As I type these words, it’s early August 2025 and the sun is shining here in the UK. It’s been a surprisingly good summer, which seemed to begin sometime around April (we apparently skipped spring this year).
Summer is a particular highlight because a.) there’s a bit of sunshine, something we Brits are usually in short supply of, and b.) it’s blockbuster movie season. From around May until the back-end of August there is an avalanche of top titles hitting cinemas and streaming, and for cinephiles it all gets rather exciting.
For a tin-pot film critic such as myself, it also means a rather busy time keeping track of all the tentpole releases. From the arrival of Marvel’s Thunderbolts* right through to the debut of The Toxic Avenger, the release schedule is stacked with notable films to review.
Is it a fun job? Yes, and you’ll get no complaints from me – but the summer season is a busy one.
If I’m not at the cinema watching one film, I’m usually at home watching another on streaming. Between films and popcorn consumption my eyes and mouth get little rest.
So, with this in mind, today I thought it would be fun to share some thoughts on this summer’s releases; thoughts on the way blockbuster season tends to run; and some general thoughts and musings in between.
Now, as mentioned above, the summer blockbuster season began with the release of Thunderbolts*, which hit screens in May. The film got things off to a cracking start, which continued with the release of the enjoyable Final Destination: Bloodlines, as well as the hugely entertaining Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning.
Do I think this will be the final Mission: Impossible movie like the title suggests? Nah, probably not.
I expect we’ll see a significant pause in the franchise for now, so that Tom Cruise can go off and work on other projects, but I would be surprised if there wasn’t more further down the line. Perhaps in ten years.
However, don’t expect future instalments to have as much money thrown at them. The budgets have been getting rather high on the M:I films, something Paramount Pictures will be more than aware of, so a less lavish affair might be what we get next time around.
Anyway, back to the release schedule and May also saw the arrival of Lilo & Stitch, The Phoenician Scheme, and Karate Kid: Legends. Plus streaming gave us Fear Street: Prom Queen on Netflix, and Fountain of Youth on AppleTV+.
Of all the movies released during May, I have already picked up Thunderbolts* and Final Destination: Bloodlines on disc (the retail release of films these days is super-fast), so they will be getting a re-watch shortly. Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning will also be added to the disc pile once the film hits retail, although this isn’t until October in the UK.
All-in-all, not a bad May. At this point in the year, studios are releasing one top tier title a week, so from a critic’s point of view, it’s busy but manageable.
Sliding into June, and things started off well with Clown in the Cornfield and Dangerous Animals, before taking a nosedive with the Al Pacino supernatural snooze-fest, The Ritual. I caught this one during a mid-afternoon screening, and had to do my best not to nap through the whole thing.
The Ritual is not the worst film this summer, but boy, it’s not far off! Definitely a dud of the season.
Then came the perfectly fine Ballerina, as well as the equally OK How to Train Your Dragon (both alright, but neither outstanding), before the arrival of the excellent survivalist drama, 28 Years Later. This one was a firm favourite with me, and one of my top picks from this summer.
I shall be revisiting this one on disc in the not-too distant future. I would have loved to watch it again on the big screen, but June is when things really get hectic, with lots of big titles coming thick and fast, so once again it is a timing issue.
I should mention Clown in the Cornfield and Dangerous Animals will also be revisited in due course. Dangerous Animals is getting a disc release shortly, while I believe Clown in a Cornfield is heading to Shudder, so I’ll probably re-watch over Halloween.
From here it was onto a so-so film in the shape of Disney-Pixar’s Elio, before the surprise of the summer arrived: the Brad Pitt-starring F1. I have zero interest in Formula 1, so I did not expect to care for this one, but it was a gem of the season.
Definitely one of those films where I came out of the screening feeling pleased with what was on offer. F1 largely flew under the radar until its release, but it has made an impact since (watch it if you haven’t already).
And then onto the final big screen blockbuster of June which was M3GAN 2.0 – easily the most divisive film of the summer. M3GAN 2.0 is either destined to go down as a bizarre misstep or it’ll be a cult classic, and only time will tell which way the pendulum swings.
That said, I liked it better than most critics, so it certainly didn’t rub me up the wrong way like it did some audiences. I appreciate what it was attempting to do, even if it didn’t necessarily achieve its goal.
Only problem is, this film took a risk which didn’t pay off, and this often tells studios to take less risks in the future. Shame.
Anyway, over to streaming where Disney+ offered up the enjoyable Predator: Killer of Killers, while Amazon provided the middle-of-the-road comedy, Deep Cover. Meanwhile, it was Netflix who gave us the best streaming film of the month and the best streaming film of the summer, with the animated musical adventure movie, KPop Demon Hunters.
I said it at the time of release and I’ll reiterate it now, KPop Demon Hunters should have received a theatrical release. I understand the Netflix model is to drive subscribers to the streaming platform, but come on, this movie would have been a big financial hit had it played in cinemas.
Although, this would have meant another trip to the cinema for me, and as I already felt like I had moved into my local cinema in June, watching this one at home did help with my schedule. And yep, I do have a schedule for the summer season. There are too many big movies out during this period not to have a schedule.
FYI, June into July is where the summer season tends to be at its busiest. This is also the point during the year where I eat a lot of popcorn.
Into July, and the month got underway with Jurassic World: Rebirth, which was fun, but a bit too much of retread of what came before in the Jurassic Park/World franchise. That said, Rebirth has been a big financial hit this summer (easily one of the success stories of the year), and I have no doubt I’ll revisit the movie when it arrives on streaming – something I didn’t do with the two previous Jurassic World films.
From here there was a couple of duds on streaming with the awful The Old Guard 2 and the generic Heads of State, before Superman flew into cinemas. This one went down well with audiences, I liked it too, and I ate more popcorn while watching this film.
Heck, not only that, but I came home with one of the Superman popcorn tins that were being sold by the cinema chains. Popcorn tins and cups have been a big side earner for cinema chains in recent years, and in 2025 there seems to be an abundance of them.
I swear, every week during the summer there is a new tin or cup on offer, all with wild prices. However, they all seem to be selling well, so the market appears to be strong for these right now.
The month then continued with Smurfs (another so-so offering); I Know What You Did Last Summer (another dud); and Amazon’s dire War of the Worlds. Thankfully, the back-end of July was saved by The Fantastic Four: First Steps and Bring Her Back – two films which I rated highly.
In fact, The Fantastic Four is the only film of the summer I will revisit on the big screen. I don’t tend to do repeat viewings over the summer, as I don’t have time, but The Fantastic Four is a film I am returning to (this week, no less)!
This screening will be accompanied by a ridiculous amount of snacks.
Moving into August, and the month has started off well with The Naked Gun, which is another surprise of the summer and one which brought plenty of laughs. I don’t think anyone expected this one to be quite as funny as it proved to be, so this has been something of a treat for summer 2025.
And then moving forward, the remainder of the summer season includes Freakier Friday, Weapons, Nobody 2, and The Toxic Avenger. These last two arrive during the dying days of the season, when kids are going back to school, parents are back at work etc, so we shall see how they shape up.
As a general rule, the last couple of weeks of August don’t tend to produce the best films, but they can throw out a few curve balls. If nothing else, this is a part of the season where things slow, and the busiest part of the summer is over, which means I get to rest my fingers from all that typing/reviewing and audiences have time to catch up on everything.
Reviewing films over the summer tends to go like this:
- May, busy.
- June, oh, dear Lord, what’s going on? What day is this?!
- July, are we still in June? Have the months merged?!
- August, things are returning to normal. And breathe.
The good thing is, despite the hectic nature of the season, summer at the cinema is always fun, and it’s my favourite time to head to the flicks. There’s always a point during the period where you can open the local cinema listings, pick a day, and find a bunch of top titles on offer!
Sure, some of the films turn out to be duds (it always happens), but there have been some great films this summer, including 28 Years Later, The Fantastic Four: First Steps, and Bring Her Back. Superman was good, as was Thunderbolts*, and F1, KPop Demon Hunters, and The Naked Gun were pleasant surprises.
So yeah, that’s pretty much how my summer has gone. I’ve been knee-deep in movies and popcorn.
Do my eyes need a rest? Probably. Will they get one? Doubtful, it’s almost time for the spooky season!
Alex
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Thank you for taking the time to read this Movie Reviews Special on It’s A Stampede!. For more reviews, check out the recommended reads below.
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