Space Invaders

Steven Spielberg’s remake of ‘War of the Worlds’ leads this summer’s pack of blockbusters.

By: Jim Boyle

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Tom Cruise (right) tries to protect his daughter, played by Dakota Fanning, from the attacking aliens in ‘War of the Worlds.


   When Orson Welles made that famous radio broadcast of The War of the Worlds in 1938, nobody knew for sure what was happening. Were aliens attacking Grovers Mill? Did the Russians develop a top-secret weapon that could destroy us all? Were we safe? It turns out, of course, it was all a big joke masterfully executed by Welles.
   When Steven Spielberg premieres his version of H.G. Wells’ classic novel June 29, there will be no mistaking what is happening. Those are definitely alien ships on the screen, and they are definitely attacking planet Earth. The science fiction actioner starring Tom Cruise is one of the highly anticipated event films for the summer.

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Steve Martin plays the bumbling Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther.


   Hollywood is in desperate need of a good summer at the box office after taking a beating the past few months, reaping record lows in receipts. While some might look forward to the latest from one of the true masters of blockbuster cinema, some of us are a little skeptical about War of the Worlds. Spielberg always set his alien movies, such as Close Encounters of the Third Kind and E.T., apart from the rest of the genre by depicting the visitors as benevolent species that held a harmless curiosity about our world. This more antagonistic approach has placed Spielberg into a group populated by some of his successors, such as Roland Emmerich (Independence Day) and James Cameron (Aliens).
   Science plays a big part in some of the films scheduled for release in the next few months, with everything from escaped clones, sentient cars and mutated astronauts. I’m sure quite a few people would like to invent a time machine to go back to summers of better cinema.

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Johnny Depp (third from right) leads an eventful tour through a magical world in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.


The Longest Yard Adam Sandler and Chris Rock head up the remake of Burt Reynolds’ 1974 comedy about a pro quarterback (Sandler) who is sent to prison and organizes the rest of the inmates to play an exhibition football game against the guards. (5/27)
Madagascar Animals living at the Central Park Zoo decide to make a break for it and make their way to Africa in this animated comedy from Dreamworks, starring the voices of Ben Stiller, Chris Rock and David Schwimmer. (5/27)
Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants Four teenage girls are forced to spend their summer apart, so they agree to share a pair of jeans, passing them along every two weeks. I guess they haven’t heard of e-mail. (6/1)
Cinderella Man Russell Crowe stars in Ron Howard’s true story about James Braddock, a Depression-era boxer who rises from his lower class surroundings to become famous, eventually facing the champ. Think Seabiscuit, only with more boxing. (6/3)
Lords of Dogtown Director Stacy Perolta turns his acclaimed documentary, Dogtown and Z-Boys, into a dramatic film about a group of California surfers in the 1970s who trade the waves for the concrete and helped transform skateboarding from a dying fad into an international sport. (6/3)
The Adventures of Shark Boy and Lava Girl in 3-D Spy Kids director Robert Rodriguez returns to the 3-D well, this time about a lonely 10-year-old boy who goes on an adventure with his two imaginary superhero friends. (6/10)
The Honeymooners With all of the television remakes out there, it was only a matter of time before they got to this groundbreaking 1950s series. Given a little casting tweak, the film stars Cedric the Entertainer as Ralph Kramden and Omar Epps as his buddy, Norton. This could go either way, really funny or total disaster. (6/10)
Mr. & Mrs. Smith Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie play a bored married couple, each unaware that the other works as an assassin-for-hire. Things get a little awkward when their next target is each other. It’s a safe bet that Jennifer Aniston won’t be seeing this. (6/10)
Batman Begins Begins what? Memento director Christopher Nolan tries to resurrect the dying franchise by exploring the caped crusader’s origins. Christian Bale dons the utility belt, joining an all-star cast that includes Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman and Katie Holmes. (6/15)
The Perfect Man Hilary Duff tries to cheer up her single mom (Heather Locklear) by inventing a secret admirer. The plan backfires, however, when she has to actually produce the dream guy. Wasn’t this an episode of The Simpsons? (6/10)
Herbie: Fully Loaded A lot of people might be skeptical about this updated remake starring Lindsay Lohan, but I have to admit that I am sort of looking forward to it. Growing up, I loved to watch all of those Herbie movies. That crazy car’s antics cracked me up. (6/22)
Bewitched The 1960s series gets a little bit of a twist with this Nora Ephron-directed comedy. Instead of a faithful adaptation, the film follows a struggling actor (Will Ferrell) who signs on to star in a new television version of Bewitched. The search for an actress to play the new Samantha ends with Nicole Kidman, who happens to actually be a witch. (6/22)
Land of the Dead George Romero returns to his zombie-movie roots with a film set in a world where the walking dead roam a barren wasteland while normal humans live in a city protected by large, well-guarded walls. The security doesn’t last, however, as the creatures begin invading and taking over. (6/22)
War of the Worlds Earth is under attack by aliens, and Tom Cruise does everything he can to protect his family. (6/29)
Rebound A temperamental college basketball coach (Martin Lawrence) is fired and forced to take a job leading a down-and-out junior high school team. (7/1)
Dark Water The stress of an intense custody battle is doubled when a newly separated mother (Jennifer Connelly) moves into a house that begins to exhibit strange behavior. (7/8)
Fantastic Four The dysfunctional family of superheroes didn’t originate with last year’s sublime The Incredibles. This 40-year-old Marvel comic book first introduced the idea, and now is finally headed to the big screen. After a laboratory accident, four people are imbued with super powers and team up to fight the evil Dr. Doom. (7/8)
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory There is going to be a lot of anger if Tim Burton and Johnny Depp don’t deliver with this remake of the classic 1971 film. Depp attempts to fill Gene Wilder’s gigantic shoes as Willy Wonka, the candyman who leads a group of children on a fateful tour of his magical factory. (7/15)
The Wedding Crashers Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson play two divorce mediators who spend their weekends trolling wedding receptions for potential one-night stands. Their guilt-free lifestyle begins to crumble when one of them falls for an engaged socialite. (7/15)
The Bad News Bears Yet another remake, this one of the 1976 comedy about a group of foulmouthed, inept Little Leaguers who pull together with the help of an alcoholic coach to make a run for the championship. (7/22)
The Island Michael Bay directs this actioner about two clones (Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johannson) who escape the facility where they are held before they can be harvested for spare parts. (7/22)
The Brothers Grimm Heath Ledger and Matt Damon play the folk tale authors who travel from village to village, telling stories about fantastic monsters and offering to hunt them for a price. Their bluffs get the better of them, however, when they are hired to track down real creatures. (7/29)
Sky High All the usual angst and hormones associated with high school are given a new twist by surrounding the premise with superheroes. The son of the two most famous superheroes can’t seem to find his own powers, making him very unpopular with the rest of the school. (7/29)
Stealth A military plane operating with artificial intelligence runs amok, and it’s up to Jamie Foxx and Jessica Biel to stop it before it incites a war. (7/29)
The Dukes of Hazzard Them good ol’ boys are back to raise some hell. This time, its Johnny Knoxville and Seann William Scott behind the wheel of the General Lee, with Jessica Simpson as Daisy, Willie Nelson as Uncle Jesse and Burt Reynolds as Boss Hogg. (8/5)
The Pink Panther Steve Martin makes a very brave move by stepping into a character immortalized by the incomparable Peter Sellers. (8/5)
Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo Rob Schneider returns to the role that earned him a longer movie career than many would have predicted. Now that he is a full-time male escort, he must go to Europe and train at a special school for gigolos. (8/12)
The Skeleton Key A hospice worker (Kate Hudson) is sent to care for a dying patient in a spacious Louisiana mansion, where evil spirits begin to haunt and terrorize the residents. (8/12)
Red Eye A woman (Rachel McAdams) flying to Miami is suddenly thrust into an assassination plot when the man next to her forces her to help kill a businessman or her father will be murdered. (8/15)
The 40 Year Old Virgin After hilarious supporting turns in Bruce Almighty and Anchorman, Steve Carell finally gets a starring role as a middle-aged anti-social office worker looking to finally score. (8/19)
Domino Keira Knightely stars in a film based on the true story of Domino Harvey, the daughter of a Hollywood actor who leaves behind her high class lifestyle to become a bounty hunter. (8/19)