THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2 (PG-13) Despite abundant reasons for applause, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 sabotages itself with the most dreadfully deadening second act unleashed in a major superhero movie. Andrew Garfield returns as Peter Parker/Spider-Man and has much more control of the role in his second appearance. He channels the comic’s wisecracking webslinger, especially in the smart, campy opening fight with a very Russian criminal inexplicably played by Paul Giamatti. In his second attempt, director Marc Webb supplies the franchise’s best action setpieces; both of Spidey’s fights with Jamie Foxx’s blue-headed Electro are kinetically exciting, if a bit too computer animated. But the fightless sequence after Spider-Man first defeats Electro, during which Peter reunites with old pal Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan) and searches for the answer to his OsCorp scientist father’s (Campbell Scott) disappearance, absolutely kills the movie’s silly momentum, despite Martin Csokas’ German mad Dr. Kafka. Bookending the boring are two great acts. The first could be the most charmingly innocent cinematic superhero action since Superman ’78, even if it is more Lester than Donner; the action-packed finale jams three supervillains into what can’t be more than 20 minutes. Make sure you wake up for it.

AMERICA: IMAGINE THE WORLD WITHOUT HER (PG-13) Based on the book by Dinesh D'Souza (executive producer, co-director and co-writer of 2016: Obama's America) this documentary explores the relevance of America's social and economic mistakes and the intentions of politicians' fight to restore an America of several centuries ago. The film anticipates the country's future by analyzing its past.

BOYHOOD (R) Richard Linklater may have created his own (Insert Number) Up. In his latest, extremely unique film, Linklater captures the same boy as he grows up over a 12-year period. Ellar Coltrane stars as Mason, who ages from six to 18 over the course of the film. Ethan Hawke (natch) and Patricia Arquette star as Mason’s divorced parents. For his work, Linklater won the Silver Bear for Best Director at the Berlin International Film Festival. This film sounds intriguing.

CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER (PG-13) Cap (Chris Evans) returns in his second solo outing, and it’s a slight improvement over the first, a definitively middle-of-the-pack Marvel movie. As an agent of SHIELD, Captain America, aka Steve Rogers, must adjust to his new reality and save the world, regularly. When seeds of distrust are sewn amongst members of SHIELD, Cap has to figure out if he can trust anyone, including Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) or new pal Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie). Cap’s transition to the modern world gets even more complicated once a new enemy, the Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan), turns out to be an old acquaintance. Captain America: The Winter Soldier redefines the Marvel Universe more than any of the previous features. Its effects will be felt from Avengers: Age of Ultron to ABC’s “Agents of Shield.” Credit new directors Anthony and Joe Russo (“Community”) with a lighter, more action-oriented Cap, but this series will always lack the vivacious spark Robert Downey Jr. brings to Iron Man. Kicking off the summer season earlier than ever, a big, more-fun-than-not comic book movie is what we’ve been waiting all winter for, right?

CHEF (R) With Shane Black taking over last year’s Iron Man 3, Jon Favreau hasn’t helmed a feature since 2011’s Cowboys & Aliens. He also stars in his latest, a comedy about a chef, Carl Casper, who loses his restaurant job and starts a food truck. Plus, he’s got to reunite his separated family. Favreau wrote and directed this feature that also stars Sofia Vergara, John Leguizamo, Scarlett Johansson, Oliver Platt, Bobby Cannavale, Dustin Hoffman and Robert Downey Jr. (Ciné)

DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES (PG-13) Few franchises captured my childhood imagination as much as Planet of the Apes. Caesar returns, leading his growing community of evolved apes against the human survivors of the plague that wiped out most of mankind. James Franco might not be back, but Gary Oldman, Keri Russell, Jason Clarke (Zero Dark Thirty) and Kodi Smit-McPhee should be able to collectively replace him. Matt Reeves (Cloverfield, Let Me In) replaces original director Rupert Wyatt. This flick might be my most anticipated of the summer.

DELIVER US FROM EVIL (R) Despite being another of those horror flicks based on true events (e.g. The Amityville Horror, The Conjuring, etc.), Deliver Us from Evil can boast to be the newest chiller from Scott Derrickson, who directed the more-than-competent The Exorcism of Emily Rose and Sinister. Eric Bana stars as a New York cop, Ralph Sarchie, who teams up with a priest (Edgar Ramirez) to solve the demonic possessions plaguing the city. With Olivia Munn and Joel McHale.

DIVERGENT (PG-13) Hunger Games comparisons are inevitable. While Veronica Roth’s book loses the head-to-head against Suzanne Collins’ bestseller, Neil Burger’s filmed adaptation might best Gary Ross’ original Games. In a dystopian future Chicago, humanity is divided into five factions. Right before Beatrice Prior (Shailene Woodley) is to choose the faction in which she’ll spend the rest of her life, the teenager learns she is Divergent, whatever that means. Tris, as she chooses to be called, selects Dauntless, the faction most appealing to teens as they spend most of their time yelling and jumping from trains. Oh yeah, they’re civilization’s soldiers too. After a grueling initiation during which she makes a love connection with the studly instructor, Four (Theo James), Tris learns her perfect society and all Divergents are under attack. The movie distills 500 pages of plot into a pretty decent two-plus-hour flick as scripters Evan Daugherty and Vanessa Taylor smartly eschew Tris’ inner monologues, save for her opening and closing thoughts. Burger excels at sci-fi (see Limitless) and the casting is spot on. Woodley’s the most believably unsure YA heroine seen on the big screen, and James increases Four’s appeal from the page. Bring on Insurgent.

EARTH TO ECHO (PG) Found footage is not the cinematic dead end many believe it to be, but the gambit needs a narrative purpose to be used. The trailers for Earth to Echo, an E.T.-looking wannabe that brings to mind 1988’s Mac and Me, betray no such narrative need for the found footage frame. A group of kids could help this alien named Echo return home without filming every second of it. The family-friendly sci-fi flick is the first feature from director Dave Green. 

EDGE OF TOMORROW (PG-13) Sadly, Edge of Tomorrow may be the worst advertised movie of the year; its less than evocative, unimaginative title does not help (the Japanese light novel on which it is based has the superior title, All You Need Is Kill). The trailer portrays a joyless action movie where an exo-suited Tom Cruise continuously kills the same generic aliens over and over. In reality, Cruise’s newest actioner is a charmingly funny, engagingly smart, sci-fi take on Groundhog Day. Cruise’s character, Major William Cage, is the Army’s PR guy, who winds up stripped of his rank when he balks at hyping humanity’s invasion of alien-held France. In the invasion, the untrained Cage dies but somehow wakes up to repeat the day. Fortunately, war hero Rita Vrataski (Emily Blunt) knows what’s going on and gives Cage some pointers on effective soldiering. Cage’s repeated forays into battle and subsequent improvements calls to mind the process of playing a videogame; Cage learns the enemy patterns and makes it a little farther each time. Fortunately, director Doug Liman and writers Christopher McQuarrie, Jez Butterworth and John-Henry Butterworth briskly pace the repetitive scenes, giving Cruise ample material with which to charm.

THE FAULT IN OUR STARS (PG-13) Finally, it took long enough for another wide release feature to compete with The LEGO Movie; 2014’s "best of" list so far is dominated by VOD and indies. The adaptation of John Green’s story of cancer teens in love succeeds on numerous fronts. The script by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber (they had similar success with the slightly superior The Spectacular Now) ably and completely translates Green from page to screen. Nothing of the book, neither its pain nor humor, is lost (even though a few things could have been). Ultimately, the source material is YA, meaning proclamations of endless love are de rigueur, but at least these kids might be right when they say they will never love anyone else as much. Hazel and Gus are dying, after all. Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort are matchingly resigned and hopeful. In her string of roles portraying YA protagonists, Woodley might have given her best performance. But the adults should not be forgotten. Laura Dern chisels Hazel’s mom out of some tough china, and Willem Dafoe entertains as expected (these two are a long way from David Lynch’s Wild at Heart). Come prepared to cry.

HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON 2 (PG) How to Train Your Dragon 2 aspires to make a wonderful family film and turn it into an epic. Hiccup (v. Jay Baruchel) and his dragon, Toothless, spend their days flying across the world, discovering new locations and hopefully new dragons. On one of these flights, the duo runs into a dragon trapper, Eret (v. Kit Harington, “Game of Thrones”), working for the vile dragon hunter, Drago Bloodfist (v. Djimon Hounsou). Drago’s a newly monstrous villain looking to conquer fear, dragons and humanity. Fortunately, Hiccup’s mother, Valka (v. Cate Blanchett), returns from her 20-year absence rescuing dragons. Will the dragon riders of Berk be able to stop Drago or will he take their dragons as well? Writer-director Dean DeBlois fantastically ups the ante from the first film. Still, this cartoon is kid-friendly. The antics of the other young dragon riders, voiced by Jonah Hill, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, T.J. Miller and Kristen Wiig, will entertain the youngest, while the high-flying action will wow the oldest. Without a Pixar release to challenge it, How to Train Your Dragon 2 should be the family champion at the cinema. Good thing it deserves the title better than most.

JERSEY BOYS (R) Naturally, Jersey Boys is about the music. When four young men, including angel voiced Frankie Valli (Tony winner John Lloyd Young, who, with just a feathered do, would be a perfect Steve Perry for the Journey musical biopic of which I now dream), from the wrong side of the Jersey turnpike come together, the result is the melodic harmonies of the Four Seasons. The struggles that precede and are caused by the fame come with the musical biopic territory. Egos threaten the partnership; the road threatens the families; and the money makes it all worse. But oh the music! “Sherry,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Walk Like a Man,” “Working My Way Back to You,” “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You,” “December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)” and more move the film through some of its denser, dramatic stretches. Like any film directed by Clint Eastwood, the pace is languid. The washed out photography imbues the film with a period authenticity but fails to liven up the sometimes dowdy proceedings. With so many unfamiliar actors upon whom to latch, Christopher Walken easily scores via his classic line delivery. Be sure to prepare for the post-film Four Seasons binge.

LAND HO! (R) Land Ho! is one of those movies whose trailer is a lot more convincing than its description. Two longtime friends, Mitch and Colin (Earl Lynn Nelson and Paul Eenhoorn), spontaneously travel to Iceland and have the sort of magical adventure that only two retired old men could have. Co-writer/directors Martha Stephens (an award winner for Passenger Pigeons and Pilgrim Song) and Aaron Katz (an Independent Spirit Award nominee for Quiet City) have received some nice acclaim for their collaboration.

THE LEGO MOVIE (PG) The LEGO Movie remains the year’s best wide release. The intricate, interconnected universes built by writing-directing duo Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and 21 Jump Street) has an age-defying Muppets-like appeal. When generic construction mini-figure Emmet (v. Chris Pratt, who is so devilishly appealing) gets up in the morning, he follows the day’s instructions as handed down by president/overlord Business (v. Will Ferrell). Soon, Emmet gets involved with a Matrix-ian rebel group that includes Batman (v. Will Arnett). The LEGO Movie uses its licenses (D.C., Star Wars, The Lord of the Rings) smartly as it argues for the salvation of creativity. This film reconstructs the best childhood movie memories from the building blocks that defined young and not-yet-so-old generations.

A LONG WAY DOWN (R) Nick Hornby gets adapted for the big screen again. In A Long Way Down, four people (Pierce Brosnan, Aaron Paul, Toni Collette and Imogen Poots) meet on New Year’s Eve as they all attempt to commit suicide by jumping from the same rooftop. I have not seen director Pascal Chaumeil’s Heartbreaker, but I have heard nothing but lovely things. Sadly, I cannot say the same thing for his Hornby adaptation; early reviews have been rough. 

LOONEY TUNES CLASSIC CARTOONS CinéKids celebrates the Summer Classic Movie Series with a special 16 mm print screening of classic Looney Tunes cartoons, starring Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig and the rest of the gang. UGA Film Studies professor Richard Neupert will present the films, which will be screened on Saturday, July 12 and Sunday, July 13 at 2 p.m. (Ciné)

MALEFICENT (PG) Maleficent is clearly birthed from the Alice in Wonderland strain of family fantasy, and despite being more successful than either of 2012’s dueling Snow White retellings, overdoses on style while lacking the original cartoon’s charm. Actually, Maleficent (Angelina Jolie) was a super nice overgrown fairy until an evil human broke her heart and stole her wings. When that evil human grows up to be King Stefan (Sharlto Copley, as weird as ever), Maleficent curses his infant daughter, Aurora, to the sleep of death on her 16th birthday. But being truly nice, Maleficent moons over Aurora (Elle Fanning) as she grows into a beatific imbecile. No one benefits from this ultimately unrewarding retconning of Disney’s classic Sleeping Beauty, least of all the titular evil fairy. Here, the powerfully wicked Maleficent is relegated to a petty trickster in snakeskin head wraps. Sometimes a villain’s just a villain, a baddie just a baddie. (But Disney being Disney, prepare for a whole new line of Disney villain movies. I can’t wait until Cruella, where we find Ms. de Vil was attacked by a rabid dog as a youngster, thereby justifying her plan to make a coat out of 101 Dalmatian pups.)

A MILLION WAYS TO DIE IN THE WEST (R) Seth MacFarlane heads out west for his sophomore feature comedy, and the results are predictable. MacFarlane is nothing if not unsurprising. Here’s a musical number. There’s a reference to another movie you’ll recognize. Next up, drugs! For about the length of two “Family Guy” episodes, AMWTDITW entertains. Cowardly sheep farmer, Albert, loses his pretty fiancée, Louise (Amanda Seyfriend), only to befriend and court mysterious newcomer, Anna (Charlize Theron, who is starting to resemble a better-looking Nicole Kidman). Anna is unhappily married to the most dangerous gunman in the West, Clinch (Liam Neeson, who will do anything for a paycheck now), and despite being a sharpshooter herself, needs a man to save her. As the prostitute girlfriend of Albert’s pal, Edward (Giovanni Ribisi), Sarah Silverman might get the most laughs per line delivered. Sadly, Neil Patrick Harris is wasted as a Wild West Barney Stinson. AMWTDITW is far from laughless, but the anachronistic non sequiturs consistently score more than the comic setpieces. Blown up on the big screen, MacFarlane’s weirdly smooth face (he appears to be wearing more makeup than any of his female costars) also distracts. At two hours, the percentage of laughs to groans dwindles to sub-Mendoza Line territory.

MONTY PYTHON & THE HOLY GRAIL (PG) 1975. One of the most beloved British comedies of all time, and arguably the most quoted, this cult classic juxtaposes excellently-selected exterior locations with a stream of anachronistic one-liners, non sequiturs and slapstick set pieces. This time around, the Monty Python comedy group parodies the legend of King Arthur's quest to find the Holy Grail. (Ciné)

OBVIOUS CHILD (R) In writer-director Gillian Robespierre’s feature debut, Jenny Slate, best known as Tom Haverford’s icky girlfriend, Mona-Lisa, on NBC’s “Parks and Recreation,” stars as Donna Stern, a stand-up comic facing an adult decision thanks to a sucky breakup that leads to an unexpected pregnancy from a one-night stand. The trailer looks more entertaining than the preceding description. With Gaby Hoffman, recently seen (all of her) on HBO’s “Girls,” David Cross, Richard Kind and Polly Draper. (Ciné). 

RIO 2 (G) Blu (v. Jesse Eisenberg), Jewel (v. Anne Hathaway) and the three kids leave the wilds of Rio de Janeiro for the real wilds of the Amazon, where Blu must battle his father-in-law (v. Andy Garcia). I don’t recall caring that much for the first trip to Rio, though it could have been worse. The voices of Will.i.am, Jamie Foxx, George Lopez, Tracy Morgan, Jemaine Clement, Leslie Mann, Rodrigo Santoro and Jake T. Austin return, while Garcia and Bruno Mars headline the newcomers.

SNOWPIERCER (R) Bong Joon-ho’s English language debut looks exciting. The world’s surviving humans now live on the globetrotting train, Snowpiercer, after a global warming experiment begins a new ice age that kills off nearly all life on the planet. The survivors include Chris “Captain America” Evans, Jamie Bell (the new Thing), John Hurt, Tilda Swinton, Octavia Spencer and Ed Harris. Despite rumors of Harvey Weinstein mucking with Bong’s vision, I am way more excited for this film than I am the new Transformers. (Ciné)

TAMMY (R) Melissa McCarthy headlines her hubby Ben Falcone’s directorial debut; the duo collaborated on the script. McCarthy’s Tammy hits the road with her grandmother, Pearl (Susan Sarandon), after losing her job and discovering that her husband, Greg (Nat Faxon), is a cheater. Tammy’s trailer looks more like Identity Theft 2; its description sounds much more charming. The cast includes fan favorites like Kathy Bates, Allison Janney, Dan Aykroyd, Mark Duplass, Gary Cole, Toni Collette and Sandra Oh.

THINK LIKE A MAN TOO (PG-13) Everyone returns to mine more gold from the sequel to the hit romantic comedy based on Steve Harvey’s bestseller, Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man. The gang reconvenes in Las Vegas for the wedding of Candace and Michael (Regina Hall and Terence Jenkins). What happens in Vegas shakes up everyone’s lives. With director Tim Story, original writers David A. Newman and Keith Merryman, and original cast members Michael Ealy, Jerry Ferrara, Meagan Good, Taraji P. Henson, Romany Malco, Gary Owen, Gabrielle Union and Kevin Hart all back, can this second marriage be as successful?

TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION (PG-13) Michael Bay’s fourth Transformers movie is too long, but it's less abrasive and offensive than its two immediate predecessors. A more appealing band of humans, led by Mark Wahlberg, certainly helps, as do the Dinobots that finally appear in the last 30 of the movie’s 165 minutes. Evil government, represented by Kelsey Grammer, and evil corporations, represented by Stanley Tucci, are working together with a bad Transformer named Lockdown to hunt down the remaining Autobots. When struggling inventor and single dad Cade Yeager (Wahlberg) finds an injured Optimus Prime (thankfully still voiced by Peter Cullen), he puts himself and his hot daughter (Nicola Peltz, “Bates Motel”) in the middle of the war between humanity and robotic aliens. No ambassador for cultural sensitivity, director Bay has jettisoned the overt racism and jingoism of previous adventures, leaving the franchise’s central flaw being how much time is wasted on people. Two human-only car chases is two too many. How about a prequel set on Cybertron? Ironically, a series that started as 30-minute commercials for children’s toys has transformed into near-three-hour commercials for adult toys like cars, beer and lingerie. Did I mention the Dinobots? See Edge of Tomorrow instead.

TROUBLE IN PARADISE 1932. Ciné kicks off its 2014 Summer Classic Movie Series with Ernst Lubitsch’s timeless comedy, Trouble In Paradise. Miriam Hopkins stars as Lily, a pickpocket who teams up with thief Gaston Monescu (Herbert Marshall) to rob a perfume company exec, Mariette Colet (Kay Francis). Trouble arises when Monescu falls in love with their mark and must choose between the two lovely ladies. The Summer Classic Movie Series is sponsored by UGA Film Studies, whose own Dr. Richard Neupert will introduce the film. Trouble in Paradise will be screened on Thursday, July 10 at 8 p.m. (Ciné)

22 JUMP STREET (R) 22 Jump Street steps right into the criticisms of other high profile R-rated comedy sequels like The Hangover Part II. Hot off the success of The LEGO Movie (still 2014’s best wide release), writing and directing duo Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, constantly and self-referentially acknowledge that Schmidt (Jonah Hill) and Jenko (Channing Tatum) just need to do the exact same thing again. Moving from high school to college, the undercover team must find the supplier of a dangerous new drug called WHYPHY. It’s not as easy the second time around, as Jenko finds fame on the football field and Schmidt feels left out. Lord and Miller lucratively tap into a major vein of cop satire for their buddy cop-medy. Tatum again shows he’s an underrated comedic actor, and though Hill gets his laughs, he has the sense of self to know when to play it straight. Though Ice Cube is used to much better effect as Captain Dickson becomes an integral part of the plot, supporting fun is harder to find in this sequel; “Workaholics” Jillian Bell and the Lucas Brothers are the only standouts. Stick around; the end credits contain the movie’s funniest gag

X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST (PG-13) Director Bryan Singer returns after a two-film hiatus for a successful X-venture combining the best of the first two X-Men (a heavy dose of Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine) with Matthew Vaughn’s valedictory First Class. Wolverine takes center stage as his psyche is sent back to the 1970s (cue the fashion, the automobiles, the Nixon) to convince a young, feuding Professor Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) and Magneto (Michael Fassbender) to work together to stop the end of the human and mutantkind. If you’re a fan of any X-Men outside of Wolvie, Prof X, Magneto, Beast (Marcus Hoult) and Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence), you’re out of luck. Quicksilver does get introduced (he’s also slated to appear in Avengers 2) with the film’s piece de resistance, a slow motion sequence set to Jim Croce’s “Time in a Bottle.” Quirky “American Horror Story” alum Evan Peters provides the perfect jittery teen version of the speedy mutant. Like previous Singer X-Men, the film gets a little logy in the middle, but somehow the wonky time-traveling narrative keeps traveling forward with little confusion. It only took five movies, but I am ready to give in to the Mystique agenda being pushed since the first X-movie in 2000.

YOUNG MR. LINCOLN 1939. As part of its Picturing America Film Series, the Georgia Museum of Art presents a screening of legendary filmmaker John Ford’s Young Mr. Lincoln. Henry Fonda gave one of his typically acclaimed performances as the future president, who takes on a murder case in this fictionalization of Lincoln’s early life. Granted, this film is probably more accurate than Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. Lamar Trotti was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Writing, Original Story. The film will be shown in the museum's auditorium on Thursday, July 10 at 7 p.m. (Georgia Museum of Art)