Upcoming: Brideshead Revisited

The summer ain't all about big bangs and side-splitting laughs. Sometimes we want intrigue, family drama, deep sentiment. Emma Thompson gives us this and more in Brideshead Revisited, a period drama in which she reminds us a little of Dame Judie Dench at her best. Let's hope there's enough buzz to get her a much-deserved Oscar nod when the time comes. The movie gets a limited run starting July 25. Trailer at the official Web site.

Upcoming: Step Brothers

Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly are the funniest duo in Hollywood right now. Sony Pictures released a restricted trailer for Step Brothers that brought me to tears. Let's hope the trailer isn't false advertisement (think Knocked Up, for example). The movie comes out July 25.

Upcoming: The House Bunny

Anna Faris has a knack for taking the most played out story premise and making it funny. In her new movie, The House Bunny, she plays Shelley, a former Playboy Bunny who lands on a college campus as house mother to Zeta Alpha Zeta (ala Lambda Lambda Lambda in Revenge of the Nerds). The trailer had me rolling. The release is Aug. 22.

Must See: The Dark Knight

Believe the hype. While the horribly staffed Muvico Paradise 24 prevented me from seeing the entirety of The Dark Knight, I can tell you this: The 2 hours that I saw was wholly entertaining, well acted, cohesive, tension-filled and utterly engrossing drama. Heath Ledger is absolutely transcendent as the maniacal Joker; Christian Bale is the perfect Batman/Bruce Wayne; Maggie Gyllenhaal was an absolute upgrade from Kate Holmes as Rachel Dawes; and Gary Oldman kicks major ass as Lt. James Gordon. If you enjoyed Batman Begins, The Departed, the Godfather, or any crime/action movie of note in the last 30 years, you'll definitely enjoy The Dark Knight.

Avoid: Muvico Paradise 24 in Davie, Fla.

After having driven 27.76 miles from my home in Miami, waiting in line for 20 minutes and sitting in a theater for nearly 2 hours for The Dark Knight to begin, I was forced to leave the theater when the house lights were turned on and the sound cut off two hours into the film (this after the 12:01 a.m. film didn't begin until closer to 12:30, and the first trailer commenced without sound).

The shift manager had no idea why the house lights were turned on in the theater and could not explain why the audio had gone off. Further, when confronted for an answer, he offered snide comments to customers, and demanded that I show stubs for my entire party before providing a refund to my credit card, even though I had provided him with a credit card receipt. He claimed this was an impossibility, that the "system" didn't allow him to provide refunds without stubs. However, 15 minutes later, he was able to give me a refund on the card even though I provided him with only 3 of 4 stubs. He also refused to provide vouchers for my party and I to return later to watch the film.

This is the second time that my film-going experience was ruined at this Muvico. The last time was during There Will Be Blood when the first 10 minutes of film went on without sound. When the manager was notified, it took him 10 minutes to respond. Then, when the film was rewound, the image that was projected was wholly distorted. I had to go to another theater to watch the film.

Early Buzz: The Dark Knight Delivers

The early critical buzz for Christopher Nolan's Batman movie is overwhelmingly positive. At the time of publication, a whopping 100 percent on Rotten Tomatoes.

Variety calls it "an ambitious, full-bodied crime epic of gratifying scope and moral complexity ... that satisfies every expectation raised by its hit predecessor and then some."

Rolling Stone gave the film 3 1/2 of 4 stars, saying there is "something raw and elemental at work in this artfully imagined universe." And Heath Ledger's interpretation of The Joker is not the comic relief that Jack Nicholson offered in the 1989 film, but "mad-crazy-blazing brilliant."

The Hollywood Reporter says the movie is "pure adrenaline."

If your plan is to see the movie on opening night, you may want to get your tickets ASAP. The Los Angeles Times is reporting all-night sell-outs in some major cities. According to reporter Michael Cieply: "In a frenzy, fans have bought so many late-night tickets for the July 18 opening of the next Batman movie that theaters in places like San Diego, Chicago, and even Eagan, Minn., are scheduling 6 a.m. screenings for those who can’t get in at midnight or 3 in the morning."

Upcoming: The Dark Knight

We've all seen the trailers, and we all agree: The Dark Knight looks like it is going to be a kick-ass movie. One of those rare sequels ala X-Men 2: X-Men United that completely dwarfs the original.

We recognize, even from those quick cuts, that Christian Bale and Heath Ledger are magnificent in their roles, and that the leading lady is Maggie Gyllenhaal, an actress with enough chops to match her leading man. That on film No. 2, this newest Batman franchise makes us forget about the earlier Batman movies.

While we wait around for the July 18 release, we can at least devour every bit of information about the new action-thriller out there, including a story that appears in the Los Angeles Times that tells us all about Christopher Nolan's "Knight" vision.