Summer movie lineup presents a number of potential surprises

“The Amazing Spider-Man 2” 

May 2

While some might have thought it was more of the same, the stunning visual effects and real-life chemistry of Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone as Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy made “The Amazing Spider-Man” a unique and fun reboot for the well-known origin story. It used new material from the comics and also raised enough questions — from the mystery of Peter’s parents to the truth about Oscorp — to separate it from the original trilogy. The newest trailer for the sequel is overstuffed with villains, including Electro and Rhino, but the appearance of the Green Goblin and the fate of Gwen Stacy should make any comic fan excited to see the final outcome.

“X-Men: Days of Future Past”

May 23

With Bryan Singer, the director of the first two X-Men films, returning for this installment, which is half follow-up to the series-best prequel First Class and half continuation of the regular series, I’m a little less worried about the Wolverine-centric plot and large number of characters. This could be a grand superhero spectacle or a colossal disaster. My bets are on the former.   

“22 Jump Street”

June 13

Women of the world, rejoice — Channing Tatum will return to the big screen this June. Tatum, Tatum’s abs and Jonah Hill star in “22 Jump Street,” the sequel to 2012’s “21 Jump Street,” which was a spin-off of the ‘80s TV show starring Johnny Depp. The latest installment sees the return of other notable stars, including Ice Cube, Nick Offerman and Rob Riggle. Tatum and Hill pick up where they left off, switching from undercover high school students to freshmen at a local college. Rather than high school proms, the scene shifts to dorms, dining halls and frat parties as this unorthodox bromance takes another stab at its good-cop bad-cop dynamic.

“Boyhood”

July 11

“Boyhood,” the lastest from Richard Linklater — director of the “Before” trilogy and “School of Rock” — might not make it into every multiplex — if any — this summer, but it could very well be the most ambitious nonblockbuster to see release in the coming months. Linklater’s nearly 3-hour drama took 12 years to film as he quite literally filmed the lead character, Mason (Ellar Coltrane), growing up from age 5 to 18.  With a strong supporting cast, including Patricia Arquette and Ethan Hawke as Mason’s parents and heaps of Sundance buzz, “Boyhood” could shape up to be another masterpiece for Linklater — and one of the more complex character studies of the year.