Maximum Impact: June 2006 Movie Planner

June 2006

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Maximum Impact: June 2006 Movie Planner
by Max Braden
Published: June 30, 2006

June - Summer's here! This month sees a number of hot movies in theaters: "The Break-Up" starring real-life couple Jennifer Aniston and Vince Vaughn, is a better drama than comedy. For family comedy, "Cars" is a visual treat. And for adventure, "Superman Returns" to the big screen. On DVD, Tommy Lee Jones'-directed western drama "The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada" was a big winner at the Cannes Film Festival last year. Political drama "Syriana" won Oscars for actor George Clooney and writer Stephen Gaghan. I also recommend the action comedy "Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang", starring Val Kilmer and Robert Downey Jr., and under-the-radar romantic comedy "Imagine Me & You", starring Piper Perabo and Matthew Goode ("Match Point"). Take a look back at May's Planner to see what's already out in theaters and on DVD, or jump ahead to July's Planner.

Below is a week-by-week table listing Event notes, and DVD and theatrical releases for the month. My recommended selections are noted in blue, based on my anticipation of their quality or entertainment value. Other titles are listed in order of my expected grade. I will tend to highlight two in each column each week. Assume wide release (upwards of 1000) for theatrical releases unless indicated as limited ("lim.") - I put these releases on the date they arrive in major U.S. cities beyond New York and Los Angeles. NY/LA exclusive releases are not shown here but will be listed on future calendars if they expand to more markets and when they are released to DVD. I've only listed contemporary movie titles here - be sure to check our recent reviews for television series and older movies recently released on dvd.

In the section below the table I give description and comments on each title. You can see my grade and comments after I've seen these movies by clicking over to my 2006 viewing journal.


May 28 - June 3:	The Seattle International Film Festival continues through 6/18.
	May 30:	Date Movie Freedomland	June 2:	The Break-Up
June 4 - 10 Events:
	June 6:	Glory Road The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada Sarah Silverman: Jesus Is Magic The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things Firewall Running Scared The Big White Underworld 2: Evolution	June 9:	Cars A Prairie Home Companion The Omen 666
June 11 - 17 Events:
	June 13:	Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang The World's Fastest Indian Aquamarine Dave Chappelle's Block Party Neil Young: Heart of Gold Green Street Hooligans A Good Woman The Pink Panther 16 Blocks End of the Spear	June 16:	The Lake House Nacho Libre The Fast and the Furious 3
June 18 - 24 Events:	The Seattle International Film Festival ends 6/18. Grand Jury Prize: "Live Free or Die"
	June 20:	Eight Below Syriana Night Watch The Hills Have Eyes	June 23:	Click Waist Deep
June 25 - July 1 Events:
	June 27:	Imagine Me & You Annapolis Why We Fight Failure the Launch Find Me Guilty Cache Ultraviolet Madea's Family Reunion	June 30:	Superman Returns The Devil Wears Prada Wordplay

The list below provides some brief description about each movie and my recommendation for each. DVD titles are linked to the Amazon.com page while theatrical releases are linked to that title's official website.

Family Friendly


Aquamarine	6/13 - Two 12-year-old girls find a teen mermaid in their local pool and help her romance a young hearthrob.
Cars	6/09 - Pixar's animated story about a race car's detour to a dust town along Route 66.
Eight Below	6/20 - A team of sled dogs is stranded during an antarctic winter, as their driver Paul Walker struggles to get back and save them.
Glory Road	6/06 - Based on a true story, Josh Lucas plays a 1960s Texas college basketball coach who started an all-African American team.
The Pink Panther	6/13 - Steve Martin stars as the buffoonish French detective, with Kevin Kline and Beyonce Knowles.

Drama/Romance/Documentary


The Break-Up	6/02 - Though marketed as a comedy, this is a relationship drama, starring Vince Vaughn and Jennifer Aniston.
End of the Spear	6/13 - The son of a missionary returns to the jungle in Ecuador to investigate his father's murder.
Find Me Guilty	6/27 - Sidney Lumet directs Vin Diesel as a mobster defending himself in this courtroom drama, based on a true story.
A Good Woman	6/13 - Helen Hunt plays a woman in the 1930s who seduces the husband of Scarlett Johansson. With Tom Wilkinson, based on an Oscar Wilde play.
The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things	6/06 - Peter Fonda stars in a road-trip drama about a foster kid reuniting with his mother.
The Lake House	6/16 - Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock develop a romance through letters while living two years apart in time.
Neil Young: Heart of Gold	6/13 - A concert documentary of Neil Young's "Prairie Wind" performances in Nashville, shot by director Jonathan Demme.
Syriana	6/20 - George Clooney won an Oscar for Stephen Gaghan's story (also nominated) of oil and terrorism in the Middle East. With Matt Damon.
The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada	6/06 - Tommy Lee Jones directs himself as a Texan who avenges his fallen friend by kidnapping border patrolman Barry Pepper.
Why We Fight	6/27 - Sundance award winning documentary on the nature of America's motives for going to war in Iraq and elsewhere.
The World's Fastest Indian	6/13 - Anthony Hopkins plays New Zealander Burt Munro, who rode his four-decade-old motorcycle to a record 200mph at Bonneville's salt flats.

Comedy


The Big White	6/06 - Set in Alaska, Robin Williams attempts to cash in on his not-so-dead brother's life insurance. With Holly Hunter.
Click	6/23 - Family man Adam Sandler obtains a remote that allows him to avoid the annoyances of life by pausing and fast forwarding time.
Dave Chappelle's Block Party	6/13 - Mostly concert footage of a free 2004 street party in Brooklyn, featuring Kanye West, Erykah Badu, The Fugees, and other rap groups.
The Devil Wears Prada	6/30 - Based on the book, Anne Hathaway gets her first real job under tyrannical fashion industry boss Meryl Streep.
Failure to Launch	6/27 - Kathy Bates and Terry Bradshaw hire Sarah Jessica Parker to get their full grown son Matthew McConaughey to finally leave the nest.
Imagine Me & You	6/27 - Piper Perabo gets second thoughts at the alter as she's about to get married.
Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang	6/13 - Shane Black's comic Hollywood private eye mystery stars Val Kilmer and Robert Downey Jr.
Madea's Family Reunion	6/27 - Tyler Perry's sequel to "Diary of a Mad Black Woman".
Nacho Libre	6/16 - Jack Black tries to save a Mexican orphanage by becoming a 'pro' wrestler, from the director of "Napoleon Dynamite".
A Prairie Home Companion	6/09 - Director Robert Altman brings Garrison Keillor's radio show to film, starring Meryl Streep, Lilly Tomlin, and Lindsay Lohan.
Sarah Silverman: Jesus is Magic	6/06 - Footage of the comedian's hilariously politically incorrect stand up performance, with set musical pieces spliced in.

Action/Horror/Sci-Fi


16 Blocks	6/13 - Bruce Willis plays a run down cop who has to transport Mos Def to trial before other cops kill them both.
Annapolis	6/27 - James Franco struggles through the U.S. Naval Academy, in an out of the boxing ring.
Cache	6/27 - French stalker thriller starring Juliette Binoche, which one a directing award at Cannes.
The Fast and the Furious 3: Tokyo Drift	6/16 - New actors star in this sequel set in Tokyo, where the driving style is more slalom than drag race.
Firewall	6/06 - Bank thief Paul Bettany kidnaps Harrison Ford's family to force him to help bypass his own security systems.
Green Street Hooligans	6/13 - Ivy League student Elijah Wood falls in with a violent English street gang. Costarring Claire Forlani.
The Hills Have Eyes	5/19 - Remake of the 1977 horror film about a travelling couple chased by crazed subhumans.
Night Watch (Nochnoi Dozor)	6/20 - From Russia (with subtitle and dubbing options), a tale of urban vampires facing a doomsday prophecy of a clash between light and dark forces.
The Omen 666	6/06 - Remake of the 1976 horror about a couple who seem to be raising the son of Satan, starring Julia Stiles and Liev Schreiber.
Running Scared	6/06 - Low level mob guy Paul Walker loses an important gun and races to find it before the cops do.
Superman Returns	6/28 - Having taken time off to search for the remains of Krypton, Superman returns to a Metropolis different than the one he left.
Ultraviolet	6/27 - Milla Jovovich is a supersoldier in the future fighting against government forces in this effects-filled actioner.
Underworld 2: Evolution	6/06 - Kate Beckinsale and Scott Speedman fight the first vampire in this weak sequel to the vampires-vs-werewolves movie.
Waist Deep	6/23 - Reformed criminal Tyrese Gibson is forced back into crime to get his kidnapped son back from the mob.

Max's 2005 Viewing Journal
Max's 2006 Viewing Journal

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