r
trade in those pencils
and books for some quality time
by the pool and that dreaded
summer job. But save those
pennies, because you're gonna
want to drop most of them at
the movies. This summer is so
chock full of blockbusters, you
might not even get a tan.
-1-
Iu I)
STar Wars Episodeprequel we've
all been waiting for has
The Phantom Menace finally arrived. Now, an
20th Century Fox even longer time ago, in
a galaxy far, far away,
Jedi knights Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson) and Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) are pro-
tecting their home planet of Naboo. And Anakin Skywalker, a.k.a. Darth Vader (Jake Lloyd),
isn't a bad guy yet - he's just a little kid. Heck, Luke, Princess Lea, Han Solo and
Chewbacca haven't even been born yet, so we're not sure what to expect. But if predir
tions are correct, the money this baby pulls in is going to make Titanic look like a dingh.
Big Daddy
Columbia
Adam Sandler has proven he
can make just about anything
funny. So don't be surprised if his
take on fatherhood has you rolling
in the aisles. He plays a thir-
tysomething guy trying to prove to
his girlfriend that he's an actual
adult. To do so, he decides to accept custody of a preco-
cious five-year-old, and all the responsibilities that come
along with it. Watching Sandler navigate the world of pur-
ple dinosaurs, sleep deprivation and bed-wetting will
remind you once again how someone can turn juvenile
bathroom humor into a multi-million-dollar commodity.
Wild, Wild West
Warner Bros.
It's summer, so you had to know Will Smith would be
saving the world. Only this time, there aren't any aliens. In
this film version of the late '60s TV show of the same
name, Smith and Kevin Kline play two buddies trying to stop
the evil Dr. Loveless (Kenneth Branagh) from killing Ulysses
S. Grant in the mid-1800s. Salma Hayek saddles up as the
love interest of both Smith and Kline.
The Runaway Bride
Paramount
We knew if we waited long enough, Julia Roberts and
Richard Gere would do another movie together. And by
golly, we were right. Roberts plays an indecisive woman
who's left several grooms at the altar, and Gere plays
the newspaper reporter who decides to write about her
sad state of affairs. When he writes a scathing piece
about her life, the two meet and sparks fly. Just what
we'd expect from our favorite Pretty couple.
Austin Powers:
The Spy Who d M
New Line
Mike Myers is back as Austin Powers, that mod
international man of mystery. And this time, he travels
back in time to London during the swingin' '60s to face
off with his arch nemesis Dr. Evil. With the help of an
American CIA hottie, Felicity Shagwell (Heather
Graham), Powers shags his way through this groovy
romp. This is one shagadelic summer flick that's guar-
anteed to make you horny, baby.
South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut
Paramount
Well, hidey-ho! Kenny, Kyle, Stan and Cartman are
making their way to the big screen. Trey Parker and Matt
Stone haven't been too successful thus far in scoring at
the box office (think Baseketball and Orgazmo), but this
is South Park, after all. Who knows, maybe this flick will
solve the problem that's been plaguing us since the
series' inception - why doesn't Kenny ever stay dead?
Three to Tango
Warner Bros.
Neve Campbell has proven her ability to carry a feature
film. Matthew Perry hasn't. But perhaps together they can
pull it off. Perry plays an architect pretending to be gay in
order to be near his secret crush (Campbell). Problem is,
she's the mistress of his powerful boss (Dylan
McDermott), and if
Perry wants to keep
his job, he needs to 5
keep up the charade.
Dylan McDermott
plays the powerful
boyfriend.
fight Club
20th Century Fox
Don't be fooled by the babe-factor in this dark drama.
Sure, Edward Norton and Brad Pitt are usually pretty
easy on the eyes, but we're betting they won't be so
babelicious once director David Fincher (Seven) get.
done with them. Set in the near future, this film chror4
cles an underground society where young men relieve
their frustrations by beating each other to a pulp. Ouch!
Myslty Men
Universal
A slew of our favorite
comedians - Ben
Stiller, Paul Reubens
(Pee Wee Herman),
William H. Macy, Hank
Azaria and Janeane
Garofalo - play superhero wanna-bes who are called o0
to save their city when the real superhero (Greg Kinnear)
has been kidnapped. This comedy, based on Bob
Burden's Dark Horse, comic is even funnier when you
consider the villains names are Mr. Furious and Tony
Pompadour, a talented but evil disco king. And you can
bet Stiller is thanking his lucky stars he landed this role
- superhero costumes usually don't have any zippers.
Eyes Wide Shut
Warner Bros.
The late Stanley Kubrick's last film took about a zil-
lion years to complete because of extensive re-shoots,
which usually isn't a very good sign. But the secrecy
surrounding the plot - all we know is that two hot psy-
chiatrists (Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman) sleep with
their patients - has Hollywood buzzing. We can't wait
to find out if it lives up to the hype.
12 www.umagazine.com " April/May 1999 .