Who ya gonna call? Summer films blast onto screens

Years ago, a joke went around that if the summer movie season keeps moving earlier and earlier, one day it will start in March.

This year, it sorta happened with the release of what could be considered Hollywood's first official summer tentpole, “Batman v Superman.”

Summer '16 has more to offer than its expected supply of superhero adventures, sequels and remakes.

I'm looking forward to the local story “Southside With You,” about Barack and Michelle Obama's first date. I'm also anxious to see how Oscar winner Mark Rylance does with “The BFG,” reuniting with his “Bridge of Spies” director Steven Spielberg.

Summer films have a bit of everything for most everybody this year. Here is a tentative schedule, subject to last-minute release-date changes. Enjoy!

May 20

<b>“The Angry Birds Movie”</b> - Jason Sudeikis supplies his vocal chords to Red, a bird who ruffles the feathers of his winged friends when green pigs come in and hog their island home. A 3-D animated comedy with the voice talents of Josh Gad and Danny McBride.

<b>“The Lobster”</b> - David (Colin Farrell) lives in a society where single people have 45 days to find true love, or else they are turned into the animal of their choice and released into the woods. He joins a rebel faction, The Loners, who operate on a complete rejection of romance. But then he meets Rachel Weisz. You know where that's headed. An absurdist comedy, of course.

<b>“Love & Friendship”</b> - Whit Stillman's film about a beautiful young widow who decides to secure a husband for herself and a future for her daughter,

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“Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising”</b> - Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne reprise their roles as new parents who have even more problems with the university Greek system than before. Zac Efron rejoins them.

<b>“The Nice Guys”</b> - No, they're not. Blue-collar guys Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe bumble their way through an R-rated urban jungle of porn and smog in the City of Angels to find a kidnapped girl while investigating the murder of a triple-X film star. From Shane Black.

<b>“Song of Lahore”</b> - A documentary on Pakistan's Sachal Jazz Ensemble, who wins international recognition after decades of being forced underground by dictators and religious extremists.

May 27

<b>“Alice Through the Looking Glass”</b> - Director James Bobin takes over from Tim Burton and his 2010 release “Alice in Wonderland” with original cast members Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter and Anne Hathaway reprising Lewis Carroll's iconic characters.

<b>“Maggie's Plan”</b> - Greta Gerwig stars in Rebecca Miller's social comedy about an ethical idealist who falls for a very married writer (Ethan Hawke), but after a few years and a baby, decides maybe things should go back the way they were. With Julianne Moore as Hawke's self-centered first wife.

<b>“Weiner”</b> - Elyse Steinberg and Josh Kriegman direct a documentary on former U.S. Rep/ Anthony Weiner's catastrophic race for mayor of New York City in 2013.

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“X-Men: Apocalypse”</b> - Advance reviews for this epic chapter in the Marvel universe aren't good. Hollywood reporter calls it “a bloated if ambitious attempt to shuffle as many mutants and specially gifted characters as possible into a story of a resurrected god ready to take over the world.” Oscar Isaac joins the cast as Apocalypse, with Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence and James McAvoy.

June 3

<b>“Me Before You”</b> - A small-town English woman (Emilia Clarke) falls for a wealthy, paralyzed Londoner (Sam Claflin) who has hired her as his caretaker. Adapted from the best-selling novel by Jo Jo Moyes.

<b>“Pele: Birth of a Legend”</b> - A dramatized account of the life of soccer great Pele, a kid from the slums of Brazil.

<b>“Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping”</b> - Musical digital-shorts artists Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone star in a comedy about singer/rapper Conner4Real (Samberg) whose popularity crashes when his second album flops.

<b>“Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows”</b> - Wait. Haven't they already been out for a while? Like since 1990? New York is again menaced by another one of those vague dangerous threats and it's up to the Turtles to give the bad guys shell. Stephen Amell plays vigilante Casey Jones (what? The Turtles aren't vigilantes?) along with Megan Fox as April O'Neil and Tony Shalhoub as Splinter.

June 10

<b>“Blackway”</b> - A young woman (Julia Stiles) returns to her hometown and attracts the ire of a crazed ex-cop turned violent crime lord (Ray Liotta).

<b>“The Conjuring 2”</b> - If it's as good as the first, we're in for a treat. Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga reprise their roles as real-life ghostbusters Ed and Lorraine Warren. Here, they come to the aid of a single mother menaced by evil forces. Directed again by James Wan, so it will be scary.

<b>“Now You See Me 2”</b> - But the first one wasn't really worth seeing, was it? Daniel Radcliffe goes villain by forcing the Four Horsemen (Woody Harrelson, Dave Franco, Jesse Eisenberg and Lizzy Caplan) to pull off a major heist. Hey, shouldn't they be called the Four Horsepersons?

<b>“Puerto Ricans in Paris”</b> - Fish out of water among the fashion elite of Paris, New York cops Luis and Eddie (Luis Guzmán and Edgar Garcia) go undercover in a cavalcade of disguises to crack the case of the bootlegged handbag and return home inspired by the most romantic city in the world.

<b>“Traded”</b> - In 1880s Kansas, sharpshooter turned rancher Clay Travis (Michael Paré) heads off to rescue his teenage daughter, sold to an underground sex ring in Dodge City. With Kris Kristofferson and his daughter, Kelly Kristofferson.

<b>“Warcraft”</b> - From Duncan Jones, director of the culty sci-fi drama “Moon,” comes the fantastic story of how orc and humanoids didn't get along when they first met each other. Until they had to band together to fight a common threat.

June 17

<b>“DePalma”</b> - Noah Baumbach and Jake Paltrow present a documentary on the life and works of filmmaker Brian DePalma, who gave us such films as “Carrie,” “Dressed to Kill,” “Blow Out,” “Scarface” and “The Untouchables.”

<b>“Central Intelligence”</b> - Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart play former high school classmates (one's now a CIA agent, the other an accountant) who wind up on a secret mission to stop nefarious forces from obtaining spy satellite information.

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“Finding Dory”</b> - Aurora kid Hayden Rolence supplies the voice of Nemo in this sequel to Pixar's wonderful animated fantasy “Finding Nemo.” Dory (Ellen Degeneres) does the E.T. thing by wanting to go home and find her family. Kaitlin Olson plays Destiny (metaphor alert?), Dory's childhood whale shark BFF.

<b>“Genius”</b>­ - A drama about the complex relationship between the world-renowned book editor Maxwell Perkins (Colin Firth as the man who discovered F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway) and the larger-than-life literary giant Thomas Wolfe (Jude Law). With Nicole Kidman and Laura Linney.

June 24

<b>“Free State of Jones”</b> - Matthew McConaughey plays Mississippi farmer Newt Knight, who led a rebellion of farmers and slaves who forced their home county (Jones County) to secede from the Confederacy. Starring Keri Russell and the amazing Gugu Mbatha-Raw.

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“Independence Day: Resurgence”</b> - Twenty years after thwarting an alien invasion, the Earth comes under attack once more, prompting snarky Jeff Goldblum and somnambulant Bill Pullman to come out of retirement. Any bets the Golden Gate Bridge will be destroyed ... again?

<b>“The Neon Demon”</b> - A new horror thriller from Nicolas Winding Refn (of “Drive” credit) concerns an aspiring model (Elle Fanning) whose youth and vitality are devoured by mysterious beauty-obsessed women.

June 29

<b>“The Shallows”</b> - A great white shark attacks surfer girl Nancy (Blake Lively), now stranded in the water only 200 yards from shore. Forget a bigger boat. She would take any size. A survival thriller.

July 1

<b>“The BFG”</b> - Oscar-winning actor Mark Rylance plays the BFG (Big Friendly Giant), reuniting with director Steven Spielberg on this fantasy inspired by Roald Dahl's book about a lonely girl (Ruby Barnhill) whisked away to a magical land.

<b>“Equals”</b> - Stop me if you've heard this one before. A utopian futuristic society eliminates all crime and violence by genetically erasing human emotions. So why do Kristen Stewart and Nicholas Hoult feel tingly all over when they get together?

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“The Legend of Tarzan”</b> - David Yates' reboot puts the man-ape (Alexander Skarsgard) in London, until he swings back to his jungle home threatened by a Belgian bad guy (and they don't get badder than Christoph Waltz).

<b>“Our Kind of Traitor”</b> - This John le Carre story-based drama shows what happens when an ordinary English couple, Perry (Ewan McGregor) and Gail (Naomie Harris), befriend a flamboyant, charismatic Russian (Stellan Skarsgård) who works as a money launderer for the Russian mafia. Trouble.

<b>“The Purge: Election Year”</b> - No, not a doc on the GOP, but a second sequel. After opting not to kill the man who killed his own son, former police sergeant Barnes becomes security head for a presidential election front-runner, and she vows to eliminate the Purge!

<b>“Swiss Army Man”</b> - From the fantastical imagination of Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert comes the strange tale of Hank (Paul Dano), who is stranded on a deserted island. One day, a corpse named Manny (Daniel Radcliffe) washes up on shore and the two become fast friends. Seriously.

July 8

<b>“Life, Animated”</b> - This documentary introduces us to Owen Suskind, who was unable to speak as a child until his family discovered they could communicate with him by immersing themselves in Disney animated films.

<b>“Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates”</b> - Two brothers (Zac Efron and Andrew Devine) place an online ad to find dates for a wedding. Anna Kendrick and Aubrey Plaza are the answers to their worst nightmares.

<b>“Our Little Sister”</b> - After the death of their estranged father, three sisters - Sachi, Yoshino and Chika - enjoy a renewed sense of family when they meet their shy teenage half-sister.

<b>“The Secret Life of Pets”</b> - The arrival of a new pooch (voiced by Eric Stonestreet) spells anxiety for Max the dog (Louis C.K.) in his Manhattan apartment. The fifth animated feature film collaboration between Illumination Entertainment and Universal Pictures.

July 13

<b>“The Infiltrator”</b> - Based on the true story of undercover U.S. Customs agent Robert Mazur (Bryan Cranston), who traded in his mob connections to become the confidant to scores of international underworld leaders and infiltrated the globe's largest cartels.

July 15

<b>“Captain Fantastic”</b> - Viggo Mortensen stars as a dad raising his six kids in the forests of the Pacific Northwest, putting them through a rigorously physical and intellectual education until a tragic death forces the family to enter the outside world.

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“Ghostbusters”</b> - This one's for the girls as Plainfield native Melissa McCarthy joins Kristin Wiig, Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones to protect New York from evil spirits and spectral villains in Paul Feig's reboot of the 1984 comedy classic. Chris Hemsworth plays the Ghostbusters' receptionist.

July 22

<b>“Ice Age: Collision Course”</b> - What? Is “Ice Age” becoming a harbinger of global warming? Just when Sid the Sloth (John Leguizamo) finally attracts two girlfriends (Melissa Rauch and singer Jessie J), a global meltdown is on the way.

<b>“Into the Forest”</b> - A continentwide blackout spells danger for two sisters (Ellen Page and Evan Rachel Wood) living in the Pacific Northwest with their kindly father. Then come the shocking and violent confrontations in an increasingly treacherous world.

<b>“Lights Out”</b> - Skyrocketing actress Teresa Palmer stars in another one of those PG-13-rated horror films, this one about a bloodthirsty supernatural entity preying on a woman and her little half-brother. Will she be able to crack a mysterious family secret in time?

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“Star Trek Beyond”</b> - “Fast and Furious” director Justin Lin takes control of Paramount Pictures' USS Enter-Franchise. Spock and Bones (Zachary Quinto and Karl Urban) become separated from Capt. Kirk (Chris Pine) while Scotty (Simon Pegg) does his best to promote intercultural and interspecies communication with an exotic alien (Sofia Boutella).

July 29

<b>“Bad Moms”</b> - Three stressed moms liberate themselves from domestic responsibilities by going on a wild binge in an R-rated comedy from the writers of “The Hangover.” Mila Kunis, Kristen Bell, Christina Applegate and Jada Pinkett Smith star.

<b>“Indignation”</b> - A Jewish kid (Logan Lerman) from Jersey gets a scholarship to a small, conservative Ohio college in 1951 where he falls for beautiful classmate (Sarah Gadon) and clashes with a tough, imposing dean (the legendary Tracy Letts). Based on the novel by Philip Roth.

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“Jason Bourne”</b> - The original Jason, Matt Damon, is re-Bourne in the next chapter of the ex-CIA operative's memory-challenged life. Paul Greengrass returns to direct his third Bourne-again thriller, with returning star Julia Stiles, plus Alicia Vikander, Tommy Lee Jones and Vincent Cassel.

Aug. 5

<b>“The Founder”</b> - A drama based on the true story of how Illinois salesman Ray Kroc (Michael Keaton) met Mac and Dick McDonald in 1950s Southern California and managed to create a billion-dollar empire called McDonald's.

<b>“Gleason”</b> - A documentary about Steve Gleason, the former New Orleans Saints defensive back who discovers his wife is expecting their first child soon after he's been diagnosed with ALS - and given a life expectancy of two to five years.

<b>“Nine Lives”</b> - A workaholic billionaire (Kevin Spacey), estranged from his family, wakes up after an accident to discover he's trapped in the body of a cat named Mr. Fuzzypants. And he's been adopted by his own 11-year-old daughter. Christopher Walken plays an eccentric cat store owner, of course. With Jennifer Garner.

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“Suicide Squad”</b> - Perhaps the most anticipated genre movie of the summer as super villains Joker (Jared Leto), Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), Captain Boomerang (Jai Courtney), Deadshot (Will Smith) and other disturbed personalities become de facto heroes against a common threat.

Aug. 12

<b>“Florence Foster Jenkins”</b> - Meryl Streep plays a wealthy New York heiress who wants to be an accomplished opera singer. But she can't sing. At all. Stephen Frears directs this comic drama, co-starring Hugh Grant.

<b>“Pete's Dragon”</b> - This remake of Walt Disney's 1977 fantasy stars Bryce Dallas Howard, Oakes Fegley, Wes Bentley, Karl Urban and Robert Redford in the story of a lad who claims a dragon as his best bud.

<b>“Sausage Party”</b> - Promoted as “the first R-rated CG animated movie,” Seth Rogen and James Franco re-team in a comedy about a rebel sausage who leads his produce friends on an existential adventure through the supermarket. But they must return to the shelves before the store reopens. Featuring (take a deep breath) Kristen Wiig, Jonah Hill, Bill Hader, Michael Cera, Danny McBride, Craig Robinson, Paul Rudd, Nick Kroll, David Krumholtz, Edward Norton and Salma Hayek.

<b>“Spectral”</b> - A horror/action thriller about soldiers contending with a supernatural enemy. Starring Emily Mortimer and James Badge Dale.

Aug. 19

<b>“Ben-Hur”</b> - Actor Jack Huston steps into the mighty big sandals of Northwestern grad Charlton Heston to play the titular hero in Timur Bekmambetov's ambitious remake of the classic tale of a prince accused of treason and placed into slavery. He escapes and seeks revenge but doesn't count on running into Jesus Christ on his way to vengeance. Will this be able to top the impressive chariot race in William Wyler's 1959 classic?

<b>“Hell or High Water”</b> - During the twilight of the American west, two brothers (Chris Pine and Ben Foster) rob banks foreclosing on their family land. Until a foul-mouthed Texas ranger (Jeff Bridges) catches up to them.

<b>“Kubo and the Two Strings”</b> - Charlize Theron, Ralph Fiennes, Rooney Mara, George Takei and Matthew McConaughey head the voice cast in this animated epic action-adventure about a vengeful spirit that storms down from the heavens to enforce an age-old vendetta.

<b>“War Dogs”</b> - Jonah Hill and Miles Teller as laid-back stoners who accidentally become international arms dealers? What's not to like? Based on a Rolling Stone article, so it must be real. Co-starring Bradley Cooper.

Aug. 26

<b>“Don't Breathe”</b> - Thieves break into the house of a wealthy blind man, thinking they'll get away with the perfect heist. They're wrong because this movie is produced by “Evil Dead” director Sam Raimi.

<b>“Hands of Stone”</b> - Robert DeNiro in another boxing movie? Yes, but this one is the fact-based story of Roberto Duran (Edgar Ramirez), the Panamanian fighter who started in 1968 as a 16 year-old and retired at 50.

<b>“Mechanic: Resurrection”</b> - Arthur Bishop (Jason Statham) returns as the Mechanic in the sequel to the underwhelming 2011 action thriller. Here, a cunning woman (Jessica Alba) forces him to return to the life of an assassin. He must complete a series of impossible assassinations of the most dangerous men in the world. Or else, what?

<b>“Southside With You”</b> - The story of Barack and Michelle Obama's first date in 1989 when a young law firm associate (Parker Sawyers) woos a lawyer (Tika Sumpter) during a daylong trip that includes a visit to the Art Institute of Chicago, a screening of Spike Lee's “Do the Right Thing” and the ice cream parlor where they shared a first kiss.

Also scheduled:

<b>“The Blackcoat's Daughter”</b> - An unseen evil force menaces two girls (Kiernan Shipka and Lucy Boynton) stuck at their isolated prep school over winter break. Maybe they can get a jump on that research paper. With Emma Roberts, Lauren Holly and James Remar.