West Berkshire & North Hampshire

With the blockbuster season well underway it’s no wonder that Hollywood has once again thrown its weight behind big names to get franchises rolling and to bring us entertainment that we can sit back and watch without a care in the world.

Last month saw some big hitters coming to the cinemas with the likes of “X-Men: First Class” and Michael Bay’s “Transformers: Dark of the Moon”, which is the third instalment in the highly successful Transformers franchise.

With July shaping up to again provide some big hitters, let’s take a look at what’s coming to screens near you.

Larry Crowne – In cinemas 1st July
Starting off July with not so much a bang as with a lightered hearted rib-tickler is Tom Hanks’ film Larry Crowne.

Hanks (who also directed and wrote the film) stars as Larry who is fired from his job at Walmart after working there for 20 years because he has no qualifications.
Forced to go back to college, Larry joins a class run by Julia Roberts and befriends a group of moped riders at the college.

Needless to say, this may sound a bit like a mid-life crisis film (Hanks is nearly 55) and as such this film has many of those moments. However, Hanks has the ability, though it may have been forgotten, to bring effortless charm to a comedic role such as this.

One to look out for!

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 – In cinemas 15th July
Anyone who is not excited by the release of this film soon will be. It is the concluding part in the film adaptations of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter franchise.

Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) and friends unite for one final battle against the Dark Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) in an attempt to stop evil reigning over the wizarding world. Knowing that it is Harry alone who can stop the Dark Lord, he continues his quest to find the remaining horcruxes and destroy them to make Voldemort mortal once again.

The first part of this adaptation of Rowling’s 7th book of the same name grossed nearly $1billion at the box office when it was released. If that is anything to go by, then this film may very well claim the coveted title of highest grossing film of the year.

Cars 2 – In cinemas 22nd July
Pixar return this summer with the sequel “Cars 2″ again following the antics of Lightening McQueen (voiced by Owen Wilson) and his new found stardom including racing all over the world and getting caught up in an international spy story.

It follows in the tradition of Pixar films which have gone from strength to strength since starting out in 1995 with “Toy Story” and now Jonathan Lassester directs a sequel with the same grace and comedy that made the first Cars a pleasure to watch.

With the vocal talents of Michael Caine, Eddie Izzard and Emily Mortimer along the ride, Cars 2 is shaping up to be a box office stealer this summer.

Captain America: The First Avenger – In cinemas 29th July
Marvel have now set all the pieces in place for their superhero franchise “The Avengers” being released next year.

The film follows the creation of the first super soldier, Steve Rodgers (played by Chris Evans – not the Radio 2 presenter!!) who is a weak man that is transformed through an experiment into “Captain America” who must stop Hitler’s devious head of advanced weaponry, The Red Skull (Hugo Weaving) from destroying the allied forces in World War 2.

With Joe Johnston at the reigns of this film, it remains to be seen whether it will stand up to films such as “Thor” and “Iron Man”. They’re big shoes to fill and Captain America looks as though it’s going to fill them.

Zookeeper – In cinemas 29th July
Kevin James brings his over-the-top humour to the zoo. When Griffen Keyes (James) falls for the girl of his dreams, the animals of his zoo decide to break their silence and help in his quest for true love.

Stretching the boundaries of our imagination here, it is no surprise that Kevin James continues his trademark comedy roles in what could be the “Hangover” of the summer season.