The End of Summer Movies
For moviegoers, the fall season is historically the worst part of the year, rivaled only by the weeks between mid-January and early March, between the post-Christmas haze and the coming summer movies season.
These are the two dumping grounds of the cinematic fiscal year, where the also-rans, wanna-bes and never-gonna-happens are cast off into the wilderness, blindly flailing about, hoping that their movie is slightly less a disaster than the other guys’ efforts in an attempt to pull in a little more cash for studio coffers.
But things seem to be changing; namely, the business model. It wasn’t that long ago that August was the summer’s butt, home to the stuff that wasn’t good enough for May, June or July. In 2014, arguably the two biggest movies of the year to date, “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” and “Guardians of the Galaxy” (not so coincidentally part of the Marvel Studios family) were released in early April and August, respectively. Last year another Marvel tentpole, “Thor: The Dark World,” was unleashed in November. A couple of years from now, “Superman V. Batman: Dawn of Justice,” will bow in late March.
The seasons are growing, melding together. Cinematic climate change is upon us. The point of all of this? There’s hope in the multiplex. You may not be doomed to another “Resident Evil” sequel, or some badly-acted romance or another Liam Neeson vehicle that isn’t titled “The Grey” or “Taken” (although, oops, there is one this year). So what are you watching this fall?
Here are a few suggestions after the end of summer movies:
The Maze Runner (Sept. 19): We like our YA fiction crammed full of dystopic futures, squinting teen-mag heartthrobs and gimmicky, overly complex battlefields, thank you very much. Check, check and check.
A Walk Among the Tombstones (Sept. 19): Neeson plays a guy with a particular set of skills that he’s about to pass along to some bad guys who screwed with his family.
The Equalizer (Sept. 26): Denzel Washington stars in this film version of the 80s TV show, playing an ex-CIA commando who comes out of retirement, “Man on Fire” style.
Gone Girl (Oct 5): David Fincher directs this adaptation of a novel starring Ben Affleck as a man whose wife goes missing. Early sympathy from the media soon turns to suspicion.
Interstellar (Nov. 7): The last time Christopher Nolan made a movie without a guy wearing a batsuit, he made “Inception.” Re-read that last sentence and ask me if you need any more information before deciding whether to see this movie.
Horrible Bosses 2 (Nov. 28): Did we need a sequel to this movie? Not really. Did we need the moment from this movie’s trailer between Jason Bateman and Jennifer Aniston where he recuses himself to use the restroom? Why yes, we did, thank you very much. 
