Hot film fun in the summer time
Although big films such as "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" and "Star Trek" have trickled out early, the summer movie season officially kicks off Memorial Day weekend.
So to get you ready, ESPN.com's The Life asked some athletes to share their choices for the 2009 summer movies they were looking forward to the most and why you should go see them.
Comedy: "Land of the Lost" (release: June 5)
By Mark Titus
You can give me your reasons as to why "Land of the Lost" won't be good: questionable computer graphics, straying from the TV series, a dinosaur that doesn't act anything like those dinosaurs from "Jurassic Park," etc. And you might be right. But I have two counterpoints as to why none of that will matter: Will Ferrell and Danny McBride.
Admittedly, I never saw the original "Land of the Lost" series, and the only thing I remember about the 1990s remake is the theme song (which annoyingly gets stuck in my head every time "Lost" comes on), but it really doesn't matter. Ferrell and McBride have the ability to carry this movie on their backs. And as the 2006 Miami Heat proved, as long as you have two studs, the rest of the group can be garbage and you can still have a winner.
Ferrell has established himself as quite possibly the funniest man in the world, thanks largely in part to his ability to take a character that is out of touch with reality and make him believable. Judging from the trailers, his character, Rick Marshall, will be no exception.
Marshall appears to be a character whose absurdity ranks somewhere between Frank "The Tank" Ricard and Ricky Bobby (which is like saying someone's mental stability ranks somewhere between Courtney Love and Paula Abdul, but just go with me on this one). If Ferrell can continue his practically patented approach of making the audience believe that a character who has no regard for social norms can actually exist, he should have no trouble making "Land of the Lost" a comedic success.
In fact, Ferrell's biggest challenge could be keeping McBride from stealing the movie. McBride, as you should know, recently enjoyed breakout success in the HBO comedy "Eastbound & Down" as washed-up major league pitcher Kenny Powers. His performance in "Eastbound" solidified his place on my list of actors whom I will see in any movie, no questions asked. His impeccable comedic timing paired with his ability to grow a perfect Jheri curl despite being white suggest that McBride will capitalize on his opportunity to be a scene stealer, as he did previously in movies such as "Hot Rod," "Pineapple Express" and "Tropic Thunder."
Ferrell and McBride actually already shared scenes when Ferrell played a used car salesman (and living tribute to a younger Ric Flair) in his handful of cameos on "Eastbound." Those few scenes were enough for me to know that Ferrell and McBride have a nice rapport that could make them quite a comedic force in this movie.
I'm not naive enough to think this "Land of the Lost" duo can dethrone Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn from their position as the best two-man comedic performance of all time with "Swingers." I'm just saying the combination of Ferrell and McBride on the big screen has the potential to be pretty money.
Mark Titus is a walk-on guard for the Ohio State University basketball team. Click here for his Club Trillion blog.
Drama-suspense: "The Taking of Pelham 123" (release: June 12)
By Kacey White
I get excited about doing many things in life, and seeing new movies is definitely one of them. Although I do not consider myself a movie buff by any means (recently because an increasing number of people seem to have seen more than I have), I very much enjoy making sure I see as many as possible in theaters, and if not, I try to have a few Blockbuster nights when I can.
I've always been a Denzel Washington fan. "Remember the Titans," "Man on Fire," "John Q," "The Bone Collector," "The Manchurian Candidate" … the list could go on and on. There hasn't really ever been one of his that I didn't like, at least not in recent memory.
It's only natural that I would be pumped about the new Denzel Washington-John Travolta suspense movie, "The Taking of Pelham 123." As a professional athlete who spends most of her time on the road or at games, I often find it hard to get to the movie theater, but I knew from the moment I saw the preview (in a hotel room in Los Angeles … road trip again) that I wanted to see this film.
A New York City subway train, Pelham 123, is hijacked by a number of gunmen who hold the passengers hostage for a huge ransom. Travolta is the leader of this posse, and Washington is a Manhattan Transportation Authority dispatcher who is trying to jump through hoops to prevent a catastrophe from happening. Although this is the second remake of the 1974 original and a plot of this kind has been used in other movies throughout the years, the ending, the reasoning behind the hijacking and the people involved can always be different. And that is what I love about suspense movies. Yes, sometimes it may be the same predictable ending, but as a spectator throughout this entire movie I am always on the edge of my seat in anticipation that some new, amazing twist is going to be thrown in.
Since I'm a member of Sky Blue FC in New Jersey and live right on the other side of the Hudson River from New York City, some might think I wouldn't be into watching a movie about a hijacking on the very mode of transportation I take almost every day. But I'll enjoy my movie and then take my chances traveling through this great city. I might just need to look out for John Travolta …
Kacey White is a midfielder for Women's Professional Soccer's Sky Blue FC.
Action blockbuster: "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" (release: June 24)
By Kyle Harrison
I've had June 24 circled on my calendar for quite some time, and now that we're just a few short weeks away, the anticipation for "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" is higher than ever.
Anyone who grew up in our generation (especially boys) spent many a Saturday morning watching Optimus Prime and the rest of the Transformers go to work.
The first "Transformers" film, just like every Michael Bay movie, had huge explosions and great special effects. And I expect the explosions to be even bigger in this movie. The effects of the robot transformations are absolutely ridiculous (think Optimus Prime transforming from the semi-tractor truck for the first time in the first movie).
Clearly, we're all excited that Megan Fox is coming back for round two as Mikaela Banes for a number of different reasons. And the main character, Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf), is back for more action, broken fingers and all (because of a car accident in mid-shoot that forced him to wear a special cast during the filming and need surgery afterward). I know he takes a lot of grief for his off-screen life, but I'm actually a big fan of his acting ability and think he's got a long career ahead of him. From the articles I've read about him, he seems like a good kid with a great work ethic, so I'm definitely excited to see his performance in "Revenge of the Fallen." Tyrese Gibson is back doing his thing as well, and I'm sure he'll have a few funny one-liners like the last film.
So I got to thinking, as a 26-year-old male, how could I possibly be so excited about this movie? The answer is obvious. As a kid, there was nothing cooler in the world than having some type of super power, whether it was Superman, Wolverine, Batman (whom I'm actually not a fan of; the cat's got no powers and might as well be your neighbor dressed up in tights), or a Transformer. Michael Bay has taken something from our childhood fantasies and put it in a "real-world" setting.
At heart, we're all kids, and movies like "Revenge of the Fallen" take us right back to the best time in our lives. The time when we had absolutely no responsibility at all other than waking up on time on Saturday morning, getting a bowl of cereal, jumping on the couch and watching "Transformers." Come June 24, I'll be sitting back and doing the same thing.
Kyle Harrison is a midfielder for the Denver Outlaws of Major League Lacrosse. Click here for his blog.
Horror-thriller: "H2" (release: Aug. 28)
By Lisa RaymondOne of the movies I am looking forward to seeing this summer is "H2," the new Rob Zombie-directed remake of John Carpenter's "Halloween 2."
I grew up watching the "Halloween" series and was petrified of its villain, Michael Myers. I experienced a lot of sleepless nights as a young kid thinking that Michael was going to escape Haddonfield, Ill., and show up wandering the streets of my neighborhood, especially on Oct. 31.
To this day I think one of the scariest scenes ever in a movie is when the main character, Laurie, is in the empty house and thinks she has finally killed Michael. She stays in the bedroom and with her back to him, (typical slasher movie protocol, of course) gets on the phone for help and in the background, you see Michael sit up and turn to face her.
I still get goosebumps thinking about it.
I just love horror-thrillers more along the lines of movies such as "Saw," which happens to be one of my all-time favorites. Zombie always seems to have a flare for the dramatic in his pics so I am interested to see his spin on this classic horror flick.
Whatever the case, after seeing "H2" I am sure I will lose countless hours of sleep because of Michael Myers. … I can't wait!
Lisa Raymond plays on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour.
