Box Office Smashes of Summer
BY BRIAN MARTIN
Staff Writer
As summer has concluded, the summer blockbusters have also come to a close boasting big box office numbers.
A rebooted franchise that conquered this summer was “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes,” a follow-up to the 2011 smash hit “Rise of the Planet of the Apes.” Set 10 years after the events of the first film, humanity has been all but decimated and the apes live in peace – that is until a few human survivors appear and challenge the peace. This film grossed $206.4 million.
“I’ve watched all the movies multiple times,” said Adam Robinson, freshman. “It was one of the best Planet of the Apes films to date.”
Bryan Singer returned with “X-Men: Days of Future Past,” the latest from the superhero franchise he helped bring to the big screen and united the cast of the original trilogy and “X-Men: First Class.” In this sequel, which earned $233.7 million, the X-Men sends Wolverine back in time to recruit a young Professor X to help avert an apocalyptic future where robots known as Sentinels hunt both mutant and human kind to near extinction.
“It was better than ‘First Class’ because of the special effects and a better plot,” said Patrick Mueller, freshman.
“Maleficent,” the live action adaptation of the famous “Sleeping Beauty” is not just another remake of a classic film, but it offers an entirely different spin on the universally loved story. It shows the story from the title character’s perspective. Angelina Jolie portrays the famous villain who is revealed to not be an entirely evil character, but instead a tragic figure. The Disney film brought in $239.3 million.
“It was a great movie and it proves there’s three sides of a story,” said Jonathan Weiner, freshman. “Sleeping Beauty’s side, Maleficent’s story, and the truth.”
Set a few years after the third film, “Transformers: Age of Extinction” follows the Transformers are now hunted by a U.S. government task force. Mark Wahlberg’s character along with his daughter and her boyfriend are thrown into the mix. In this film, which earned $244.8 million, the Battle of Chicago has altered human society and now everyone’s favorite Autobots are wanted fugitives.
Following the success of “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” Marvel did it again with the loveable action-comedy, “Guardians of the Galaxy.” It is not only the highest grossing film of summer with $297.2 million, but it could soon be Marvel’s highest-grossing hit. What makes this film stand out from those before it is not just the comedy and action, but the characters that make up the title team.
While the blockbusters are basically done for the year, one can look forward to big releases next summer including “Jurassic World,” “The Fantastic Four” and “Ant-Man.”
