By Chris Kavan - 06/02/16 at 07:42 AM CT
So many movies with such long titles this week. As such, we have another blockbuster sequel looking to set itself apart from all the other blockbusters sequels (or, in the case of Through the Looking Glass - the complete opposite) currently in theaters. We also have a comedy from Lonely Island spoofing boy bands and pop music in general and finally an uplifting drama for all the women out there. With X-Men kind of sputtering at the box office, it's anyone's box office to take this weekend.
TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: OUT OF THE SHADOWS I have yet to see the 2014 rebooted original that had Michael Bay's signature all over it, despite the fact he only produced and didn't direct it. Still, the film made $191.2 million domestic and nearly $500 million worldwide - good enough to greenlight this sequel. Our Turtle friends are once again out to protect their beloved New York City, but the villains are piling up. Besides Shredder and his foot gang, they will have to deal with disgraced scientist/mad genius Baxter Stockman - and his demented idea to give a couple of thugs called Bebop and Rocksteady some mutations of their own. Oh, and an extra-dimensional being known as Krang is going to crash the party too. Don't worry - the Turtles have some help in... a reporter and a dude who uses hockey as a weapon. Yes, Megan Fox is back, as is Will Arnett, Tony Shalhoub (as Splinter) and Alan Ritchson, Pete Ploszek, Jeremy Howard and Noel Fisher as the Turtles. Somehow mad scientist screams Tyler Perry - so there you go and Brad Garrett gets to play Krang for some reason. Stephen Amell is our big fan of hockey, vigilante Casey Jones. Nothing about this really interests me - just like the original. But with X-Men stumbling a bit this has a very good chance of opening at the top - we'll see how things go.
From the demented minds who brought you "I'm On a Boat" and "Dick in a Box" comes the most spot-on parody ever attempted. That's right, Andy Samberg - along with a few friends Bill Hader, Will Forte, Maya Rudolph, Jimmy Fallon, Sarah Silverman, Will Arnett, Joan Cusack and Lonely Island themselves Jorma Taccone and Akiva Schaffer are here to skewer the pop music scene. That's right - conner4real (Samberg) is the worlds biggest pop sensation - until he isn't - forcing him to go to extreme lengths to get back his popularity - anything but reuniting with his old boy band, The Style Boyz. Samberg even has some actual music artists on hand - Pink, Seal, Snoop Dogg, Adam Levine, Mariah Carey, Carrie Underwood and Usher Raymond to name a few. While I don't think this comedy is quite up my alley, I wouldn't mind streaming it some day. It does look pretty hilarious and there is plenty of talent on hand. Even if it doesn't work, I'm sure it's better than anything Adam Sandler has dreamed up in the last decade or so. If you like to laugh, may as well give this one a shot.
You know I really adore Emilia Clarke on Game of Thrones. The rare empowered female role that actually is empowering. But her film career could use some revamping - Dom Hemingway, the pretty terrible Terminator Genisys and now we get Me Before You. Despite sounding like it's based on a Nicholas Sparks novel, it is not - it's based on the novel by Jojo Moyes but you could have fooled me. Small town girl relies on each day being just like the last - her job, her boyfriend she maybe doesn't love and just getting by. Meanwhile, a man is about to give up on life altogether after a motorcycle accident leaves him paralyzed and his world shrinks - a world he doesn't much like anymore. Guess what? These two meet and spark s fly and they change each others lives forever! Ah, the corny sweetness is so palpable I feel the Diabetes coming on strong - cue Wilford Brimley, stat. Kidding aside, this is going to make or break based on how many women show up, because this is clearly aimed at that audience. I doubt it will bring in that much, but, who knows, a bit of drama and romance may be just what the doctor ordered. Still, I would consider a seat in the top five a win.
That's what you have coming up Turtles, a popstar and a love story based around a disability. Hope you have a wonderful weekend, I'll be back with the results on Sunday,
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