​Here Are the Movies to See (and Skip) in Canadian Cinemas This June

BY Josiah Hughes and James KeastPublished May 29, 2018

While we're all still debating the value of Solo, Deadpool 2 and Avengers: Infinity War, the big blockbuster machine is warming up faster than the weather itself. June is a month packed with cinematic curiosities, from tear-jerking documentaries to dinosaur disaster movies.

Going to the theatre is a great way to beat the heat no matter what, but you may as well catch a good flick as you bask in the air-conditioning. As such, we've ranked the movies coming out each week to help you make the right choice. Dig into our June cinema guide below.


June 1


TOP PICK: First Reformed
Directed by Paul Schrader
Starring Ethan Hawke, Amanda Seyfried, Cedric the Entertainer



With a truly unique career that includes the screenplay for Taxi Driver, the influential tome Transcendental Style in Film and the divisive Lindsay Lohan movie The Canyons, Paul Schrader has found his best-ever work with a film about a priest facing a crisis of faith.
(ABMO)


Action Point
Directed by Tim Kirkby
Starring Johnny Knoxville, Bridgette Lundy-Paine, Susan Yeagley



Johnny Knoxville stars in both Bad Grandpa and Jackass mode, flashing back from his old age to tell tales of his 1960s adventures running the world's most dangerous amusement park. Part Meatballs, part Wet Hot American Summer and all juvenile, this has a little potential to be the dumbest funniest movie of the summer. (Paramount)


On Chesil Beach
Directed by Dominic Cooke
Starring Saoirse Ronan, Emily Watson and Billy Howle



Set in 1962 England, this film explores the issues of sexual freedom and societal pressure. That said, our review suggested the film's storytelling was skewed by its insistence on time jumps. In other words, this might be a skip. (Elevation)




June 8


TOP PICK: Hereditary
Directed by Ari Aster
Starring Toni Collette, Gabriel Byrne, Alex Wolff



Annie Graham (Collette) deals with the death of her mother by taking on her hobby of building detailed miniatures, but another, more frightening legacy may lurk in the family DNA, as both Annie and her young children being displaying truly disturbing behaviour. (Elevation)


Won't You Be My Neighbor?
Directed by Morgan Neville
Starring Fred Rogers, Joanne Rogers, Yo-Yo Ma



Low budget, simple, innocent — TV was forever changed by the arrival of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood on local Pittsburgh television. This very sweet-looking documentary chronicles Fred Rogers' evolution into an icon of children's television and ways in which he used love as a means of activism. (Focus)


Ocean's 8
Directed by Gary Ross
Starring Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Anne Hathaway, Mindy Kaling, Rihanna



A terrific cast of kickass women breathes new life into the Ocean's franchise, with Bullock as Debbie Ocean, who gets her own gang back together to rob the swanky Met Gala. Matt Damon shows up to connect this to the larger Ocean's universe, but the real draw here is the amazing cast. Expect plenty of glam outfits and savvy women outsmarting dumb, distracted men. (Warner Bros.)


Hotel Artemis
Directed by Drew Pearce
Starring Jodie Foster, Sterling K. Brown, Dave Bautista



Ocean's 8 isn't the only ensemble bank heist movie opening this week as director Drew Pearce gives us a peak inside of Hotel Artemis. This action thriller is packed with star power — its cast is rounded out by Jeff Goldblum, Sofia Boutella, Brian Tyree Henry, Charlie Day, Zachary Quinto and Jenny Slate. (Cineplex)


Hearts Beat Loud
Directed by Brett Haley
Starring Nick Offerman, Kiersey Clemons, Ted Danson, Toni Collette



Nick Offerman is a widowed record store owner who bonds with his daughter when he convinces her to collaborate on a music project together. The chemistry with rising star Kiersey Clemons and sweetness of the screenplay make this a feel-good summer movie for music fans. (Gunpowder & Sky)


June 15


TOP PICK: Incredibles 2
Directed by Brad Bird
Starring Samuel L. Jackson, Sophia Bush, Holly Hunter, Craig T. Nelson



In this no-brainer sequel, with superheroes forced underground, the Parr family are once again called into action. Except this time, it's Elastigirl (Holly Hunter) who heads out to fight crime, while Bob/Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nelson) stays home to take care of the kids. (Pixar)


Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom
Directed by J.A. Bayona
Starring Bryce Dallas Howard, Chris Pratt, Jeff Goldblum, BD Wong



Following the success of reboot/remake Jurassic World, the revived dinosaurs face extinction as a result of corporate malfeasance. Genetic engineering gets a "probably bad unless it's for a theme park or we've grown to love this particular dinosaur" message, while surely nothing will prevent more of these. Go Raptors.  (Universal)


Superfly
Directed by Director X
Starring Trevor Jackson, Jason Mitchell, Lex Scott Davis



Canadian music video icon Director X takes Superfly from Harlem to 2018 Atlanta — the epicenter of contemporary black culture, he notes — while Trevor Jackson moves from Black-ish/Grown-ish to the titular pimp. The hair, the women, the money, the cars — it's all in place here. If the 2000 Shaft reboot had been more successful, this certainly would have come much sooner. (Sony)


Tag
Directed by Jeff Tomsic
Starring Jeremy Renner, Jon Hamm, Jake Johnson, Annabelle Wallis, Isla Fisher, Hannibal Buress



Based on a true story (as the promos shout), Tag is about a group of grown men who've been playing the same game of tag for 30 years. They finally decide to finally take down their undefeated member (Jeremy Renner) who wants to give it up. Like The Hangover, but with a premise that might include women. (Warner)






June 29


TOP PICK: Sicario 2: Day of the Soldado
Directed by Stefano Sollima
Starring Josh Brolin, Benicio Del Toro, Catherine Keener



Denis Villeneuve's Sicario was conclusively bloody, but its deep dive into the seedy world of Mexican drug cartels was too irresistible for the studio not to make more. Considering the fact that Benicio Del Toro and Josh Brolin are both returning, this just might be one of those rare sequels that justifies its own existence. (Sony)

Uncle Drew
Directed by Charles Stone III
Starring Kyrie Irving, Tiffany Haddish, Nick Kroll, Lil Rel Howery



After getting frustrated with the kids of today, and seeking to recapture his streetball glory from the '70s, Uncle Drew (current NBA superstar Kyrie Irving in old-age makeup), gets his old team back together to challenge at New York's legendary Rucker Park. His "team" include a who's who of aged-up hooping legends including Shaq, Nate Robinson, Chris Webber, Reggie Miller and WNBA Hall of Famer Lisa Leslie. (Elevation)
 

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