April Preview

April Preview

As the nights (supposedly) get warmer and Spring hots up, so does the cinema. The white house under siege,   an apocalyptic sci-fi and the return of the world's coolest superhero - these are April's biggest movies in a nutshell.

Dark Skies

Director: Scott Stewart

Cast: Keri Russell, Josh Hamilton, Dakota Goyo, J.K Simmons

Release Date: April 3rd

The pitch: A middle-class American family are terrorized by demonic aliens obsessed with abducting their youngest child. 

Why you should see it: From the producers of Insidious and Sinister, Dark Skies looks to be the bog-standard creepy film of the month for those who like their paranormal horrors. Now with added birds.

Spring Breakers

Director: Harmony Korine

Cast: Selena Gomez, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Benson, James Franco

Release Date: April 5th

The pitch: Four teenage girls take a wild holiday (spring break y'all!), but when their funds run dry they attempt to rob a fast food store. When the plan goes awry, they are bailed out of custody by a mysterious gangster known as "Alien," but when things become a little too sinister for their liking they have to decide how far they want to go to have a good time.

Why you should see it: Perhaps not for fans of the High School Musical movies, Spring Breakers completes "good girl" Vanessa Hudgens' and popstar Selena Gomez's progression to adulthood. It's nothing to do with the bikinis. Honestly. 

Oblivion

Director: Joseph Kosinski

Cast: Tom Cruise, Andrea Riseborough, Nikolaj Costar-Waldau, Morgan Freeman

Release Date: April 12th

The pitch: In a movie that is totally absolutely definitely not a live-action version of Wall-E, Tom Cruise stars as Jack Harper, the last man on Earth. He works as a drone repairman, ensuring that the killing machines remain intact so that they may destroy the alien race who annihilated most of the planet. Yet when he rescues a human from a crashed spaceship, his beliefs are shaken to the core.

Why you should see it: Possibly the most visually stunning movie of the year, Oblivion is the creation of acclaimed Tron: Legacy director Joseph Kosinski who has reportedly been working on this movie for over ten years. Quality not quantity.

The Place Beyond The Pines

Director: Derek Cianfrance

Cast: Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper, Eva Mendes, Rose Byrne

Release Date: April 12th

The pitch: Motorcycle stunt rider Luke turns to a life of crime in order to support his pregnant ex-girlfriend Romina. He therefore inevitably crosses paths with Avery, a well meaning police officer struggling to support a family of his own while trying to find meaning in a world of corruption and selfishness. 

Why you should see it: Ryan Gosling reunites with Blue Valentine director Derek Cianfrance to create one of the Toronto International Film Festival's biggest movies.

Olympus Has Fallen

Director: Antoine Fugua

Cast: Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart, Rick Yune, Morgan Freeman

Release Date: April 17th

The pitch: When North Korean forces led by a vicious sociopath attack the White House, an ex-secret service agent and a handful of his former colleagues fight back to save the President and the entire United States.

Why you should see it: Gerard Butler fights back against his "rom-com" typecasting by adding another action epic to his career. As one of two movies this year depicting the destruction of the White House (the other being White House Down starring Channing Tatum), Olympus Has Fallen looks to be the best Die Hard movie that Bruce Willis never made.

Iron Man 3

Director: Shane Black

Cast: Robert Downey Jr, Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Ben Kingsley

Release Date: April 26th

The pitch: Marvel's Phase Two kicks off with Tony Stark (a.k.a Iron Man) on a personal mission of revenge when his home is destroyed by a deadly terrorist known as The Mandarin. With a revolutionary scientist also on his tail, Tony finds his genius and his heroics truly put to the test. 

Why you should see it: This is the start of the second batch of movies leading up to The Avengers 2. And with Tony deploying new technology to control multiple Iron Man suits with his mind at once, this could be the most action packed superhero movie yet. The Stark Knight Rises.

Check back to Movies Under The Microscope throughout the month for reviews of all of these films.