited about the "Our business can't devolve Garland said.
dan Peele is poised to ter- of pandemic postpone- steady stream of block- into just tentpoles and "If the only films that make
rify us with the unknown. ments. Producer Jerry busters that will be com- branded IP," Orr said. "We money are for younger
Again. Bruckheimer says he never ing to their theaters. He have something for every audiences, something cul-
Hollywood is bringing out waivered in wanting to re- touted franchises like "Doc- audience segment. Audi- tural changes. Something
some of its biggest and lease "Top Gun: Maverick" tor Strange 2," "Top Gun 2," ences are craving that and changes about the sorts of
most reliable players for — a full-throttle action film "Jurassic World: Dominion," exhibitors are craving that." films that get financed."
the 2022 summer movie made with extensive aerial (June 10) and "Thor: Love Jason Blum, the power- Streaming companies,
season, which unofficially photography, practical ef- and Thunder" (July 8), "new house producer and head meanwhile, are still going
kicks off this weekend with fects — exclusively in the- film concepts" like Jordan of Blumhouse, hopes that strong. Netflix has a massive
the help of Marvel and Dis- aters. Peele's "Nope" (July 22) Scott Derrickson's super- 35-plus film summer slate,
ney's "Doctor Strange and "It's the kind of movie that and "Elvis" (June 24) and natural horror "The Black including the spy thriller "The
the Multitverse of Madness" embraces the experience family friendly offerings Phone" may be one of Gray Man," directed by the
and runs through the end of going to the theater," from "Lightyear" (June 17) those special "not super- Russo brothers and starring
of August. Studios and ex- said Bruckheimer. to "Minions: The Rise of Gru" hero" breakouts of the sum- Ryan Gosling and Chris Ev-
hibitors are still making up Before the pandemic, the (July 1). mer when it opens June 24. ans. Other streamers are
for losses incurred during summer movie season And it looks like the summer Beyond the franchises, releasing some of the most
the pandemic, adjusting could reliably produce will start off with a bang: there are a wide array of interesting titles from this
to new ways of doing busi- over $4 billion in ticket Analysts are predicting options: Dramas ("Where year's Sundance Film Festi-
ness, including shortened sales, or about 40% of the "Doctor Strange 2" could the Crawdads Sing," "Elvis"); val, including "Good Luck
release windows, compe- year's grosses according open to $170 million this action pics ("Bullet Train"); To You, Leo Grande" (Hulu),
tition from streaming and to Comscore. In 2020, that weekend, double that of hair-raisers ("Watcher," "Cha Cha Real Smooth"
the need to feed their own total plummeted to $176 the first film. "Bodies, Bodies Bodies," (Apple TV+), "Emergency"
services, and wondering if million. Last year recovered Marvel and Disney then fol- "Resurrection"); and even (Amazon) and "AM I OK?"
moviegoing will ever return some with $1.7 billion, but low that with the new Thor, a mockumentary about a (HBO Max).
to pre-pandemic levels. things were hardly back to which picks up with Hem- tiny seashell, "Marcel the "Streaming has a place in
Though the pandemic lin- normal—many chose to ei- sworth's character after Shell With Shoes On." the world, but it's not the
gers on, there is optimism in ther delay releases further "Endgame" and wondering "Annihilation" writer-direc- only thing in the world," said
the air. or employ hybrid day-and- "what now?" tor Alex Garland also has Blum, who is convinced
"We're still waiting for older date strategies. "It's a great, really fun, an original thriller, "Men," that there is still an appetite
audiences to come back," This summer, though some weird little group of he- coming to theaters May for going to theaters.
said Jim Orr, the head of slates are slimmer than roes," director Taika Waititi 20. Jessie Buckley plays a For Bruckheimer, it's per-
domestic distribution for usual, everyone is refocus- said. "And, in my humble woman who retreats to haps even more simple.
Universal Pictures. "But it re- ing on theatrical. The tick- opinion, we have probably the English countryside for "It all depends on the mov-
ally feels like we've turned eting service Fandango the best villain that Marvel's some peace following a ies. It's always about the
a corner." surveyed more than 6,000 ever had in Christian Bale." personal tragedy only to movies," Bruckheimer said.
Last week, studio execu- ticket-buyers recently and But superhero movies alone be confronted by more "If there's stuff people want
tives and movie stars 83% said they planned to don't make for a healthy horrors from the men in this to see, they're going to
schmoozed with theater see three or more movies cinematic landscape. Uni- quaint town. show up."q